September 2021 Meeting

Meeting Date
  • Access Info
  • Introductions
  • Council Business
    • October Conference, update from Pam McGuinty (Office of DEI)
      • “Toward an Anti-Ableist Academy: Advancing Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility at U-M”
      • First Session on October 4th
      • Keynote Speaker: Dr. Oluwaferanmi O. Okanlami
      • 11 sessions over the course of the month - all virtual
      • Website will be updated as the month continues, so stay tuned!
      • Still looking for panelists for a few sessions
        • Panel on requesting accommodations at UM - looking for employee or student willing to share their experiences
        • Panel on physical accessibility - looking for anyone willing to share experiences about physical accessibility on campus
        • Email Pam if you’re available ([email protected])
  • WISE Recommendations update
    • WISE Committee made recommendations about work environments and flexibility
    • CfDC sent a response in early August, have not heard back yet
      • Specifically mentioned concerns about:
        • Needs of people with disabilities who need remote work accommodations
        • Unclear processes for disability related accommodations
        • UM is currently directing a large caseload through Work Connections, which may not be sustainable
  • Faculty and Staff remote work requests and accommodations this fall
    • Work Connections
      • Presentation by Kate Rychlinski, Assistant Director, Risk Management Services
      • What does the Work Connections (WC) Office do?
        • WC is a separate entity from HR; WC is a subdivision of Risk Management, which is under Finance/Business
        • WC was established in recognition of the fact that employees have confidential health concerns that should stay confidential
        • WC is a place where employees can provide medical information that is separate from their department records, only shared with authorized people (relevant Work Connection employees, HR in need-to-know situations)
          • If an employee is comfortable sharing a diagnosis/medical situation, they can, but WC does not share that information with any other department
          • WC complies with all HIPPA guidelines
          • Releases information when
            • There is written authorization from the employee
            • Strict need to know (ie. health/safety, employment status decisions)
            • Compliant with legal requirements
        • WC wants to minimize the impact disability has on employee lives
        • WC is a central hub of a wheel - connects employees to the relevant parts of campus to get accommodations
          • WC communicates between employee, family, and supervisor, community resources
        • Administers workers compensation claims, tries to help facilitate benefits
          • WC cannot provide guidance about benefit plans
        • Goal is to help employees keep working when it is safe to do so. When it’s not, WC is an entry point to facilitate referrals for Long-term disability (LTD) benefits
          • WC has a focus on Return to Work
          • WC can provide support for accomodations, ergonomic consultations, job analysis, etc.
          • WC provides advance notice of return to work and restrictions to relevant departments
          • WC coordinates/refers to ADA Coordinator, other stakeholders as needed
        • Staff: 14 case managers, including
          • 4 Nurses
          • 3 Physicians
          • 1 Occupational health physician
        • All faculty and non-student staff can access WC
          • For some people with work-related injuries, participation may be required
          • People with non-work related injuries can participate voluntarily
          • All potential long term care (LTC) cases must go through WC
        • Non-occupational cases that WC can help with:
          • Lost time cases - when more than 10 days are lost
          • Intermittent cases - when non-contiguous absences total more than 10 days of lost work
          • FMLA is available upon request
        • WC Does NOT
          • Bear responsibility for obtaining medical documentation
          • Make decision about sick time payment
          • Make employment decisions
          • Provide guidance on discipline or other employment/performance related issues
          • Substitute for supervisory communication
      • What is the role of this office in determining and coordinating accommodations for faculty/staff in the Fall semester?
        • WC has recently gotten more involved in requests for remote work accommodations
          • After the request is made, WC asks for sufficient medical documentation to assist the reasoning for remote work as the only option
          • Based on CDC guidance, the COVID lead at Michigan Medicine and/or WC consultants will review documentation
          • Whether or not a department can accommodate the employee is up to HR and that department.
          • If WC cannot say that remote work is the *only* option for an employee, ADA coordinator may get involved
          • If the medical documentation is insufficient, employee can submit additional information and WC can reassess
            • Diagnosis and ongoing treatment are good indicators for the need for remote work
        • Many departments are directing all requests for remote work to WC, some of which are ADA-related and some of which are not
        • Outline of medical documentation required is in the first WC instructions issued to employees
          • Would be helpful to have these instructions easily available on the WC website
    • Presentation by Rebekah Modrak and Michael Atzmon
      • Modrak and Atzmon collected stories and data from faculty and staff who sought accommodations for remote teaching this fall due to immunocompromised status or an immunocompromised person in their household.
      • They are doing work independently of their Senate Assembly responsibilities (including vaccine mandate petition and additional protections petition)
      • Collected stories from 14 faculty who had done the accommodations process through WC
        • All 14 had significant and long term medical conditions, all were declined remote work options by WC
        • 13 of 14 asked to teach remotely, 1 asked for leave
        • Accounts are very consistent across different people that:
          • There seems to be a pattern at WC that suggests UM has a policy that requests would be denied instead of considering requests individually
            • There is belief that this is a UM administrative policy
            • WC has not received this direction
          • WC seems to have the power to override primary care physicians and may interfere with treatment, sometimes in harmful way
          • WC does work by phone, not providing a paper trail
          • WC staff is often rude and disrespectful, and that the process added to exhaustion and health issues
      • Currently, the ADA seems to be taking requests for remote work a little more seriously (on an individual basis) than WC and other chairs
      • Trying to spread the word to gain support for these and other faculty
      • Discussion
        • WC can help especially when a supervisor is not being helpful - checks and balances dynamic
        • WC is focused on getting people back to work and on rehabilitation, whereas the ADA will treat everyone as an individual which doesn’t necessarily account for external circumstances (like living with an immunocompromised person). Neither system is able to handle all the requests we’re currently seeing
        • Some employees have had flexible and accommodating supervisors, regardless of whether or not they received WC approvals
        • Medical Ergonomics can assist in some cases, and does sometimes receive referrals from WC
      • Feedback for WC
        • Employers are relying on WC to help make decisions, so clarifying the role of WC to supervisors would be helpful
        • A better map of access to resources would also be helpful
        • Guidelines for what medical documentation should include should be located on Work Connections website near the form information and within the form itself.
          • Forms on WC don’t make sense for all situations
    • Questions
      • When should MHealthy vs Work Connections be referred to for employees for ADA Accommodations?
      • What about when a supervisor offers accommodations, but then the supervisor changes and the new supervisor doesn’t see a reason to continue?
      • Is there published data about the number of applications to Work Connections and the number of positive/negative recommendations? (or where those applications are routed?)
      • How does accomodations information get to WC if a supervisor from a particular department reaches out to Work Connections to explain accommodations their employees are receiving?
    • Needs and possible next steps? How can the Council advocate?
  • Adjourn: 1:00