5685 Pandemic Preparedness in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act

2010 5685

Non-Instructional/Business Operations

SUBJECT: PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS IN THE WORKPLACE AND THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT

         The District, in conjunction with its District-wide and building-level school safety plans and team, will identify a pandemic coordinator and/or team with defined roles and responsibilities for preparedness and response planning. This team should include staff with expertise in all equal employment opportunity laws. Employees with disabilities should be included in planning discussions. Employer communications concerning pandemic preparedness should be accessible to employees with disabilities.

         Before an influenza pandemic occurs, the School District may make inquiries that are not disability-related. An inquiry is not disability-related if it is designed to identify potential non-medical reasons for absence during a pandemic (e.g., curtailed public transportation) on an equal footing with medical reasons (e.g., chronic illnesses that increase the risk of complications). The inquiry should be structured so that the employee gives one answer of "yes" or "no" to the whole question without specifying the factor(s) that apply to him or her. The answer need not be given anonymously.

         If an influenza pandemic becomes more severe or serious, according to the assessment of local, state or federal public health officials, the District may have sufficient objective information from public health advisories to reasonably conclude that employees will face a direct threat if they contract pandemic influenza. Only in this circumstance, may the District make disability-related inquiries or require medical examinations of asymptomatic employees to identify those at higher risk of influenza complications.

         The District may also encourage employees to telecommute (i.e., whereby the daily commute to a central workplace is replaced by telecommunication links, allowing employees to work from other locations such as their homes, etc.) as an infection-control strategy during a pandemic. Similarly, telecommute may be requested as a reasonable accommodation by employees with disabilities to reduce their chances of infection during an influenza pandemic.

School Safety Plans

         The School District has developed comprehensive District-wide and building-level school safety plans that address prevention and intervention strategies, emergency response and management at both the District and building level, and have the contents as prescribed in Education Law and Commissioner's Regulations.

         Both safety plans address pandemic preparedness and will be reviewed to ensure continuity with the Board policy and administrative regulations.

Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008, Public Law 110-325

Education Law Section 2801-a

8 New York Code of Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Section 155.17

Adopted:  5/10/10