Module benefits

Workplace Accommodation; the application of this information will make you a valuable resource for any worker, employer, and union, in any work environment, in any country.  Will stakeholders appreciate your knowledge and understanding?  Absolutely.  You will be able to flag for them potential physical, cognitive and mental health risks in the workplace and suggest workplace accommodations to resolve these barriers.  You will also be able to recommend accommodations for specific types of impairments.  You will help the employer remain productive, profitable, well positioned in the market place with lots of potential, and supportive of their personnel.  And equally important, you will help employers remain compliant with disability related legislation.  All good reasons to apply workplace accommodation principles. 

Overview

This module focuses on Workplace Accommodation: a best practice principle in Disability Management.  It details what Workplace Accommodation is all about, the employer’s duty to accommodate, and the benefits of introducing accommodations in the work environment.  It also illustrates the process that is used in putting accommodations in place.

Module Content 

This module covers the following content:

  • Why are we addressing workplace accommodation?
  • What is workplace accommodation?
  • What is the purpose of accommodation in the workplace?
  • What are the guiding principles for workplace accommodation?
  • What are some strategies for workplace accommodation?
  • What are some categories for workplace accommodation?
  • What are an employer’s legal responsibilities for workplace accommodation?
  • How do we know if a workplace accommodation is “reasonable”?
  • How do we develop a workplace accommodation policy?
  • What are the challenges associated with workplace accommodation? 
  • What are the positive impacts and benefits of workplace accommodation?
  • Which workers can request a workplace accommodation?
  • How important is disclosure of an impairment?
  • Who are the stakeholders engaged with workplace accommodation?
  • What is the process in providing workplace accommodation?
  • What assessments used during workplace accommodation?
  • Workplace accommodations based on risk factors.
  • Workplace accommodations based on impairment.
  • What resources are available to support workplace accommodation?
  • The importance of Ergonomics in workplace accommodation.

We use case studies and examples throughout.

Module Design 

The module includes the following components:

Product

Size

Allotted Time for Completion

Reading material with endnotes, websites list, and references

  • 139 pages

  • 40,196 words

  • 8 hours

Video presentation 

  • 76 slides 

  • 1.5 hours

Quiz (must achieve 80%)

  • 29 questions 

  • 1 hour

Total 

10.5 hours

About the instructor

Director of Education and Professional Development

Gail Kovacs

Gail has 43+ years of front-line, management, project and curriculum development experience in health care, disability management and vocational rehabilitation in both the public and private sector and in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and other European countries.Gail is a Director of KMG Health Partners, an international firm providing Disability Management / Vocational Rehabilitation management, audit and training services. The company leads or participates in projects that assist with the development of the profession and with the evolution of client, customer and provider services. KMG trains Occupational Health and Safety, Human Resources and Line Management within employers. KMG also trains other professionals in the field. Gail has extensive activity in supporting large and small organizations with disability management processes. Gail has developed and delivered curriculum and training modules for Foreign Trained Health Professionals in Ontario to assist moving them from practicing as doctors to practicing as Disability Managers. She has also created the Study Guide, workshop and on-line training for the 8 professional domains of the Canadian Certified Vocational Evaluator (CCVE) exam.Recently she completed the development of training for front line construction supervisors in British Columbia to help them enhance their communications skills during stay in work and recover at work processes. This was in collaboration with WorkSafe B.C.Gail is a Registered Rehabilitation Professional (RRP) and a Certified Vocational Rehabilitation Professional (CVRP). She is a Past President of the Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada (VRA Canada) and of the Canadian Assessment, Vocational Evaluation and Work Adjustment Society (CAVEWAS). She has also been on the Board of Directors for the College of Vocational Rehabilitation Professionals (CVRP). She was a Trustee and Vice Chair of the Vocational Rehabilitation Association (VRA) in the UK and has supported standards development with the VRA, UK Rehab Council and British Standards Institution.Gail has a certificate in Human Resources Development and professionally practices as an Ergonomist. She is also a Canadian Certified Rehabilitation Counsellor (CCRC), a Certified Disability Management Professional (CDMP), and a Consensus Based Disability Management Auditor (CBDMA). She has been awarded the Fellowship of the Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada, the Award of Excellence from CAVEWAS, and a lifetime membership with the VRA UK all in recognition of her professional achievements in Vocational Rehabilitation and for her dedication and commitment to professional development and to client and customer services.