My employer denied me the reasonable accommodation I requested due to “undue hardship.” What is undue hardship?
When employees with disabilities request reasonable accommodations to keep them working, employers have a legal duty to provide the accommodation unless doing so would result in an undue hardship. Undue hardship means that the business would experience significant difficulty or expenses in making the appropriate accommodations.
There is a high bar for establishing undue hardship. It does not simply mean the employer is inconvenienced or burdened. Under California law, several important factors must be considered when determining whether undue hardship exists, including the following:
- Costs of the accommodations to the employer
- Size of the employer, including the number of employees and available financial resources
- Type of work the employer performs and how the business is structured
- Effect of the accommodation on the operations of the workplace
The employer has the burden of proving that the employee’s requested accommodation would cause undue hardship. Sometimes employers may try to use undue hardship as an excuse to deny an employee’s request for reasonable accommodations.
If your employer is unlawfully avoiding discussing reasonable accommodations with you or refusing to provide them even though no undue hardship exists, speak to an experienced San Francisco employment lawyer. You may have a disability discrimination claim against your employer.
Other Disability & Medical Leave FAQs:
- Am I entitled to leave for a serious family matter?
- Can My Employer Fire Me for Requesting Medical Leave under FMLA or CFRA?
- Do I qualify for a medical leave from work under FMLA or CFRA?
- I was recently injured and need to request an accommodation. Can my employer fire me if I make the request?
- In California, can my employer fire me because of my disability?
- Is my boss allowed to fire me while I am on leave?
- Is my employer required to accommodate my disability?
- Is there a medical exemption to vaccine work requirements?
- Is there a religious exemption to vaccine work requirements?
- My employer denied me the reasonable accommodation I requested due to “undue hardship.” What is undue hardship?
- What counts as a reasonable accommodation?
- What disabilities and conditions are protected?
- What disabilities are covered under California employment discrimination laws?
- What is a “reasonable accommodation” for disability under California employment law?
Practice Areas
Schedule your free consultation today: 415.925.5161
Client testimonials
This law firm was the only one to answer the phone out of the 15-20 law firms that I called that day. I had a wrongful termination case and Bryan really took the time to listen and understand what happened in my situation, and he knows the law to a T. – Shanic M.
I was owed wages and overtime and my employer refused to pay me. So I hired them to file a lawsuit. Bryan easily understood my very complicated case and I am happy with the results. – Ebi Z.
I didn’t have to pay anything, the firm took the whole risk of managing the case. Through the 14 months, Bryan always kept me updated, was very responsive and patient to questions I had. We achieved a resolution out of court in my favor, making me even happier about the experience. – Peter S.
I can honestly say that my experience with Bryan was all the way positive from day one… We had very high expectations about our case and in the end we got what we hoped for. – Roger J.
I won my trial and I got more than I expected. Everyone in the office is so nice and helpful. Even after everything was finished I could call a few weeks after and ask questions to make sure I was protected and they are more than helpful. – Husain N.
I never had to pay Bryan anything up front, nor was ever pressured to settle early. We ended up settling morning of the trial. Bryan is a really sharp, aggressive, seasoned attorney and knew the law inside and out about whistleblower cases. – Kyle B.
SEEN ON
![Fox40-bw Fox40-bw](https://bmcclaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Fox40-bw.png)
![KPIX-bw KPIX-bw](https://bmcclaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/KPIX-bw-e1610654392549.png)
![SFGate-bw SFGate-bw](https://bmcclaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/SFGate-bw.png)
![marin-ij marin-ij](https://bmcclaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/marin-ij.jpg)
![Abc10-bw Abc10-bw](https://bmcclaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Abc10-bw.png)