Accommodation of Mental Disabilities
October 21, 2025
By: Colin A. Walker
Requests for accommodation of mental disabilities, such as anxiety and depression, by employees are becoming more and more common. Mental health disabilities are particularly difficult to accommodate because of the need for accommodation, what accommodations are needed, and whether they are reasonable or impose an undue hardship on the employer are often unclear.
The same standards apply to mental disabilities as other disabilities. And, like all disabilities, what accommodations are reasonable depend on the facts and circumstances including the employee’s and doctor’s recommendations.
The first step in the process is talking to the employee. This, known as the “interactive process,” is required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and most state disability laws. As the term implies, this requires a good faith discussion between the employee and the employer about the need for accommodation and the accommodations that might be appropriate. The employer should focus on the employee’s ability to do the job and accommodations, not on health care information that is not related to the ability to do the job. While the employee may volunteer healthcare information, the employer should not ask about it except to the extent that it relates directly to the ability to perform job duties and accommodations which are directly related to job duties. The employee should be asked to have their healthcare provider complete an accommodation form. Examples of disability accommodation request forms can be found on the Internet.
A reasonable accommodation refers to those accommodations which presently, or in the near future, enable the employee to perform the essential functions of the job. An employer is not required to make an accommodation if it would fundamentally alter the nature of the job or if it would eliminate an essential function of the job. An employer is also not obligated to excuse or overlook an employee’s misconduct or forego discipline even if the misconduct itself resulted from the employee’s disability. However, if the misconduct of an employee with a mental disability can be remedied through a reasonable accommodation, then an employer should consider offering that accommodation.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s website provides guidance on possible accommodations for mental health disabilities here.
The DOL website references the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation which has an almost identical list of possible accommodations. While the list is lengthy, the following are notable:
- Positive feedback;
- Division of large assignments into smaller tasks and goals;
- Equipment/technology and project management software designed for employees with disabilities;
- Regular check-ins;
- More frequent meetings to help prioritize tasks;
- Flexible work arrangements, flexible work hours, and work from home;
- White noise canceling headphones;
- Breaks during the workday.
The EEOC also provides guidance here.
The accommodations listed by the DOL and EEOC are not per se required. As can be seen, many of the suggested accommodations are vague. Depending on the position, many would also require eliminating an essential function of the job or would be an undue hardship, which is not required of the employer. Again, whether a particular accommodation is required depends largely on the circumstances. For example, leaving work whenever the employee wants to is not a reasonable accommodation. However, more frequent breaks might be reasonable for some positions. Similarly, several court cases have held that working from home is not reasonable when it would require eliminating an essential function of the job, but it might be reasonable in other situations.
When considering such issues, an accurate and current job description is important. Managers considering mental health disability accommodations should carefully compare the requested accommodation to the duties set forth in the job description. What is a reasonable accommodation for one position may be very unreasonable for another.
What’s important is that the employer communicates with the employee in good faith, and is able to explain their decisions.