I have a recent injury which caused physical limitations to complete my job duties. What steps can I take to be reassigned to a vacant position, or job restructuring.

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I have a recent injury which caused physical limitations to complete my job duties. What steps can I take to be reassigned to a vacant position, or job restructuring.

I have a recent non on the job injury
which caused physical limitations to
complete my job duties. What steps can I
take to be reassigned to a vacant
position, or job restructuring. How mu h
do you charge for this service.

Asked on March 27, 2018 under Employment Labor Law, New York

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 6 years ago | Contributor

You do not have a right to reassigned to a different job. An employer must make "reasonable accommodations" for employee disability. A reasonable acccommodation is a change in rules or procedures, or the provision of some assistive device or technology, which is not too expensive or disruptive (i.e. not unreasonable to do) *and* which lets the employer do all the core or important functions of his or her job. But an employer does NOT need to give the employee a different job. 
Examples:
A cashier normally stands, but has to sit: since you can do the core functions of being a cashier while sitting, the employer must let her sit and provide a chair or stool.
A secretary or data entry person has carpal tunnel syndome: the employer may need to provide an ergonomic keyboard or voice-recoginition software for dictation, assuming that with one or both, the employee could still do his job.
But say a nurse who has to be able to lift/move/support patients, or a person in a company's shipping department who must move/load heavy boxes, comes under a lifting restriction and cannot lift more than 10 lbs. They cannot do their job while only lifting 10 lbs, and so could be terminated from the position; and more relevantly to your question, the employer is under no obligation whatsoever to more them to a "desk" or other job. They must be able to do *their* job; they have no right to a different job. (The company could choose to move them to a different job, but that if voluntary on the company's behalf; they can't be forced to do this.)


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

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