You told your employer you have a medical condition. You asked for a change that would let you keep doing your job. And instead of working with you, your employer ignored the request, denied it without explanation, or — in the worst cases — used your disability as a reason to push you out. If any of that sounds familiar, you are not alone, and you may have a legal claim.

Disability accommodation is one of the most misunderstood areas of employment law. Employees often do not know what they are entitled to ask for. Employers often do not know — or pretend not to know — what they are legally required to provide. This guide explains what the law actually requires, where New York goes further than federal law, and what you can do if your employer has failed you.

Two Laws, Stronger Together

New York employees with disabilities are protected by two overlapping legal frameworks. Understanding both matters, because New York law is significantly more protective than federal law in several key respects.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the federal law. It applies to employers with 15 or more employees and prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities. A disability under the ADA is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities — things like walking, seeing, hearing, breathing, concentrating, communicating, or caring for oneself. The ADA also covers people who have a record of a disability and people who are regarded as having a disability even if they do not actually have one.

The New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) applies to all employers in New York, regardless of size. A sole proprietor with one employee is covered. The NYSHRL defines disability broadly: any physical, mental, or medical impairment resulting from anatomical, physiological, genetic, or neurological conditions that prevents the exercise of a normal bodily function or is demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques. Courts have interpreted this definition expansively, and conditions that might not qualify under the ADA can still be protected disabilities under New York law.

If you work in New York City, the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) adds a third layer of protection and is widely considered the most employee-friendly disability discrimination statute in the country. The NYCHRL requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations unless doing so would cause an undue hardship, and courts are required to construe its provisions broadly in favor of employees.

What Is a Reasonable Accommodation?

A reasonable accommodation is any modification to a job, work environment, or the way work is typically done that allows a qualified employee with a disability to perform the essential functions of the position. The concept is broader than most people realize. It is not limited to physical changes to a workspace.

Common examples of reasonable accommodations include:

• Modified work schedules — later start times, flexible hours, or part-time arrangements to accommodate medical appointments or treatment
• Remote work or telecommuting, either full-time or on certain days
• Leave of absence beyond what is provided by standard leave policies
• Reassignment to a vacant position the employee is qualified for
• Modifications to equipment or technology — ergonomic furniture, screen readers, voice recognition software
• Removal of marginal job functions that the employee cannot perform
• A quieter workspace or reduced sensory stimulation for employees with cognitive or psychiatric conditions
• Permission to take more frequent breaks

The accommodation does not have to be the one the employee requested. The employer has the right to choose among effective accommodations. But the chosen accommodation must actually work — it must allow the employee to perform the essential functions of the job.

The Interactive Process: What It Is and Why It Matters

When an employee requests an accommodation — or when an employer becomes aware that an employee may need one — the law requires both parties to engage in a good-faith, interactive process to identify an effective accommodation. This is not a formality. It is a legal obligation.

The interactive process typically begins when the employee notifies the employer of a disability and requests some form of assistance. The employer may ask for medical documentation supporting the need for accommodation. The parties then discuss what accommodations might work, what the essential functions of the job are, and what limitations the employee's condition imposes. The goal is to find a solution that allows the employee to continue working.

An employer that refuses to engage in the interactive process — that simply denies a request without discussion, ignores it entirely, or demands documentation and then never follows up — has violated its legal obligations. Courts have held that an employer's failure to engage in the interactive process is itself evidence of discrimination, even when the employer might have been able to show that no reasonable accommodation existed if it had actually looked.

What Employers Cannot Do

An employer cannot simply refuse an accommodation request because it is inconvenient or because other employees might want similar treatment. The law requires employers to make genuine efforts to accommodate disabilities, and the bar for what constitutes an undue hardship is higher than most employers acknowledge.

Undue hardship is the only complete defense to a reasonable accommodation request. An accommodation creates an undue hardship when it would impose a significant difficulty or expense on the employer, considering factors like the cost of the accommodation, the employer's financial resources, the nature of the business, and the impact on operations. For large employers, the undue hardship threshold is high. A Fortune 500 company cannot claim undue hardship because a remote work arrangement would cost something.

Employers also cannot fire or demote an employee because they requested an accommodation, refuse to hire a qualified applicant because of a disability, require an employee to be fully healed before returning to work, or retaliate against an employee for requesting an accommodation or filing a complaint.

Leave as an Accommodation

One of the most frequently contested accommodation issues is leave. Many employees are familiar with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for qualifying medical conditions. But FMLA leave and disability accommodation leave are not the same thing, and the distinction matters.

Even after FMLA leave is exhausted, an employee with a disability may be entitled to additional leave as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA and the NYSHRL. Courts have consistently held that a finite period of additional leave — beyond what FMLA provides — can be a reasonable accommodation, as long as it would allow the employee to return to work and perform the essential functions of the job. An employer that automatically terminates an employee the day FMLA leave runs out, without considering whether additional leave would be a reasonable accommodation, may have violated the law.

Psychiatric and Cognitive Disabilities

Disability accommodation law applies equally to mental health conditions and cognitive impairments. Depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, ADHD, bipolar disorder, and other psychiatric conditions can all qualify as disabilities under the ADA and the NYSHRL if they substantially limit a major life activity. The fact that a condition is not visible, or that it fluctuates in severity, does not disqualify it.

Accommodations for psychiatric and cognitive disabilities might include modified schedules to accommodate therapy appointments, permission to work from home on high-symptom days, a quieter workspace, reduced workload during a treatment period, or a leave of absence for inpatient treatment. Employers sometimes resist these accommodations more than physical ones, often because the disability is less visible. That resistance does not make the denial lawful.

When an Employer Denies Your Request

If your employer denies your accommodation request, ask for the denial in writing and ask the employer to explain why the accommodation would cause an undue hardship. Keep records of everything: your original request, any medical documentation you provided, the employer's response, and any follow-up communications.

You have several options for pursuing a claim. You can file a charge with the EEOC within 300 days of the discriminatory act for federal ADA claims. For NYSHRL claims, you have three years to file a civil lawsuit in state court. For NYCHRL claims, you have three years to file with the NYC Commission on Human Rights or in court.

Retaliation Is Its Own Violation

Requesting a disability accommodation is a protected activity. If your employer fires you, demotes you, cuts your hours, or otherwise punishes you after you requested an accommodation or filed a complaint, that retaliation is independently unlawful — separate from the underlying accommodation denial. Retaliation claims are often the strongest part of a disability discrimination case, particularly when the timing between the accommodation request and the adverse action is close.

If your employer has denied your accommodation request, refused to engage with you about alternatives, or taken adverse action against you after you disclosed a disability or asked for help, you may have a claim worth pursuing. An employment attorney can review the facts, assess the strength of your case, and help you understand your options before any deadlines pass. Most employment attorneys, including my office, offer free consultations and work on contingency — meaning there are no fees unless you recover.