CDC Expands Interim Telework for Disability Accommodations, but Union Says Issues Remain

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will now allow certain employees with disabilities to telework as an interim accommodation, “when no other interim accommodation meets the needs of the employee.” 

Under the change, CDC was given authority by its parent agency - the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) - to grant the interim telework accommodations. However, HHS itself must make the determination on final accommodation requests.

The new policy is “effective immediately” for employees who are waiting on HHS to process their request. 

Despite the change, HHS noted that telework is still a last resort. 

“While sharing this update, HHS OHR leadership continued to stress the importance of examining alternative, non-telework accommodations as part of the interactive process,” a CDC deputy director wrote in an email. 

HHS and CDC officials said the interim step is intended to address delays in the accommodation process while preserving case-by-case review requirements under federal disability policy.

Union Change Doesn’t Address Key Issue

Union leaders say that while they are happy with the change, it doesn’t fix the underlying issue. 

“The reality is, final accommodations for telework as a reasonable accommodation are still consistently denied, and this new guidance does not suggest that improving,” said American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2883 President Yolanda Jacobs. “This new guidance is simply not an effective solution. Workers’ needs continue to be ignored and unmet.”

Meanwhile CDC interim director Jay Bhattacharya– also head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)- told employees at a March 25 town hall that he would push for “enhanced flexibility on telework,” especially for reasonable accommodations. 

Centralizing Accommodation Requests

The changes come after HHS centralized the accommodation request process in December, meaning that requests from all component agencies would directly pass through HHS. As a result, the agency has a backlog of about 9,000 cases.

Seth Kroop, deputy director for management, operations, communications and policy at CDC’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), recently told staff that he expects the backlog to be cleared within six to nine months. Managers will also receive new training soon on reasonable accommodations, as well as how to handle interim requests. 

OPM itself told agencies not to take a “blanket approach” in deciding telework accommodations. 

“Returning to in-person work and upholding disability rights are not mutually exclusive,” said OPM Director Scott Kupor.