Don’ts:
- Don’t involuntarily exclude employees based on being over the age of 65 and thus “high risk” for contracting COVID-19. Doing so is illegal, even if the motivation is to keep the employees safe.
- Likewise, don’t involuntarily exclude pregnant workers based on perceived virus risk to the employee or her child.
- Don’t require COVID-19 antibody testing as a condition of workplace re-entry.
Dos:
- Engage in an individualized assessment as to whether an employee with a disability can safely return to work, with or without accommodation, without being a direct threat to himself.
- Provide accommodations for pregnant employees on the same terms as disabled employees to enable them to safely return to work.
- Prevent harassment based on national origin (particularly, Chinese and Asian employees).
- Provide accommodations based on caregiving responsibilities and school closures to employees on a gender-neutral basis.
- Apply accommodations and policies consistently.
Do if you want:
- Provide accommodation for work at home, if possible, for employees age 65 and older who choose not to return to work due to COVID-19 virus risk, even though it is not legally required to do so.
- Provide accommodation for work at home to employees with high-risk family members, if possible.
- Provide temperature screeners of the same gender.