STUDY ON DISABILITY & REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION IN THE GAO WORKFORCE DECEMBER 2019 Personnel Appeals Board United States Government Accountability Office Personnel A p peals B oa r d December 9, 2019 Hand Delivery The Honorable Gene L. Dodaro Comptroller General of the United States United States Government Accountability Office 441 G Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20548 Dear Comptroller General Dodaro: Pursuant to the GAO Personnel Act of 1980, the Personnel Appeals Board has statutory responsibility to oversee equal employment opportunity at the United States Government Accountability Office. The Board performs its function through a process of review and assessment that includes conducting studies and preparing evaluative reports containing the Board's findings and recommendations. In exercise of this authority, the Board's Study on Disability & Reasonable Accommodation in the GAO Workforce is attached. Sincerely, ~A-~ Richard S. Ugelow Chair Enclosure U.S. Government Accountability Office • 441 G Street, N.W. • Suite 1566 • Washington, D.C. 20548 • 202-512-6137 PERSONNEL APPEALS BOARD UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE Chair Richard S. Ugelow Vice Chair Carol A. De Deo Members Rosa M. Koppel Barbara S. Fredericks Carole W. Wilson PERSONNEL APPEALS BOARD STAFF Susan P. Inzeo Executive Director Vanessa H. Gallagher Director, Office of EEO Oversight Sue Sung Farley Solicitor Kevin P. Wilson Senior Staff Attorney Patricia V. Reardon-King Clerk of the Board i ii STUDY ON DISABILITY & REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION IN THE GAO WORKFORCE Executive Summary The objective of the Study on Disability and Reasonable Accommodation in the GAO Workforce is to conduct a legal review of applicable GAO policies, procedures, and practices, to ascertain the extent to which they reflect the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), a decade after it became law. In this context, the Board reviewed available GAO personnel data relating to employment of people with disabilities across several fiscal years and compared this data, where possible, to similar figures from the federal civilian workforce. The Board also reviewed GAO personnel data relating to requests for reasonable accommodation across a similar time period. The Board’s study reveals that the amended law is reflected in some GAO policies, procedures, and practices, but that several relevant GAO Orders have not been updated to include reference to the ADA, as amended by the ADAAA. The study also reveals that GAO’s employment of people with disabilities falls below federal goals and percentages in the federal civilian workforce for the fiscal years under review. The Board’s study offers recommendations to enhance compliance with the ADA, as amended by the ADAAA, in Agency policies, procedures, and practices, including its reasonable accommodation program, to strengthen the Agency’s commitment to attract, hire, and retain employees with disabilities. Recommendations 1. Develop and implement a Disability Plan, similar to plans under development in Executive Branch agencies, incorporating best practices for recruiting, hiring, retaining, and advancing qualified people with disabilities, as well as targeted disabilities, and announce the Agency’s goals for employing people with disabilities, as well as targeted disabilities, during Town Hall meetings and through postings to GAO’s internal and public websites. 2. Undertake early steps in the Agency’s recruitment and hiring process to increase awareness among hiring officials, managers, and employees of: (a) the Agency’s goals for hiring and retaining qualified people with disabilities and targeted disabilities; and (b) the extent of the Agency’s reasonable accommodation program. 3. Review and revise GAO policies, procedures, and practices, as necessary, to ensure they accurately describe the process by which people with disabilities may be hired at GAO (clarifying, for example, GAO’s noncompetitive appointment process which is similar, but not identical, to Schedule A in the Executive Branch). iii 4. Increase responsibilities of the Human Capital Office, its Reasonable Accommodation Office, and the Office of Opportunity and Inclusiveness to: (a) strengthen efforts to track and measure progress toward the Agency’s goals for hiring and retaining people with disabilities (recommended at 12% for disabilities and 2% for targeted disabilities); (b) request and collect feedback from people with disabilities submitting reasonable accommodation requests to identify opportunities for enhancement of the reasonable accommodation program; (c) report this information to the Comptroller General annually; and (d) consider adding an accounting or statistics professional to the Reasonable Accommodation Office to assist in this endeavor while retaining confidentiality of disability records. 5. Develop and advise the Board of a schedule for review and publication of revision to GAO Orders relating to employment of people with disabilities and reasonable accommodation to ensure that GAO Orders: (a) timely reflect changes in law affecting the rights of people with disabilities at the Agency; and (b) afford appropriate opportunity for employees with disabilities to advance within the Agency. 6. Review criteria for approval of reasonable accommodation requests at GAO to ensure the focus of review remains on providing accommodation to qualified people with disabilities (rather than on assessing the level of disability) to allow for modifications that do not present an undue hardship for the Agency. 7. Include a direct link to the Agency’s Reasonable Accommodation resources on both the Agency’s intranet and internet home pages to enhance ease of access to these resources. The Board offers the above recommendations to assist the Agency in ensuring full legal compliance with the ADA, as amended by the ADAAA. This can increase the number of people with disabilities employed at the Agency and the pool of talent that assists the United States Congress in meeting its responsibilities to improve the performance and accountability of the federal government for the benefit of the American people. Personnel Appeals Board December 2019 iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter I: Introduction .…………………………………………………………...………… 1 Chapter II: Methodology .………………………………………………………………..…… 15 Chapter III: The Americans with Disabilities Act, as Amended, and the GAO Personnel Act of 1980 .………………………………………............... 17 Chapter IV: Analysis of GAO Policies, Procedures, and Practices ….……………….………. 27 Chapter V: Analysis of Reasonable Accommodation Processing at GAO ………………….. 53 Chapter VI: Analysis of GAO Personnel Data ……………………………....……………...… 71 Chapter VII: Analysis of Requests for Reasonable Accommodation at GAO …….………....... 109 Chapter VIII: Conclusion and Recommendations ....………………………...……….………… 131 APPENDICES Appendix A: Executive Orders ……………..............…………….……..……...…………....... A-3 Appendix B: Selected Provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as Amended ……. A-11 Appendix C: Lists of Targeted and Nontargeted Disabilities …….……..……...…………..... A-25 Appendix D: Employees with Disabilities in the Federal Civilian Workforce .………............ A-31 Appendix E: Applicants for Employment with Disabilities at GAO ….....…………………... A-39 Appendix F: Employees with Disabilities at GAO …….………………………..…..…….… A-43 Appendix G: Disabilities of Employees at GAO ….……………...……………………......… A-47 Appendix H: Reasonable Accommodation Requests at GAO .………………………...……. A-53 Appendix I: Reasonable Accommodation Requests by Disability at GAO ……….………... A-59 Appendix J: Forms of Reasonable Accommodation Provided to Employees at GAO ........... A-63 Appendix K: Separated Employees with Disabilities at GAO ……………………….....….... A-67 Appendix L: Applicable GAO Policies, Procedures, and Practices ………..…….…….......... A-71 Appendix M: Comments .……………………………..………………………………….….. A-79 v vi Study on Disability & Reasonable Accommodation in the GAO Workforce Personnel Appeals Board STUDY ON DISABILITY & REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION IN THE GAO WORKFORCE ______________________________________________________________________________ CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This study was conducted by the Personnel Appeals Board (the Board or PAB), which is responsible for overseeing equal employment opportunity at the Government Accountability Office (the Agency or GAO).1 The Board undertook this Study on Disability & Reasonable Accommodation in the GAO Workforce to help GAO review its current policies, procedures, and practices following the sweeping changes to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 resulting from enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008. The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits disability-based discrimination in employment, and includes the requirement that employers provide effective “reasonable accommodation” to people with disabilities, when requested, if doing so would not present an undue hardship to the employer. As GAO makes strategic efforts to maximize diversity, equity, and inclusion,2 this study is designed to determine whether GAO has policies in place that are consistent with the Agency’s obligations to comply with federal law under the ADA, as amended, especially relating to reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities. This study focuses only on the issue of the current status of the law and how GAO has applied the law to its policies, practices, and procedures, which