Supporting Employers with Long COVID: A Guide for Employers

JobAccommodationNetwork

PracticalSolutions•WorkplaceSuccess

SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES

WITH LONG COVID:

A GUIDE FOR EMPLOYERS

SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES WITH LONG COVID: A GUIDE FOR EMPLOYERS

JobAccommodationNetwork

PracticalSolutions•WorkplaceSuccess

Introduction

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in the spring of 2020, COVID-19 has impacted people in many ways. Government

reports estimate that millions of Americans have experienced prolonged, lingering symptoms, a condition known as

Long COVID. These symptoms can be severe enough to aect an individual’s ability to function, including the ability to

work. This publication provides information and resources to help employers support employees with Long COVID.

What is Long COVID?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), post-COVID conditions (also known as Long

COVID) are a wide range of new, returning or ongoing health problems people can experience four or more weeks

aer first being infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Even people who were asymptomatic in the days or

weeks aer they were infected can have post-COVID conditions. These conditions can present as dierent types and

combinations of health problems for dierent lengths of time. Commonly reported symptoms associated with Long

COVID include fatigue, shortness of breath, muscle pain, cough, headache, joint pain, chest pain, an altered sense of

smell, diarrhea and altered taste.

Does Long COVID affect employee mental health?

As more of the workforce returns to in-person work, many employees are experiencing fear and anxiety. In addition,

one study found that within six months of contracting COVID-19, one third of patients had been diagnosed with

neurological or psychiatric conditions, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and

psychosis. For almost 13% of these patients, this was their first such diagnosis. Mental health and workplace

well-being should be at the forefront of every employer’s planning. Through collaboration, employers can create

supportive, inclusive workplaces for all workers. The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability

Inclusion’s (EARN) Mental Health Toolkit contains information and tools that can support employers as their

employees return to work. In addition, the Campaign for Disability Employment (CDE) recently launched a new

initiative that oers several resources for employers.

How does Long COVID affect the workplace?

Long COVID is contributing to a current, national labor shortage. In a survey of Chief Executive Oicers (CEO), labor

shortages ranked as the greatest external threat by U.S. CEOs and the third greatest challenge for CEOs globally. The

Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) data published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 11.4

million job openings for June 2022, and research suggests that people leaving their jobs due to Long COVID could

account for up to 15% of these job openings.

Large companies like JPMorgan Chase and Accenture predict the current labor shortage will outlast the pandemic.

Because the competition for labor may be intense, and hiring and training new employees can be costly, employers

may want to explore ways to support and retain current employees, including those with Long COVID.

SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES WITH LONG COVID: A GUIDE FOR EMPLOYERS

JobAccommodationNetwork

PracticalSolutions•WorkplaceSuccess

How can employers support and retain employees with Long COVID?

Employers can support and retain employees with Long COVID by providing eective accommodations when needed.

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Long COVID may be a disability under the

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). As such, employers may have a legal obligation to provide accommodations.

However, there are benefits to providing accommodations beyond fulfilling legal obligations, so employers may want

to explore accommodations even when not required to do so.

When exploring accommodations for employees with Long COVID, start by asking the employee for ideas – employees

are oen the best resource for eective accommodation ideas. If the employee does not have ideas that work, the Job

Accommodation Network (JAN) can help. JAN is a free consulting service for workplace accommodations and the

ADA. As a starting point for ideas, see Accommodating Employees with COVID-19 or Long COVID.

Another way you can support employees with Long COVID is by providing workplace flexibility, such as telework

and flexible scheduling, as a benefit of employment. Providing workplace flexibility can help all employees balance

personal and workplace demands but can be especially beneficial to employees with Long COVID who may be

experiencing a disability for the first time. When flexibility is built-in, employees with disabilities have less need to

disclose personal medical information and request accommodations, making the workplace feel more inclusive.

If you do not already have a paid leave policy that covers time o needed by employees with symptoms of Long

COVID, you might consider developing one. Paid leave can ease some of the stress associated with having Long

COVID and can benefit you as an employer. For example, paid leave policies have been shown to improve employee

retention and increase productivity. For more information, see Access to Paid Leave for Family and Medical Reasons

Among Workers with Disabilities.

Finally, another way to support employees with Long COVID is to refer them to available organizational resources,

especially when an employee is experiencing a disability for the first time. If you have internal resources such as an

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) or Employee Resource Group (ERG), an employer can remind employees that

these options are available.

Questions and Answers

Q. An employee has asked for accommodations due to Long COVID. What should my next steps be?

A. Your next steps can vary depending on the situation and the specific accommodation request. Initially, an employer

should engage in the interactive process with the employee. To help ensure consistency and success, you should

consider developing written accommodation policies and procedures if you do not already have them. When

developing policies and procedures, employers should strive to dra flexible and simple procedures, appoint a

responsible person to implement them, and inform all employees about the policies by written notice or other

oice-wide communication. For more information about developing policies and procedures and providing

eective accommodations, see JAN’s Employer Page and Workplace Accommodation Toolkit.

SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES WITH LONG COVID: A GUIDE FOR EMPLOYERS

JobAccommodationNetwork

PracticalSolutions•WorkplaceSuccess

Q. What do I do if my employee cannot get an oicial Long COVID diagnosis?

A. Because Long COVID is a relatively new condition, some employees may find it challenging to obtain a definitive

diagnosis. The Long COVID diagnosis is complicated because employees may have developed Long COVID

symptoms aer having been asymptomatic with COVID-19. However, a diagnosis may not be necessary to move

forward with providing an accommodation.

The ADA defines a disability as “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.” Even

if an employee does not have an oicial diagnosis, the health care provider should be able to document that the

employee has an impairment and how the impairment aects the employee. Keep in mind that the ADA does not

provide a list of medical conditions that constitute disabilities. Instead, it includes a general definition of disability

that each person must meet. Rather than determining whether an employee has a disability, your focus should be

on the employee’s limitations and whether there are eective accommodations that would enable the employee

to perform essential job functions. It should be noted, employers may choose to provide an accommodation even

when not legally required to do so under the ADA.

Q. How do I support an employee who wants to perform 100% telework due to Long COVID?

A. If the employee meets the definition of disability and needs to perform 100% telework because of their disability,

you can consider the request as you would any other accommodation request. An employer can further support

an employee by granting the request on a temporary basis without going through the formal ADA process, with

the understanding of reassessing the need to continue telework later. This approach might give the employee the

support and flexibility needed to get treatment or adjust to having a new disability. For more information, see

Telework Accommodation Request Tool and Providing Temporary Accommodation Solutions.

Q. How do I assess what support an employee with Long COVID needs when they seem fine at work but then report

that they feel sick and ask for time o?

A. There are a few options that you may want to explore. These include intermittent leave under the Family and

Medical Leave Act (FMLA), intermittent use of accrued paid leave under company policy, or allowing an employee

with a disability to use intermittent leave as an ADA-related accommodation. If the employee prefers to work

instead of taking leave, you can work with the employee to determine whether there are accommodations you can

provide other than leave time.

Q. How flexible do I have to be when providing workplace flexibilities for an employee with Long COVID?

A. If you are providing flexibility as an accommodation under the ADA, then you must provide it unless doing so poses

an undue hardship. If you are providing flexibilities for all employees as a workplace policy, you can be as flexible

as you choose to be and then provide any additional flexibilities on a case-by-case basis when accommodating

employees with disabilities. For more information, see Managing Flexible Work Arrangements.

SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES WITH LONG COVID: A GUIDE FOR EMPLOYERS

JobAccommodationNetwork

PracticalSolutions•WorkplaceSuccess

Q. We have gone through an exhaustive interactive process with an employee who has Long COVID, trying several

accommodations, including reassignment, without success. What are resources we can provide the employee if we

have determined the employee is no longer qualified for the position?

A. Employers may determine that it is worth the investment to provide education or training for an employee

who is no longer qualified for the position currently held or other vacant positions within the organization. This

“upskilling” or “reskilling” gives the opportunity for a valued employee to acquire the skills necessary for another

position. However, when separation is the only option, you may consider providing resources to the employee as

part of your o-boarding process. Examples include the Administration for Community Living’s Disability and

Aging Networks, the Social Security Administration and state vocational rehabilitation agencies among other

job-seeker resources.

Q. An employee of mine is a caregiver for someone with Long COVID. What am I obligated to do to support them and

what types of supports can I oer?

A. In March 2022, the EEOC released new guidance about protections for caregivers, including those who care

for people living with Long COVID. Though “caregiver” is not a protected status under federal employment

discrimination laws, caregiver discrimination is illegal when it intersects with discrimination based on a caregiver’s

protected status, including disability, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity), race, color,

religion, national origin, age or genetic information. In a 2021 report prepared for Congress regarding the Family

Caregivers Act, the RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council suggests caregivers are disproportionately likely to

be a member of a protected status group, particularly women, people over 40 and members of racial minorities.

Discrimination is also illegal based on a caregiver’s association with someone with protected status, including Long

COVID, if diagnosed as a disability. The EEOC’s guidance provides information and links to additional resources.

This publication is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Ofce of Disability Employment Policy under cooperative agreements

OD-33975-19-75-4-36 with Cornell University (total funding $10,000,000) and OD-38028-22-75-4-54 with West Virginia University

Research Corporation (total funding $11,920,000). All funding for the cooperative agreements is from federal funds. The Employer

Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) is a resource for employers seeking to recruit, hire, retain and

advance qualied employees with disabilities. The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is the leading source of free, expert and

condential guidance on job accommodations and disability employment issues. The opinions expressed in this document do not

necessarily reect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of Labor, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products or

organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Version 1.0, July 2022