NewsBrief – March 2026

What Private Employers Should Know About the New Federal Telework Guidance

Cascade's Compliance Team
compliance@cascadeemployers.com

On February 11th, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued FAQ guidance addressing telework accommodations for federal employees with disabilities under the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Rehabilitation Act is the federal law requiring disability nondiscrimination and reasonable accommodation in federal employment and federally funded programs, and it applies the same legal standards that private employers follow under the ADA. While this guidance applies specifically to federal agencies and not to private sector employers, it offers helpful insight for private employers navigating ADA telework accommodation requests.

The FAQs explain that telework is not specifically defined under federal law but generally refers to work performed at a location other than the employer-controlled worksite, most commonly the employee’s home. The guidance identifies three primary types of telework:

• Full-time telework is when an employee teleworks full-time (also referred to as remote work).
• Recurring or routine telework is when an employee teleworks on a regularly scheduled (but less than full-time) basis.
• Situational telework is temporary telework in response to extenuating circumstances that has a foreseeable end date and is infrequent. For example, allowing an employee with a disability to work from home for a set duration while they recover from a medical procedure.

The guidance explains that telework can qualify as a reasonable accommodation only if the accommodation enables applicants with disabilities to participate in the application process; enables employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their positions; or enables employees with disabilities to enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment as are enjoyed by employees without disabilities.

Additionally, the FAQs clarify that telework is not required as a reasonable accommodation if it is primarily for the employee’s personal benefit or merely mitigates symptoms without enabling the employee to perform the essential functions of the position. The FAQs goes on to explain that federal agencies are not required to automatically continue all previously approved telework accommodations, but they also cannot rescind them on a blanket basis. This means that each request must be reviewed individually through the interactive process.

With respect to documentation, federal agencies may require medical documentation to support an evidence-based accommodation decision. In some cases, previously provided documentation may be adequate, and the federal agency can simply confirm that the information remains current. However, if the existing documentation is outdated or does not provide enough detail to evaluate the need for telework, federal agencies are allowed to request updated medical information. As part of that process, an agency may ask the employee’s health care provider whether mitigating measures or self-accommodations would enable the employee to perform essential functions in the office, to assess whether alternative effective accommodations are available. However, an agency cannot deny an accommodation solely because an employee declines a particular medical treatment, and the determination of whether an individual meets the definition of disability must be made without regard to the positive effects of mitigating measures.

Although this guidance is directed at federal agencies, it provides insight into how the EEOC may evaluate telework as a reasonable accommodation for private employers under the ADA. It is also important to note that this is guidance, not binding law. However, the framework and practical guidance outlined in the FAQs are generally consistent with how private employers should evaluate telework accommodation requests under federal law, as well as under Oregon and Washington disability accommodation requirements.

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