An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law Compendium

D OCUMENT 9.I

I NTERACTIVE P ROCESS M EETING S CRIPT F OR E MPLOYEES

I want to welcome everyone to this meeting to consider the full range of potential accommodations that the school can make to enable [employee] to perform [his/her] essential job duties. We have received a fitness for duty report from [Dr. ____], dated [_____], that states that Employee [e.g., is not fit to return to duty, can return to duty provided that the following accommodations are provided: list accommodations]. Dr. [____] completed this report after conducting an interview and administering several tests and reviewing a [date] report from [employee’s] doctor. Our goal today is to identify every possible option, within the restrictions that the doctor(s) has imposed, that would enable you to perform your essential job functions. Once we identify all the options, we can then determine whether [employee] is interested in any of those options and whether they would impose an undue hardship on the school. So let’s talk about whether the employer would be able to return you to part time work as Dr. [____] has suggested. Does that option interest you? In order to make that accommodation work, we would need [discuss operational limitations, e.g., more staffing, rearrange job duties]. [Discuss all accommodations the doctor(s) has suggested in the same manner as the preceding paragraph.] Another option is to allow you additional leave time. Providing additional leave time can be a reasonable accommodation if the additional leave will enable you to return to work on a date certain. As of today’s date, you have been off since [date]. During your absence, the school has been [add how the school has accommodated the leave so far and any operational hardships that have occurred]. Still another option is to determine if you are qualified for another job opening in the school. [Discuss all open jobs and whether employee has the minimum qualifications or interest in the open jobs.] Before we conclude this meeting, is there anything else that anyone has to add regarding potential accommodations? Are there any stones that we have left unturned? I will follow up with you in writing as to the school’s decision as to whether any of the potential accommodations that we have discussed today would be reasonable for the school. Thank you very much for your time and assistance.

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law - Compendium ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 149