ADA Title 1 Basics - What Employers Need to Know

ADA Title 1 Basics is the first of three webinars that will help you understand the foundation of the Americans with Disabilities Act employment provisions to help you effectively “Managing the maze of ADA Workplace Accommodations in the COVID Era.”

All three webinars will provide you with a concrete understanding on how to apply the ADA to workplace accommodation requests received by employers:

1. ADA Title 1 Basics – What Employers Really Need to Know
2. Reasonable Accommodations – What Does that Really Mean?
3. The Interactive Process – The Key to Compliance

We will talk about the history of the ADA and the significant changes made by the ADA Amendment Act in 2008. I will go into detail of what is meant by the term ADA disability vs the Webster’s dictionary term of disability. I will explain the importance of understanding the difference of what the ADA covers and what the ADA does not cover under Title 1. It is important to have an in-depth understanding of what makes an individual qualified with a disability because it will help the employer move forward on how to implement the best reasonable accommodation, when applicable. We will discuss how the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEOC) has addressed issues related to COVID and Title 1 of the ADA.

• History of the ADA
• Defining what “Disability” means under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Defining what is NOT an impairment under the ADA
• ADA Title 1 – Employment Defined
• What makes an individual “Qualified” as an individual with a disability (QIWD)

You should attend this training if you need a deeper foundational understanding of Title 1 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to help you to more effectively manage workplace accommodations and understand the boundaries set out by the ADA in the COVID era. Many professionals are listening and watching many webinars and podcasts related to Title 1 of the ADA and COVID. They are feeling overwhelmed with information overload without really understanding the foundation of the ADA in which to apply some of these webinar trainings they are receiving from experts in the field of ADA employment.

• Human Resource Professionals
• HR specialists or HR people getting a refresher in ADA Workplace accommodations
• Physical Therapists &  Occupational Therapists (who help employers and employees with workplace accommodations)
• ADA Coordinators
• Social Workers
• Accommodation Consultants at Amazon
• Disability Leave Specialists
• Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors
• Compliance professionals
• Accessibility Professionals
• Disability rights attorneys
• Recruiters
• Disability Inclusion Professionals
• Accommodation Specialist
• Managers
• Supervisors
• Disability Advocates
• CEO
• President
• Operations
• Vice President of an Organization

Sheryl Ellis, PHRca, SHRM-CP, ADAC

Author of “Making It Work”

Sheryl Ellis has worked in Human Resources for over 20 years.  Sheryl is a consultant with Augmented HR Solutions LLC who specializes in ADA compliance, mediation, and workplace accommodations assisting employers and employees in achieving the best possible outcomes for both parties. In addition to mediating ADA issues, Sheryl helps businesses create processes and a culture that facilitates the accommodation requirements of the ADA

Before joining Augmented HR Solutions, LLC as a consultant, Sheryl provided HR services in a variety of industries, including nonprofits, communications, IT, hospitality, and manufacturing. She has worked with businesses ranging in size from start-ups to medium-sized companies. Sheryl’s experience managing a staffing agency and working for several professional employer organizations (PEO) has given her a unique insight into managing vendor relationships and HR challenges.

During her career as an HR Professional, Sheryl has had to learn how to work while managing her professional and personal life successfully. Her experience has provided her with a unique insight into Title 1 of the ADA from both employer and employee perspectives. She has learned that the more an employee understands the accommodation process, the better the outcome is for the employee and the employer. Sheryl uses her ADA expertise on a larger scale to assist employers in setting up their accommodation process, train managers and employees on ADA Workplace accommodations, assist employers with resolving workplace accommodation issues, and mediate.

Sheryl earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, and her Master of Arts in Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management from Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX.

She is a Certified ADA Coordinator (ADAC) through the ADA Coordinator Training Certification Program (ACTCP), a program administered by the Great Plains ADA Center and overseen and issued by the University of Missouri – College of Human and Environmental Sciences, School of Architectural Studies.

Based on her professional and personal experience, Sheryl published her first two books, Making It Work: Managing Your Health Condition Through ADA Workplace Accommodations and Making It Work:  Employee Workbook (2020). Through her writing, Sheryl demonstrates her passion for helping employees and employers understand how to apply the ADA to a workplace accommodation situation, and how employees can research, request, and negotiate an accommodation with their employer while still successfully managing their health condition and being productive employees. The book is designed to also be used by employers to help with the accommodation process. The workbook is designed to help the employer and employee analyze the individual’s position, analyze limitations and challenges, and help the individual find the most effective accommodation for their situation.

Also, Sheryl is a Certified Professional in Human Resources with expertise in regulations and legal mandates specific to the state of California (PHRca) and a Certified Human Resources Professional (SHRM-CP) through the Society of Human Resources Management.