REASSIGNMENT RIGHTS TO TELEWORK-APPROVED JOBS

If an agency has terminated your right to telework, do you have the right to be reassigned to a job that does permit telework?

Most don’t, but those with disabilities probably do. In a recent decision, a disabled employee asked to be reassigned to either of two vacant, telework eligible positions she was qualified for because the agency would not let her telework in her current position. When the agency refused to even consider the idea, the employee filed an EEO charge.  EEOC not only ordered the agency to reassign the employee, but also to restore leave she otherwise would not have had to take, give her $85,000 in damages, and pay $158,000 in attorney fees. We are just speculating here, but this decision may also open an opportunity for those needing religious accommodations to get telework-approved jobs. For more details, check out Desire M.,1 Complainant, v. Douglas A. Collins, Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs, EEOC No. 2026000547

(2026)