Federal employee RA re-evaluation; existing accommodation stopped while review is pending?
Federal civilian employee and am looking for experiences/advice from anyone familiar with the reasonable accommodation process.
Earlier this year I was approved for a reasonable accommodation that allows limited telework. The written approval says the accommodation is to be reviewed every six months; it does not appear to say that it automatically expires after six months.
I recently contacted the disability/RA office because the six-month review was coming up. I was told that under the current process, my supervisor will make a recommendation to approve, modify, or deny the accommodation, and then the package goes to a higher-level deciding official for a final determination.
While that review is pending, however, my supervisor has told me that my existing RA is no longer in effect and that I cannot continue teleworking under the actual existing RA.
This is where I’m confused. I have seen current DoD guidance indicating that existing reasonable accommodations remain in place while undergoing review. I have asked the disability/RA office to clarify whether my existing accommodation should remain in effect while the new determination is pending, but I’m waiting for an answer.
I’m following my supervisor’s reporting instructions in the meantime because I don’t want this to become a conduct issue.
Has anyone else dealt with this under the newer DoD/federal RA procedures? In particular, can an existing accommodation that says it is subject to periodic review simply be discontinued when the review date arrives, before the new RA decision is made? Is there a distinction between an RA that actually has an expiration date and one that says it will be “reviewed” periodically? Any other helpful advice ? Thank you fellow coworkers!