A manager of human resources of every type of organization, from government agencies to private corporations, must be aware of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Americans with Disabilities Act is legislation that was passed in order to protect the civil rights of all individuals regardless of any physical, learning, or developmental disability. The act ensures that anyone who requires additional accommodation for any type of disability is able to have a fair opportunity for employment. Employers are expected to provide these accommodations unless a hardship would be verifiable incurred. The accommodations could range from training material delivery to physical access.
The Role of the Human Resources Manager
Most types of organizations have a human resources director or upper-level manager in place. These types of organizations can include government agencies, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, private business firms, religious organizations, and community groups. Human resources managers are responsible for many of the employee related activities and operations that take place within an organization.
Resource: What is a Typical Day Like for a Human Resources Manager?
Common tasks for a human resources managers include many that relate to the Americans with Disabilities Act. For training, employers are responsible for such things as providing alternate training materials, additional time for training and tests to be completed, and additional training supplements. In terms of hiring and termination, it would be the responsibility of a human resources manager to ensure that all candidates are given fair and equal consideration without judgment or penalty for any type of disability covered under the act. The same would hold true for employee performance evaluations and promotions. In addition, many human resources managers handle the compensation and benefits for an organization, and it would be necessary to work closely with employees to ensure that these were fairly and equitably distributed.
In addition, employers might look to a human resources manager to ensure that every area of the organization was accessible to an employee with a disability under the act. If a company was not in compliance, the human resources manager would likely be the point of contact for any employee who had a complaint about accessibility or fair practices.
A manager of human resources will ultimately be responsible for ensuring that all types of organizations with more than 15 employees are in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. In particular, a human resources manager will have to ensure that all hiring, termination, training, promotion, and other employment factors adhere to the guidelines outlined in the legislation.
There are many responsibilities that a manager of human resources undertakes. Staying within all federal regulations and laws is one of those responsibilities. Among these, human resources managers have to have knowledge of how to implement policies and guidelines within an organization in order to adhere to the Americans with Disabilities Act.
