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Electrical Sensitivity

Accommodation and Compliance: Electrical Sensitivity

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About Electrical Sensitivity

There are people who report a sensitivity to electromagnetic fields. Although it has been difficult for the environmental health and medical communities to define, individuals with electromagnetic sensitivity report various symptoms including but not limited to fatigue, weakness, neurological issues, immunological issues, gastrointestinal issues, increased irritability, lack of ability to think clearly and quickly, sleep disturbance, overall malaise, and anxiety. Despite the medical community's difficulty in defining electromagnetic sensitivity, individuals with the condition may benefit from job accommodations.

Electrical Sensitivity and the Americans with Disabilities Act

The ADA does not contain a definitive list of medical conditions that constitute disabilities. Instead, the ADA defines a person with a disability as someone who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more "major life activities," (2) has a record of such an impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment. For more information about how to determine whether a person has a disability under the ADA, see How to Determine Whether a Person Has a Disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA).

Accommodating Employees with Electrical Sensitivity

People with electrical/electromagnetic sensitivity may develop some of the limitations discussed below, but seldom develop all of them. Also, the degree of limitation will vary among individuals. Be aware that not all people with electrical/electromagnetic sensitivity will need accommodations to perform their jobs and many others may only need a few accommodations. The following is only a sample of the possibilities available. Numerous other accommodation solutions may exist.

Questions to Consider:

  1. What limitations is the employee experiencing?
  2. How do these limitations affect the employee and the employee’s job performance?
  3. What specific job tasks are problematic as a result of these limitations?
  4. What accommodations are available to reduce or eliminate these problems? Are all possible resources being used to determine possible accommodations?
  5. Once accommodations are in place, would it be useful to meet with the employee to evaluate the effectiveness of the accommodations and to determine whether additional accommodations are needed?
  6. Do supervisory personnel and employees need training?

Key Accommodations:

  • Allow communication via typewriter or handwritten notes rather than via computer or work with the employee to determine what modifications would allow them to use a computer safely and effectively.
  • Provide headset/handset extenders or alternate headsets to lengthen the distance between devices that trigger symptoms and the employee's body
  • Change the employee's shift to allow for less exposure to others' devices
  • Relocate workplace away from areas where symptoms are triggered.  This may include limiting certain types of devices in the vicinity of the employee's workstation
  • Allow telework 
  • Allow the employee to meet with others in areas where triggers are minimized or allow remote access to meetings or activities that must take place in areas that trigger symptoms.
  • Provide wired telephones and network connections
  • Provide building-wide and/or workspace shielding of equipment and devices, for example add filters to fluorescent lights and tape electrical cords

Accommodation Ideas:

Situations and Solutions:

The following situations and solutions are real-life examples of accommodations that were made by JAN customers. Because accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis, these examples may not be effective for every workplace but give you an idea about the types of accommodations that are possible.

Events Regarding Electrical Sensitivity