[blindlaw] Federal Hiring Processes and Accommodations

[Cody Davis]

All, 

Has anyone had any experience requesting accommodations in the federal hiring process? 

I have applied for a paralegal position in a U.S. Attorneys office. Part of the application requires taking multiple online assessments of various kinds, some of which are timed and some of which, I think, include videos. When I attempted to take the assessments myself, I found that my screen reader had difficulty interacting with the assessment content. I am using Voiceover on a Mac, and I tried using both Safari and Firefox browsers with no success. 

I submitted the required form to request accommodations through the U.S. Staffing Office several days ago. I included a Schedule A letter to document my disability and need for accommodations. I was submitting the application on the second to final day it was open, and the request for accommodations had to be submitted by the job closing date, so I had to rely on the Schedule A letter as it was the only documentation I had available to me. 

The US Staffing Office got back to me today to let me know that they need further documentation of my disability, why that interferes with my ability to take the assessments, what accommodations I am requesting, and how those accommodations will enable me to complete the assessments. I have no problem getting this documentation to them, but it will take some time. I received the request today at 3PM and it gave me a deadline of June 16 by 3PM to submit the additional documentation. A single business day and 2 weekend days is not sufficient time to get documentation from a VR counselor or medical professional. I have requested more time to submit documentation. 

Has anyone else had experience requesting accommodations for assessments as part of a federal government job application?
If so, what documentation did you rely on and from whom did you get the Documentation. I am wondering if a letter from my VR Counselor will be sufficient. 
Finally, does anyone else believe the deadline they gave me for submitting the additional documentation is unreasonable? 

I am grateful for any insight you all may have to share. 

Respectfully,
Cody Davis