4 ms·

I've been living with chronic health problems and pain for about a decade now, and I just take breaks when I need it. Being a software dev, that is fairly easy

I've been living with chronic health problems and pain for about a decade now, and I just take breaks when I need it. Being a software dev, that is fairly easy to do. Working from home makes it easy to do without even having to inform people, as taking calls from a comfy chair is a reasonable action. But there are really two options - 1) You can do the job, with reasonable accommodations. So talk to a doctor to see what can be done to help you. Have them write a note of what accommodations you need, and give it to your company's HR. This protects everyone because the company knows your limits and it is treated as a disability, protecting you from being punished for it, and protecting them from being accused of discrimination because there is a formal record of what you need. 2) You cannot do the job, even with accommodations. Still talk to a doctor, but if you decide that you cannot do this role, you can pursue disability benefits instead of doing the work.

giantg2 2y ago
I wouldn't expect HR to be helpful. I submitted a case to HR with my autism diagnosis and they told me to talk to my Manger about accommodations. Then they wouldn't actually provide any sort of accommodations. I had two manager changes since them and apparently my disability and requested accommodations were not communicated during the hand over. Now my new manager is telling me that submitting that case to HR might have been a mistake because now they have an admission that I'm performing poorly since I requested help. Can you actually get disability if you're no longer able to perform your existing role? Or does it have to be that you can't perform any role? It's seeming more and more likely that I'm going to get PIP'd and won't be able to find another dev role. But I don't think am eligible for any kind of disability since my disability is autism.
- codingdave 2y ago
  That isn't quite how it works - you don't ask your manager what accommodations are available, your doctor writes it out and send the formal documentation in a letter. If they refuse to give you the needed accommodations, contact an attorney. And you absolutely tell HR so that you avoid exactly what you are describing, of it becoming an informal thing that one manager has negotiated with you. HR should be helpful because this protects the company as much as yourself because there is a formal agreement in place of how to work with a disability. If you can't do the job, disability compensation comes in two forms - SSI, which is granted if you can not hold any job (after tons of paperwork), and disability insurance, which may or may not exist depending on your benefits package. Both are a hassle and not easy to get, but again, contact an attorney. Just submitting forms and saying, "gimme my money" won't work, almost everyone needs assistance to drive those processes. Actually, that is really the answer overall - contact an attorney. They'll give you better answers than I will anyway because despite my own struggles, I'm still just a rando guy on the internet, not an expert.
  - giantg2 2y ago
    "you don't ask your manager what accommodations are available," "And you absolutely tell HR so that you avoid exactly what you are describing, of it becoming an informal thing that one manager has negotiated with you." I didn't ask. I provided the document from the medical provider to HR. HR is the one who said to talk to my manager about accommodations because HR only handles stuff like "providing extra breaks or ergonomic equiptment". "If you can't do the job, disability compensation comes in two forms - SSI, which is granted if you can not hold any job (after tons of paperwork), and disability insurance, which may or may not exist depending on your benefits package." SSDI doesn't cover most autism. The disability insurance is only all short-term. Even "long-term" disability insurance typically ends (or can be terminated by your employer) after 1 year if you're not able to return. I don't really want to contact an attorney, but if they put me on a PIP I guess I will then.

giantg2 2y ago

I wouldn't expect HR to be helpful. I submitted a case to HR with my autism diagnosis and they told me to talk to my Manger about accommodations. Then they wouldn't actually provide any sort of accommodations. I had two manager changes since them and apparently my disability and requested accommodations were not communicated during the hand over. Now my new manager is telling me that submitting that case to HR might have been a mistake because now they have an admission that I'm performing poorly since I requested help. Can you actually get disability if you're no longer able to perform your existing role? Or does it have to be that you can't perform any role? It's seeming more and more likely that I'm going to get PIP'd and won't be able to find another dev role. But I don't think am eligible for any kind of disability since my disability is autism.

codingdave 2y ago
That isn't quite how it works - you don't ask your manager what accommodations are available, your doctor writes it out and send the formal documentation in a letter. If they refuse to give you the needed accommodations, contact an attorney. And you absolutely tell HR so that you avoid exactly what you are describing, of it becoming an informal thing that one manager has negotiated with you. HR should be helpful because this protects the company as much as yourself because there is a formal agreement in place of how to work with a disability. If you can't do the job, disability compensation comes in two forms - SSI, which is granted if you can not hold any job (after tons of paperwork), and disability insurance, which may or may not exist depending on your benefits package. Both are a hassle and not easy to get, but again, contact an attorney. Just submitting forms and saying, "gimme my money" won't work, almost everyone needs assistance to drive those processes. Actually, that is really the answer overall - contact an attorney. They'll give you better answers than I will anyway because despite my own struggles, I'm still just a rando guy on the internet, not an expert.
- giantg2 2y ago
  "you don't ask your manager what accommodations are available," "And you absolutely tell HR so that you avoid exactly what you are describing, of it becoming an informal thing that one manager has negotiated with you." I didn't ask. I provided the document from the medical provider to HR. HR is the one who said to talk to my manager about accommodations because HR only handles stuff like "providing extra breaks or ergonomic equiptment". "If you can't do the job, disability compensation comes in two forms - SSI, which is granted if you can not hold any job (after tons of paperwork), and disability insurance, which may or may not exist depending on your benefits package." SSDI doesn't cover most autism. The disability insurance is only all short-term. Even "long-term" disability insurance typically ends (or can be terminated by your employer) after 1 year if you're not able to return. I don't really want to contact an attorney, but if they put me on a PIP I guess I will then.