I am writing this as a follow-up to my post made nearly a year ago Stuffed! I've decided that I do need to write a letter requesting reasonable accommodation.
ADA stands for "Americans with Disabilities Act." This act provides protection in the work place for people suffering from disabilities, as long as the employee can perform the job with "reasonable accommodations."
Invisible Disability
People with conditions like Crohn's Disease, MS, UC, RA, PsA, AS, etc. all suffer from disabilities that are not apparent to others. This type of condition is known as "Invisible Disability." NPR just had an article on people with Invisible Disabilities. The subject of the article was a lady with Crohn's Disease.
As sufferers of "invisible disabilities" each of us needs to make a decision in our lives. Do we attempt to fake normality or do we seek protection from the law?
Get ADA protection or not?
If your disease is often bad, getting protection is (IMO) the better strategy. Consider contacting your HR department and writing an official letter to them about what reasonable accommodations you might require from your employer to help you with your disease. This might be time-off for infusions, doctor's visits, diagnostics, treatment, etc. or just time away from your desk for bathroom breaks, or other things like eating frequent small meals. Talk with your doctor about it, they might have information to help you write the letter.
So far my supervisor/manager is going to bat for me but I think it is time to file something official rather than just handling this unofficially. This protects me, my supervisor, and my employer in cases like this.
Things to put in the letter
Some things I think should be included in my letter:
Things to ask my doctor
Some questions that I am asking my doctor about this letter:
I am really hoping that Remicade eliminates or drastically reduces my need to rely on this, but putting it in place will provide me with some peace of mind.
The down side
I have always understood why we would not want to do this. I always thought that putting this letter in my file might place a "glass ceiling" over my career. If I don't get anymore promotions, it will make me a bit sad but I can live with it.
With the tremendous number of days I've required away from work over the last year or so, now I'm much more concerned with not getting fired "for cause" because of missed work days. My attitude is more I'm just biding time until retirement now.
ADA stands for "Americans with Disabilities Act." This act provides protection in the work place for people suffering from disabilities, as long as the employee can perform the job with "reasonable accommodations."
Invisible Disability
People with conditions like Crohn's Disease, MS, UC, RA, PsA, AS, etc. all suffer from disabilities that are not apparent to others. This type of condition is known as "Invisible Disability." NPR just had an article on people with Invisible Disabilities. The subject of the article was a lady with Crohn's Disease.
As sufferers of "invisible disabilities" each of us needs to make a decision in our lives. Do we attempt to fake normality or do we seek protection from the law?
Get ADA protection or not?
If your disease is often bad, getting protection is (IMO) the better strategy. Consider contacting your HR department and writing an official letter to them about what reasonable accommodations you might require from your employer to help you with your disease. This might be time-off for infusions, doctor's visits, diagnostics, treatment, etc. or just time away from your desk for bathroom breaks, or other things like eating frequent small meals. Talk with your doctor about it, they might have information to help you write the letter.
So far my supervisor/manager is going to bat for me but I think it is time to file something official rather than just handling this unofficially. This protects me, my supervisor, and my employer in cases like this.
Things to put in the letter
Some things I think should be included in my letter:
- Frequent medical/sick day requests for scheduled visits & treatments
- Frequent sick day requests with no warning due to severe pain
- Frequent bathroom breaks up to 6 or more times per day
- Need to eat frequent small meals throughout the day
Things to ask my doctor
Some questions that I am asking my doctor about this letter:
- Are there other things that I should include to cover my Crohn's Disease?
- Do you have a standard letter that you use to send to employers?
- Do I normally need to get Dr. Harrison to sign or send this to my employer for me?
- Is this something that should be covered by FMLA?
I am really hoping that Remicade eliminates or drastically reduces my need to rely on this, but putting it in place will provide me with some peace of mind.
The down side
I have always understood why we would not want to do this. I always thought that putting this letter in my file might place a "glass ceiling" over my career. If I don't get anymore promotions, it will make me a bit sad but I can live with it.
With the tremendous number of days I've required away from work over the last year or so, now I'm much more concerned with not getting fired "for cause" because of missed work days. My attitude is more I'm just biding time until retirement now.
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