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Employer not accomodating flex schedule request

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Posted 7/26/2016 12:28 PM (GMT 0)
My employer (10 months) thinks I have diabetes and arthritis only. I've not shared any of my other chronic conditions. I've used all of my sick time ( 2 days) and vacation due to flares that are caused by stressful workload. I do the job of two employees.

Yesterday I offered to work a four day a week and nine hour day schedule along with half a day on Friday. All of the young moms in my office with kids get this kind of schedule and frequent time off for doc visits etc.

I've been told, that because the other employee who does what I do is a contract employee and part time, I have no one to cover me. So I am not allowed this same flexibility.

I am angry and confused. I guess I will just get fired a flare occurs.
Posted 7/29/2016 3:37 PM (GMT 0)
Ask your doctor to write a note stating he/she recommends you work the hours you need. They do not have to put a diagnosis in their letter.

I was once put on half days by my doctor and my boss expected I would do in half days what I used to do in a full day. Talk about stress.

Good luck.

Barb
Posted 7/29/2016 3:45 PM (GMT 0)
Ha ! I hear ya. One doc, the neurologist advocates cutting all stress in half. I work for a company that is a mix of very slow and then bam, seasonal crazy several times a year. I do customer service so I am on the front line so to speak. I can work from home but only in severe situations. To be frank, I love working. However, the ultra fast pace, and the up and down chaos associated with workplaces today really frazzles me. In the past, prior to becoming ill, I was a dynamo. Not so much so now.

Like many, I am challenged by the need to work,and the need to slow down for my health. I do not believe we truly have any sort of system in place that truly accomodates us. The ADA is a joke for things like brain fog and other neurological challenges I often deal with. Not to mention that many do not understand or even validate this disease. So getting an accomodation for a misunderstood disease that some people think is fake is another issue altogether. :)

Then of course, in my case my companies use of lean staffing principles and contract labor are an issue as well. Sigh.


Thanks for your response.
Posted 7/30/2016 7:23 AM (GMT 0)
You should look up the legal side of Duty To Accommodate for employers. I'm not sure if it's the same for you; I'm in Canada. However, if it is then your employer is legally bound to accommodate unless they can show that their business is severely impacted by doing so. This is probably not the case. You'll need a letter from your doctor saying you should only work xxxx number of days per week. Present that to your employer anD say that you are requesting medical accommodation. You don't need to tell them anything about your condition. The doctor shouldn't state it on the letter.

I hope this works out for you. I know how frustrating it can be.
Posted 8/4/2016 11:49 PM (GMT 0)
This happened to me. I live in CT so I'm not sure if the laws are different. I filed for FMLA. I believe it was called intermittent FMLA. SO anytime I called out sick regarding my illness ( fibro) those days could not be held against me. I also had to cut my hours from 40-30. My dr did have to fill out paper work.

In the end, the company made working there very difficult. All the sudden saying I wasn't doing well etc. off the record they told me they needed someone full time. I told them them I didn't want to work there as much as they didn't want me. It just became too stressful. They agreed that if i quit they would not fight unemployment and they didn't. After that I had a dr note saying I can only work part time.

My health has declined with constant migraines, (and multiple hospitalizations ), fibro and knee problems (14 knee surgeries etc) so I have now applied for disability.

Best of luck! Sorry I got off track a little. But the FMLA Really helped me for a while and there was nothing the company could do.
Posted 8/31/2016 7:54 PM (GMT 0)
Txcola, I would apply for FMLA when you have your 1 year at the company. HR at my company actually offered it to me. Yet, my coworkers don't have a clue about my fibro and they could care less. When I come back to work after a day or two off they tell me how busy it was for them. If I'm at work and can't handle the day, I don't dare say I'm sick. I just solder Through. I used to miss on average 4 days a year for my fibro. This month alone I've missed 4 days! I go back to work tomorrow even though I got I'm still not feeling well. It will be hard and people will be nasty. The sad part is I'm a nurse and some of my coworkers will say that fibro is all in a persons head as we look fine.
Good luck to you!
Posted 9/4/2016 7:01 AM (GMT 0)
I was recently diagnosed with fibro. Blah. I am also struggling to continue working and am on intermittent fmla. My fmla is very generous due to my numerous issues. Despite this, my employer tried to tell me if I was tardy for my medical condition I would still be disciplined. So I contacted my leave of absence coordinator, who said any tardy or absence related to my condition is protected. I also recently began the process for ada accommodation to allow me to work from home when needed during flares. My manager is not making this easy. Communicate with HR and any benefits coordinator involved, as they are helping to ensure my manager is...cooperative. My manager clearly seems to want me gone, but I'm prepared to deal with it until I have to stop working. They don't make it easy sometimes. It is hard enough dealing with the medical conditions. Having to deal with this work stress is awful as well.
Posted 9/12/2016 5:26 PM (GMT 0)
Being the sole breadwinner of my family, working isn't a choice. I have a mortgage and car payment, etc., and there would be no room for disability or not working. Some days are harder than others, but I muddle through. Fortunately I've been at my job for almost 17 years so I can do it in my sleep and I'm pretty much entrenched in the company, but I understand that my employer doesn't owe me an easy schedule or extra time off. I work for a medical university. Even working for doctors doesn't guarantee they 'get it' or understand where I'm at. I try to help myself as much as possible. I take breaks during the day. I'll walk or spend a few minutes on a personal thing (like I'm here right now). This helps relax my mind. I keep up with things as much as possible. Getting behind makes me stressed out. If I'm foggy, I'll try not to let it stress me. I know what it is and it will go away. Today I'm especially tired, so I have several cups of tea. I actually missed more days before I was diagnosed with fibro than after. Now that I know what it is I deal with it better. I've also found that if I'm tired and a bit cranky, I'll just tell my co-workers. "Hey, it's not a good day for my fibro" so they know I'm not at my best. I know not all jobs and work environments are the same. I feel for those who have very demanding jobs because I know that must be very difficult when fibro makes you feel so bad.
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