In this two-part blog entry, I'll continue the focus on disclosure on the job, giving real-life scenarios. Part one will look at the nature of functional limitations and types of accommodations, and how and what to say when you disclose. Part two will offer quotes from peers about disclosure, and examples of the accommodations they requested and the results.
I'll start by recommending the mentalhealth.samhsa.gov web site, which is a treasure trove of information about the ADA Act, citing interviews with peers who have diagnoses, and their employers. The ADA defines a "disability" as, "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits the performance of one or more major life activities of an individual." To request reasonable accommodations, two criteria have to be met: the disability must be known or perceived by the employer, and granting the request cannot place an undue hardship on the operation of the business.
As I've written about in here, I would prefer not to disclose. However, the reality is up to 75 percent of people diagnosed with SZ want to obtain work, and for some of us, to be able to effectively function on the job, we need accommodations. The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is a service provided by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). Their web site, at www.jan.wvu.edu/media/atoz.htm, lists accommodations by disability: A to Z. On that page, you can find accommodations by answering a series of questions about an impairment and a job to see accommodation options. Click on "Start Now," click on Mental Health Impairments, and then select the limitation from a list, and you'll get a list of job functions to click on. When you do, you'll find accommodations you could use.
On JAN's web site, it also lists under mental health diagnoses the kinds of difficulties people might have on the job and ways to counter them.
The SAMHSA web site has at least 25 pages devoted to the ADA Act and disclosure, functional limitations and reasonable accommodations. Luckily I'm a librarian and a writer, so I'll organize, synthesize, and interpret for you the relevant points of interest to help you decide if an accommodation would benefit you.
To be clear about making a reasonable accommodation, the SAMHSA web site notes, "It's useful to understand the person's work experience, education and skills as well as any functional limitations he or she experiences in performing a particular job in a certain work setting." A psychiatric diagnostic label like the ones used in the DSM, is not especially useful in determining the kinds of accommodations, and it could backfire. Rather, identifying a set of functional limitations and developing tools to work around them is more effective.
Some hardships include: maintaining stamina throughout the work day, managing time pressure and deadlines, initiating interpersonal contact, focusing on multiple tasks simultaneously, and responding to negative feedback.
