Parkinson's Disease Support Group
Parkinson's disease is a movement disorder often characterized by muscle rigidity, tremor, a slowing of physical movement, and in extreme cases, a loss of physical movement. The primary symptoms of Parkinsons are due to excessive muscle contraction, normally caused by the insufficient formation and action of dopamine, which is produced in the dopaminergic neurons of the...
I feel I have been placed in a difficult situation at work (I am the Office Manager at an elementary school - a position I love & have held for 18 yrs.).
Like most of you I went through years of various symptoms before I finally found a neuro that put it all together and I was officially dx with PD 2-2-11. Due to the stress level at work and the extra hours I often needed to put in to keep the school running at it's best, my neuro recommended I work between 20-30 hours per week....full days off - no partial days since I needed full days out of my work environment in order to rest up properly and reduce the effects of my stress.
When I returned to work for a new school year last August I was told that in order to work 4 days per week, I needed my neuro to re-write her note to state I was allowed to work 32 hrs per week. She did & I found myself doing 5 days of work in 4 days (even though a retired former employee subbed in the office on the day I was out).
Last week I found out (via an email to ALL staff District-wide) that they were hiring a person to work 2 days per week (one day for me & one day for a Secretary at another school that now works 4 days per week due to her health issues). I was quite stunned, since I had not been told this was going to happen. I had a meeting scheduled for THIS week to go over my "special" calendar for the coming school year.
After thinking over just what this would mean to my work schedule, my co-workers, the parents & students - I looked over the calendar and figured this might be OK since there would be Monday holidays and then I would not need to take Fridays off on those weeks (since my doc said I could work 32 hours per week).
I was told by District Office that it would not work that way because they were hiring someone to work two days per week and I would have to take Fridays off on holiday weeks so the new hire could get her hours in. What??? What about MY hours???? I get excellent reviews each year, my Principal loves me & the work I do for our school, I have worked with my staff for years & am friends with many of them outside of work....
Soooooo...here is my dilemma - working less hours would actually be a blessing. My symptoms are increasing, my husband is back to work, and working less hours would allow me to try to keep up better at home. HOWEVER - I really feel that they are giving me lips service when they say they want to support me and are willing to work with me following my PD dx. I feel like I should take a stand not only for those with PD, but current & future employees that find themselves facing health issues that do not affect their job performance - yet make the "higher ups" uncomfortable or nervous! (I have not hid my dx from my co-workers. But, I have to admit this situation has made me feel "less than" for the first time at work!)
I can just go along with their not so well thought out decision OR I can fight back. What would you do? Have you experienced this type of discrimination with your place of employment?
Like most of you I went through years of various symptoms before I finally found a neuro that put it all together and I was officially dx with PD 2-2-11. Due to the stress level at work and the extra hours I often needed to put in to keep the school running at it's best, my neuro recommended I work between 20-30 hours per week....full days off - no partial days since I needed full days out of my work environment in order to rest up properly and reduce the effects of my stress.
When I returned to work for a new school year last August I was told that in order to work 4 days per week, I needed my neuro to re-write her note to state I was allowed to work 32 hrs per week. She did & I found myself doing 5 days of work in 4 days (even though a retired former employee subbed in the office on the day I was out).
Last week I found out (via an email to ALL staff District-wide) that they were hiring a person to work 2 days per week (one day for me & one day for a Secretary at another school that now works 4 days per week due to her health issues). I was quite stunned, since I had not been told this was going to happen. I had a meeting scheduled for THIS week to go over my "special" calendar for the coming school year.
After thinking over just what this would mean to my work schedule, my co-workers, the parents & students - I looked over the calendar and figured this might be OK since there would be Monday holidays and then I would not need to take Fridays off on those weeks (since my doc said I could work 32 hours per week).
I was told by District Office that it would not work that way because they were hiring someone to work two days per week and I would have to take Fridays off on holiday weeks so the new hire could get her hours in. What??? What about MY hours???? I get excellent reviews each year, my Principal loves me & the work I do for our school, I have worked with my staff for years & am friends with many of them outside of work....
Soooooo...here is my dilemma - working less hours would actually be a blessing. My symptoms are increasing, my husband is back to work, and working less hours would allow me to try to keep up better at home. HOWEVER - I really feel that they are giving me lips service when they say they want to support me and are willing to work with me following my PD dx. I feel like I should take a stand not only for those with PD, but current & future employees that find themselves facing health issues that do not affect their job performance - yet make the "higher ups" uncomfortable or nervous! (I have not hid my dx from my co-workers. But, I have to admit this situation has made me feel "less than" for the first time at work!)
I can just go along with their not so well thought out decision OR I can fight back. What would you do? Have you experienced this type of discrimination with your place of employment?
peace
bp
I spoke with my Principal today about my PD and work and he PROMISED me that he would call me in for a private conversation if he saw my work slipping in any way. No way do I want to stay if I am doing a poopy job and causing problems for others. His only concern is for my health and wants me to keep that above all else. He's all about family and the long-term meaning of life. Great guy - lucky me!
So - I'm leaning toward taking that extra day off without pay - using it as an added bonus to support taking care of my health. But, I am going to find out more about my legal rights. I would like to be able to talk intelligently with them. If their decision is not based on getting "the employee with PD" out of there, but on finding a solution to filling a gap, I can live with that. However - if I catch wind that it is about the opposite - this girl will fight! (kinda that "she's a real nice girl...just don't get on her bad side" thing)
Keep you posted on JAN and how I felt it worked for me. Curious to see just what the conversation will be like.
(You know - I just deleted a huge paragraph about "compromise". I've noticed that some things cause me to anger quicker now days and I am trying to be aware of that and just let it go. This is something new I am trying...will let you know how it goes. LOL The doc says take more vitamin B when stressed. Yeah, right!)
Anyway - I explained my situation (see above) and she said as long as my employer was trying to make "reasonable accommodations" they were within the law. She said my situation was a bit in the "gray" area. As long as I was able to do my job without causing an undue hardship on my employer, they are required to make various accommodations for me.
She made sure I felt I had all of my questions answered and told me not to hesitate to call again if things changed at my job or if I had further questions.
I was just told today that I will be working Mon.-Thurs. On the weeks that Monday is a holiday, I can work on Friday (to avoid losing pay & to keep up on my job). They will have the new hire work on that Friday - meaning we can use this time to give them more training & allow our office to be even more efficient. I'm so happy with their show of support. It has made me feel like they really do appreciate the years of service I have put in & that they have noticed I LOVE kids and LOVE my job!
I would highly recommend getting in touch with JAN (Jobs Accommodations Network) if you are having any issues concerning your job & PD. They are listed thru the NPF and give several ways to contact them (phone, e-mail, live chat, TTY, etc.)
Just be cautious and remember that higher-ups are watching out for themselves and that is just the way it is these days. If you fight them about anything a person gets on the "black list" and they are doomed. It is not like years ago----execs now want and need to make themselves look good first. Hope things go well for you !
Nice work! I like the way you established your boundaries and expectations early on, and without threatening anyone. Masterful!
And thanks too, for the heads-up about JAN/NFP. A note of caution: states have a wide spectrum of laws regarding employee rights and employment-at-will. Make sure you have got the basics down about Oregon's laws.
Beekeeper
peace
bp