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Post by adhdude on Mar 5, 2018 21:12:33 GMT
I got AtW approved about 5 months ago and have been receiving cab journeys to work (not because of my ADHD per se but my anxiety and difficulty managing with crowds during rush hour).
However, so far, I've been paying entirely myself and have received no reimbursement.
When I first got it I was told I'd need a signature from a manager. I didn't want to disclose to my line manager so disclosed to my programme manager, who I rarely see (exactly what I was after) as she's based elsewhere. I was told this is fine. She signed digitally but AtW wouldn't accept as they needed a "blue ink signature". I've been begging since with lots of back and forth but they aren't budging. They're really inflexible.
I don't want to disclose to my line manager but I'd need to in order to get my "blue ink signature". In fact, it's not just a matter of not wanting to but not being able to. The mere thought of explaining it to my manager terrifies me and sends me into a panic. I can't help but feel this way, even though I know I shouldn't. It's just that I was discriminated against by a different employer in the past - I was hurt pretty bad and I can't let it happen again.
Are AtW allowed to force me to disclose like this? It seems so unfair.
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Post by vagueandrandom on Mar 6, 2018 12:15:45 GMT
I get coaching via AtW, but I decided to disclose my ADHD to my employer
and they do all the paperwork. I think it's part of the deal of getting
Access to WORK. It's about reasonable adjustments which your employer is
required to provide in law. Could you tell them it's for anxiety?
as the money is granted by the DWP, your employer is obligated to comply.
Could you explain in writing? If your employer is happy with your work,
you don't need to go into details and they're not allowed to discriminate.
As you already have AtW awarded could you say that you need their signature
to help with travel costs? I can't remember what's on the claim form, but I
think it's just a generic one.
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Post by adhdude on Mar 6, 2018 17:37:09 GMT
I think telling my manager is probably the easiest part. The hard part is working with her from then on. Not because of my manager discriminating, perhaps, but because of me constantly worrying about her potentially discriminating or thinking differently about me. Since disclosing to my programme manager, I've shied away from any interactions with her. For example, I was in a Skype conference today and my programme manager was dialled in. After seeing her on the list I kept quiet the entire time. I didn't say a single word except my name when asked by someone, even then I panicked when saying it. She's also arranged several projects and events but I've avoided all of them. It sounds so ridiculous I know but I can't help but feel this way. The form doesn't go into any detail and it is quite generic but just letting her know that I need this support is terrifying. I'd always assume she's thinking about how I'm that guy who can't get on a train or has mental problems. I've become quite paranoid I guess . It's really annoying that they're asking for these signatures in the first place since all of my cab receipts show the location, date and time (Uber). It's not like I'd take a cab to work then stand around outside for 9 hours without going in then catch another cab back home. I even offered to send screenshots of my attendance registers. They're just so inflexible and keep demanding a "blue-ink signature", saying it's because they need to make sure I went in. It makes no sense to me. They've caused me so much stress. I honestly feel much worse off after getting AtW.
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Post by vagueandrandom on Mar 6, 2018 18:09:03 GMT
Could you make it into a positive?
When I talked to my manager about ADHD I opened with a statement that it shouldn't
affect my work in any way, but wanted them to be aware should there be any issues
in the future and I'd come to talk to them about it.
I also explained that it mainly affects me in my life outside of work.
I'm pretty sure they still don't know much about ADHD and I've had excellent reviews.
It's against the law to discriminate. If you can do your job, what's the problem?
If you don't disclose and you experience problems, or get warnings or are dismissed
due to something they are unaware of, you don't have as many rights as you would do
had they known. . .which would be discrimination.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2018 22:11:51 GMT
Just tell them it's for anxiety. Hyper-vigilance is a marketable skill, let it play in your favour.
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Post by adhdude on Mar 29, 2018 22:04:49 GMT
I get coaching via AtW, but I decided to disclose my ADHD to my employer and they do all the paperwork. I think it's part of the deal of getting Access to WORK. It's about reasonable adjustments which your employer is required to provide in law. Could you tell them it's for anxiety? as the money is granted by the DWP, your employer is obligated to comply. Could you explain in writing? If your employer is happy with your work, you don't need to go into details and they're not allowed to discriminate. As you already have AtW awarded could you say that you need their signature to help with travel costs? I can't remember what's on the claim form, but I think it's just a generic one. Completely forgot about this! I think you're both right. I do need to disclose. I think I would actually benefit from some arrangements at work too. I'm always making mistakes and my team leader was getting frustrated today after explaining something to me 4 times (she didn't show it but any sane person would get frustrated so I can't imagine what she must've been thinking). Funnily enough, I don't actually need the signatures anymore... I went all the way down to my programme manager's location and got all 6 signatures! Also, I got my first car last week and have been driving in now - no more cab rides needed! I really like your idea of putting it into writing - I do feel a lot more comfortable doing that, at least for the initial disclosure. I've drafted an email to my Team Leader and Line Manager, as below. Any feedback would be really appreciated before I send it out . Thanks!
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Post by vagueandrandom on Mar 31, 2018 11:55:49 GMT
Hi adhdude I think the email's fine. It might be better to start the second paragraph with the positive about having learned to overcome challenges before talking about neurotransmitters, because it's important and (maybe it's my ADHD) the positive message gets a little bit 'lost' at the end of the sentence. I think it's important to reassure your employer that you're capable of doing your job and that you will be able to do it even better with a few minor adjustments. Because, as we all know, there's a lot of ignorance and misunderstanding of ADHD. Good luck!
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Post by adhdude on Mar 31, 2018 17:59:31 GMT
Thanks for the suggestions! The second paragraph does seem a little stark - I'll lighten it up a little. Do I need to say that I consider it a disability? Here's what I have so far: I have learnt to overcome many of the challenges associated with ADD in the past and this has enabled me to excel throughout my education. I think that with a few minor arrangements, I could go above and beyond my expectations in the workplace too. Hi adhdude I think the email's fine. It might be better to start the second paragraph with the positive about having learned to overcome challenges before talking about neurotransmitters, because it's important and (maybe it's my ADHD) the positive message gets a little bit 'lost' at the end of the sentence. I think it's important to reassure your employer that you're capable of doing your job and that you will be able to do it even better with a few minor adjustments. Because, as we all know, there's a lot of ignorance and misunderstanding of ADHD. Good luck!
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Post by vagueandrandom on Mar 31, 2018 18:32:59 GMT
It's up to you whether to mention disability.
You're asking for 'reasonable adjustments' which you're entitled to for disability in the
Equality Act 2010, which also protects you from discrimination, which I know you're worried about.
If you work for a large company, they might send you for an Occupational Health assessment
where you can discuss what reasonable adjustments you might benefit from.
This should be similar to the A2W assessment. Did A2W recommend anything other than taxis?
If not, you can get them to do another assessment specifically for ADHD in your job once
your employers are on board.
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Post by adhdude on Mar 31, 2018 18:53:33 GMT
It's up to you whether to mention disability. You're asking for 'reasonable adjustments' which you're entitled to for disability in the Equality Act 2010, which also protects you from discrimination, which I know you're worried about. If you work for a large company, they might send you for an Occupational Health assessment where you can discuss what reasonable adjustments you might benefit from. This should be similar to the A2W assessment. Did A2W recommend anything other than taxis? If not, you can get them to do another assessment specifically for ADHD in your job once your employers are on board. As long as I'm protected without mentioning disability then I'd rather not mention it explicitly. AtW assigned me a mentor already (for both anxiety and ADHD). They didn't make any other recommendations. I have a few adjustments in mind but these would mainly be down to my workplace rather than AtW as there are no additional costs involved: - Receiving information and instructions in writing where possible (brief, bullet points, diagrams) - Recording meeting audio using OneNote (although I may rethink this as some people don't like being recorded and I may end up having to disclose to more people to get this) - Noise-cancelling headphones when I feel most distracted - Helping to prioritise activities I'm given or allowing me more time to complete them - at the moment pretty much every task I get given needs to be completed 'as soon as possible' and I end up switching between tasks a lot. Each task doesn't necessarily take longer to complete but overall it takes longer to deliver as I might have been working on something else too. If I need to drop everything I'm doing and work on one thing then that needs to be made clear. - Allowing me to work from home if I couldn't get to sleep the previous night (happens about once a month) as driving in might be unsafe. My team leader has pointed out on a few occasions that I look really tired and insisted I go home although I fight through it instead as I don't want to feel that it's stopping me from doing my work. I just nap in the evening instead. - Minimising overtime because I exercise in the evening, which helps me, but when it gets busy and I have to do overtime, I just don't have the time and end up missing my exercise (not sure how my manager would feel about this even though it is true - I might not mention it) I could also take more frequent short breaks but there's no one stopping me from doing that but myself.
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Post by vagueandrandom on Mar 31, 2018 19:14:20 GMT
In that case, you don't mention the D word. . .you're telling them you have ADHD,
that should be enough.
I think your suggested adjustments seem reasonable, mine are pretty similar,
although I don't work in an office. Instructions and information in writing is particularly useful.
I work shifts and drive an hour each way, which I find more tiring than my actual work.
If I work 3 consecutive days, I have the late shift starting at 11am on the third day.
A2W will pay for a voice recorder and noise cancelling headphones if they think you need them.
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Post by adhdude on Mar 31, 2018 19:40:30 GMT
Tell me about it - driving is exhausting! Only been doing it for about a week now but it's an hour each way for me too (1.5 h with traffic). Still a million times better than relying on cab rides.
I think having instructions in writing for me is the main one.
I might put an application in for headphones I guess. I got some as a student via DSA but they're absolutely useless - very cheap and ineffective. I won't need a dictaphone as I still have one from uni and I think my laptop's built in mic would suffice anyway (plus it wouldn't draw attention)
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Post by adhdude on Apr 2, 2018 17:09:58 GMT
Turns out my manager has ADHD too. She wants to meet later this week to discuss what's helped her and the accommodations that can be made. This could work out really well or really bad... My manager is always super nice and supportive though, and she clearly understands ADHD so I think it'll be okay.
My team leader (who reports to my manager) said something startling today though. She seemed nice when I disclosed and said she'd be happy to meet and go over accommodations etc. But later in the day she asked me what rotation I wanted to go for next and I explained I would really like to go into R&D (it's a pharmaceutical company). She said it's "really unlikely I'd get that" then suddenly said in a wave of panic, "not because you're not capable - it's just a highly sought position". That's quite startling to me because all year she's been telling me I'm better than all the other grads, plus I got higher performance ratings than them all and am way ahead of them all at sitting the professional exams we have to complete on the job. She then went onto suggest other placements that I wasn't really interested in. Luckily the choice isn't down to her but still quite a shocking conversation. Funny enough, she used to work for the same company that discriminated against me and shattered my confidence.
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Post by vagueandrandom on Apr 3, 2018 15:10:38 GMT
Wow adhdude ! It's great news about your manager! It might make things easier for you. Not so good about your team leader, but with your manager's support, they may be pursuaded to support your R&D rotation
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