REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 8

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

Here are some strategies to consider when asking for accommodations on the job:

Be specific. For example, if you have a trackball on your home computer that works great for you, write down the brand and model number and request the same one for your office.

Just before I started the job where things went swimmingly, I had a friend take measurements of me and my wheelchair.

I had exact dimensions down to the quarter inch of such things as my chair’s width and how high my knees were from the floor when sitting in my chair.

These specifics, typed out and delivered to my then employer-to-be proved invaluable in assisting them in finding me the right size desk and computer table.

I also spelled out exactly how high the toilet seat riser in the accessible stall should be.

Getting it down on paper in words and numbers helped diffuse the embarrassment factor surrounding something so personal.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 17

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 7

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

Here are some strategies to consider when asking for accommodations on the job:

Be confident, gentle but firm and direct.

Know your rights and assert them without being obnoxious, or just as bad, tentative.

If you waiver on whether you really need an accommodation or not, you’ll leave your boss guessing and possibly even doubting the genuineness of your need.

Though the accommodations will make your life easier, emphasize that you want them so you can be the best employee possible for the organization.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 19

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 6

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

 

Here are some strategies to consider when asking for accommodations on the job:

Start as early as possible, preferably as soon as you’ve accepted an offer of employment.

The longer your wait, the easier it becomes for your employer to get the impression that you’re doing just swell without accommodations.

When you do finally request that lever handle on your office door or lowered light switch, your boss may be baffled as to how you were coping before.

That kind of confusion you don’t need.

 ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 18

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 5

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

Not only was the commode too low for my transfer needs, but I would often spend between five and 20 minutes inside waiting for someone else to enter and assist me with the door so I could leave.

Even up to my last day at the job, using the restroom was still a monumental challenge.

Fortunately, getting the necessary accommodations for my next job went as close to perfect as possible.

Why the difference?

Though a more receptive supervisor helped, a big part of it was my new and improved approach.

I’d learned the hard way that delaying a request for accommodations then tendering one without sufficient specifics and a pleasant but firm air of self-assurance was not the way to go.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 17

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 4

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

Finally, I decided I had enough.

I spent a few hours on a Saturday morning drafting a memo to my boss listing the accommodations I was requesting, as per the ADA.

I made it as short and to the point as possible, being careful to avoid a confrontational tone yet making it clear I meant business.

At the end of the memo, I respectfully requested that my boss get back with me by a specific date several weeks later.

That would provide sufficient time for him to speak with upper management and come up with a game plan.

So much for the best laid plans.

It would be months until modifications were made to the building: a gentler-sloped ramp at the building entrance, automatic door openers, a lowered elevator button panel.

My suspicions were that these accommodations had less to do with my request and more to do with making the building generally accessible to anyone.

Many more months would pass during which I struggled daily to safely and comfortably use the restroom facilities.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 15

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 3

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

One boss was obviously uncomfortable with my request for accommodations, which principally concerned the physical facilities in my office building.

Heavy doors that couldn’t be opened without assistance, too-high elevator buttons and virtually no access features in the restroom meant my work day was laden with obstacles.

Straining to get around fatigued me and having to constantly ask for extra help was demeaning and frustrating.

I foolishly tolerated it for months out of fear of rocking the boat.

I also failed to advocate for myself because of that little voice inside my head that told me to be grateful to have a job at all.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 15

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.

REQUESTING JOB ACCOMMODATIONS -- PART 2

THE FINE ART OF REQUESTING 

JOB ACCOMMODATIONS

Even though the request is for a reasonable accommodation to help me do my job better – something granted by federal law to qualified individuals with disabilities – it’s not always easy to ask.

Who wants to come off demanding or whiny, or be perceived as “one of those needy wheelchair people” who can’t do a job without special treatment?

How will a supervisor react?

Will he or she be supportive and understanding, deny the request, or, even worse, be confrontational?

It’s easy to view someone else’s situation and cooly reply “they can’t do that to you – it’s illegal.”

While a person with a disability may very well have legal remedies if denied reasonable accommodation, nobody wants it to come to that. Work is stressful enough.

I’ve been in the workforce about a decade and have worked for several bosses.

They had different attitudes and different reactions to my requests for accommodations.

Some of the variation must be chalked up to their personalities, something I couldn’t control. Yet a significant factor was my how I went about making the request, something I could control.

ARTICLE CONTINUES TOMORROW -- MARCH 14

EDITOR'S NOTE: 

This was written by our expert before she came to the Sunshine State. All negative anecdotes and complaints about bosses are based on incidents in Ohio, not Miami.