Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff

[Ganymede]

@Alamias

PM me. I regularly handle these sorts of problems.

[Roz]

@Alamias Upvoting for support. Debt is terrible and terrifying and I'm so sorry.

[Cupcake]

@Alamias Ideation (not actively pursuing suicide, but wishing you could go to sleep and not wake up or get hit by a random car) is no joke. If there's a means to talk to someone, through a help line, or local services...please take it.

[ZekeTheG33k]

@Cupcake said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:

@Alamias Ideation (not actively pursuing suicide, but wishing you could go to sleep and not wake up or get hit by a random car) is no joke. If there's a means to talk to someone, through a help line, or local services...please take it.

@Cupcake is absolutely right. This is a gateway feeling. Definitely get someone to talk to about this. If you do not have the means for any relief, I would strongly suggest you reach out to your faith's clergy to speak to them in confidence.

[Alamias]

@Seamus @Cupcake I have a therapist, and I will talk to them about it when I see them next. Thank you for the concern.

[JinShei]

I accidentally seem to have stood for local government... I'm not sure what I just did.

[Tinuviel]

@JinShei

[JinShei]

@Tinuviel

[Tinuviel]

@JinShei

[Derp]

@Macha said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:

@Derp If they were going to prove it was an undue hardship to set me up for work from home, they would have to remove the option for everyone.

Hey! So sorry for the delayed reply. It's not showing me notifications when people use @mentions, for some reason.

So in regard to needing to remove the option for everyone -- no, not so much, really. This is part of what I was trying to say before. These cases are very fact-specific.

They don't need to remove the option from everyone, because everyone is not a valid comparator in your case. Only the people who hold your exact position (or an incredibly similar, only marginally different position) are, and whether this creates an undue hardship or is a reasonable accommodation turns very heavily on what the employer defines as the essential functions of your position. (Which, by the by, is determined by the employer, within certain guidelines, and absent an argument that an 'essential function' is pretextual, judges and the like don't question whether a function listed as 'essential' is really essential or not).

IF they argue that your on-site presence is an essential function of the position, then they are not required to grant a work-from-home accommodation, since you would technically be asking for an accommodation that negates an essential function of the position. Therefore, they can claim that a reasonable accommodation would not be possible, since negating an essential function of the position makes it an unreasonable request.

It's all very technical, and again, highly dependent upon what your actual job description is, and everyone else receiving a remote work allowance may not be a valid comparator.

TL;DR -- press for it, so that you can at least have them engaged in an interactive process, but don't assume that you're entitled to such a thing, because that's just not the way that any of that works.

ETA: This is not meant to discourage you in any way. Just trying to make you aware of what all goes into these sorts of things, so that you can go in with reasonable expectations.

[Derp]

Double posting because, I'm just gonna leave part of the definitions here for you to peruse. These are being left here as general information, and should not be considered legal advice:

***=Spammy law stuff***

click to show

(m) The term “qualified,” with respect to an individual with a disability, means that the individual satisfies the requisite skill, experience, education and other job-related requirements of the employment position such individual holds or desires and, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of such position. See § 1630.3 for exceptions to this definition.

(n)Essential functions -

(1)In general. The term essential functions means the fundamental job duties of the employment position the individual with a disability holds or desires. The term “essential functions” does not include the marginal functions of the position.

(2) A job function may be considered essential for any of several reasons, including but not limited to the following:

(i) The function may be essential because the reason the position exists is to perform that function;

(ii) The function may be essential because of the limited number of employees available among whom the performance of that job function can be distributed; and/or

(iii) The function may be highly specialized so that the incumbent in the position is hired for his or her expertise or ability to perform the particular function.

(3) Evidence of whether a particular function is essential includes, but is not limited to:

(i) The employer's judgment as to which functions are essential;

(ii) Written job descriptions prepared before advertising or interviewing applicants for the job;

(iii) The amount of time spent on the job performing the function;

(iv) The consequences of not requiring the incumbent to perform the function;

(v) The terms of a collective bargaining agreement;

(vi) The work experience of past incumbents in the job; and/or

(vii) The current work experience of incumbents in similar jobs.

(o)Reasonable accommodation.

(1) The term reasonable accommodation means:

(i) Modifications or adjustments to a job application process that enable a qualified applicant with a disability to be considered for the position such qualified applicant desires; or

(ii) Modifications or adjustments to the work environment, or to the manner or circumstances under which the position held or desired is customarily performed, that enable an individual with a disability who is qualified to perform the essential functions of that position; or

(iii) Modifications or adjustments that enable a covered entity's employee with a disability to enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment as are enjoyed by its other similarly situated employees without disabilities.

(2)Reasonable accommodation may include but is not limited to:

(i) Making existing facilities used by employees readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities; and

(ii) Job restructuring; part-time or modified work schedules; reassignment to a vacant position; acquisition or modifications of equipment or devices; appropriate adjustment or modifications of examinations, training materials, or policies; the provision of qualified readers or interpreters; and other similar accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

(3) To determine the appropriate reasonable accommodation it may be necessary for the covered entity to initiate an informal, interactive process with the individual with a disability in need of the accommodation. This process should identify the precise limitations resulting from the disability and potential reasonable accommodations that could overcome those limitations.

(4) A covered entity is required, absent undue hardship, to provide a reasonable accommodation to an otherwise qualified individual who meets the definition of disability under the “actual disability” prong (paragraph (g)(1)(i) of this section), or “record of” prong (paragraph (g)(1)(ii) of this section), but is not required to provide a reasonable accommodation to an individual who meets the definition of disability solely under the “regarded as” prong (paragraph (g)(1)(iii) of this section).

(p)Undue hardship -

(1)In general. Undue hardship means, with respect to the provision of an accommodation, significant difficulty or expense incurred by a covered entity, when considered in light of the factors set forth in paragraph (p)(2) of this section.

(2)Factors to be considered. In determining whether an accommodation would impose an undue hardship on a covered entity, factors to be considered include:

(i) The nature and net cost of the accommodation needed under this part, taking into consideration the availability of tax credits and deductions, and/or outside funding;

(ii) The overall financial resources of the facility or facilities involved in the provision of the reasonable accommodation, the number of persons employed at such facility, and the effect on expenses and resources;

(iii) The overall financial resources of the covered entity, the overall size of the business of the covered entity with respect to the number of its employees, and the number, type and location of its facilities;

(iv) The type of operation or operations of the covered entity, including the composition, structure and functions of the workforce of such entity, and the geographic separateness and administrative or fiscal relationship of the facility or facilities in question to the covered entity; and

(v) The impact of the accommodation upon the operation of the facility, including the impact on the ability of other employees to perform their duties and the impact on the facility's ability to conduct business.

[Macha]

@Derp I have been through this process before. This company, however, does not have an actual, dedicated HR person. There are so many forms and things lacking that they should have, it's a little ...well, the only word that keeps coming to mind is gross.

Someone in my exact same position also has applied to work from home - though her reasoning is that she's moving across the country. Mine is that the job place is not ADA compliant (if you're in a wheelchair, get fucked. I can't imagine the stairs there on crutches, either.), and there's a lot of ways I sit, things I do, drugs I can take, that I can handle at home, but not at work. (Heating pad, different lumbar pillows, low level pain killers). I do not need to be present in the office, as a core part of my job. I answer the phone, and take information/give info. They have about 2 dozen people in my same job description, that work from home.

[Macha]

And their cost is: Letting me access their website. I'd be using my own computer, etc. So really, they don't have anything to deny me on.

[Cupcake]

So as part of my treatment for an on-going condition, I need to visit a specialist.

I search my insurance co's website for an in-network provider and find one. The visit as per the details of my insurance, is covered.

I visit. It goes well.

A few months later, I get a bill for $350. WTF?

I get told by my insurance that they're out of network. No, says I, they're in-network. They're literally listed in your in-network providers listing!

A customer service rep researches. Oops! They're not longer in-network. We'll get them taken off the site. You still owe $350. Too bad, so sad!

I have NO idea what to do. Appeal, I guess?

[TNP]

@Cupcake said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:

I have NO idea what to do. Appeal, I guess?

Definitely. Also, if it's not too late, get a screenshot of the website showing them in network.

Whenever you speak to a customer rep, get the person's name and a call reference number. If you don't like what they're saying, ask to speak to an ONSHORE supervisor. A supervisor can do more than the rank and file and it's much better to speak to someone based in the US than in India.

Also, find out how to file a complaint with your state and do so if you don't get told they'll pay it.

[Auspice]

@Cupcake I would absolutely appeal. It's their fault for not having removed the provider from the listing.

Might not actually be successful, but yeah. That'd be an escalation IMO. You followed their rules; they're the ones who weren't applying them correctly.

[TNP]

@Cupcake Oh, also... Did you ask the doctor's office if they are in network? If you did and they said yes, demand to speak to their billing manager since they screwed up too.

[Cupcake]

@TNP I did, yes. They were specific about making sure I was in-network.

[Auspice]

@Cupcake said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:

@TNP I did, yes. They were specific about making sure I was in-network.

Then it might maybe be worth it to contact the doctor's office and let them know what's going on. It's possible they'll go to bat for you (at the very least you may be able to get something in writing that you were 'in-network' when you went).

I've had pretty good luck over the years of doctors being willing to help fight when the insurance company is being dumb.

[mietze]

After immense weight gain for a variety of reasons, and realizing that pretty much my life is unlikely to become less stressful for the foreseeable future I did the following:

Discontinued the family y membership now that we only have 1 child in activites instead of 3, when it requires me to drive 30 minutes to get to the facility because of traffic.

Joined a local gym with far less programming but has the machines I like AND best of all a stream room and sauna.

My self care now includes 3x week hydrotherapy rotation and still takes me less time than going to the Y for a 30 min workout and quick shower.