Originally posted February 4, 2006.
Slightly revised February 5, 2006.
A reader’s comment added February 8, 2006.
A reader asks:
The people in my job are really mean towards me and this makes me get sicker. They have some type of vendetta towards me that I do not understand. The harrassment is so massive it’s unbelievable. I work in a government office that, believe it or not, is supposed to guard against discrimination (in housing). How do I deal with this work situation?
This is a disability question, and there is a good deal of disability information at the Disabililty Page at MenieresInfo.com. Employment-related disability questions are essentially legal questions, and there is information at that page on disability lawyers. Initial consulations with lawyers are often available at low-cost or no-cost (ask the fee when you call for an appointment). If there is a fee for the initial consultation, it will no doubt be well worth it. (Note on that page that fees for legal representation before the Social Security Administration (SSA) are a separate issue and are regulated by SSA.)
There are few things worse in life than a job that one hates to go to every day and that one dreads all weekend going to on Monday. This has a downer effect on everything else in one’s life.
People with disabilities in general are often seen as slackers who use their disability as an excuse to shirk work. Sometimes the reality is that these same disabled people carry the load of others in addition to their own work and get no credit for it. Everything they cannot do seems magnified out of proportion. Everything good that they do seems to go unnoticed.
This is ten times worse with “invisible disabilities” — when the disability is not obvious to the naked eye. A coworker in a wheel chair is seen as more sympathetic than a coworker who “looks normal” but isn’t. Examples include disabled employees with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), CFS (cronic fatigue syndrome), and, of course, Meniere’s Disease. When we are sick, we are accused of “faking it.” The fluctuating nature of the condition doesn’t help the visual perception — sometimes we are OK; sometimes we are not. People will say “every time thus-and-such some up, so-and-so (us) gets sick; how convenient.” They see connections where there are no connections. We can end up being outcasts, somewhat like in high school only much worse.
Of coure, there are laws against discrimination in the U.S. workplace, notably (but not exclusively) the ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act). See the Disability Page at MenieresInfo.com. Unfortunately, laws don’t actually stop discrimination, and people break these laws every day.
It seems to us (and we claim NO expertise) that there are three possibilities: (1) pursue remedies for discrimination, (2) get another job in the same agency, or (3) find a job in another agency.
In an enlightened and competent bureaucracy, once you file a complaint of discrimination, you may be fortunate and get all the relief to which you are entitled. A complaint properly acted upon might even get you reassigned to another work unit with a different supervisor, and with different duties, and with accommodations for your disability. Unfortunately, in an unenlightened or incompetent bureaucracy, you may be become even more ostracized than before, and your performance evaluations may suddenly take a nose-dive in retaliation. Retaliation is illegal but still possible, perhaps even likely. It’s a crap shoot.
The simpler solution is to find another job or at least another supervisor on your own. Even “normies” have to duck and dodge sometimes to get out from under the thumb of a supervisor or coworkers who have ostracized or oppressed them. For a variety of reasons, that may not be possible. In a government job, one is typically so committed to the pension and other benefits, and one’s job expertise is typically so narrow, that one’s reassignment opportunities are limited. Worse, one receives an unfairly poor evaluation due to the unfair perceptions attached to one’s Meniere’s Disease that makes it difficult to compete successfully for another job. Nonetheless, that is the simpler, more practical, solution. It pains us to say so, because you shouldn’t have to be discriminated against in the first place and, when you are, you should be able to get the discrimination stopped. The right thing should prevail. Sadly, it oftentimes does not.
Oddly, those of us who are blessed with wonderful supervisors and wonderful coworkers and supportive home situations won’t understand this at all. Sad but true, sometimes you just gotta be there.
After all of this blather, you by now have deduced that we just don’t know what in blazes to tell you — but we sure do understand the situation. It’s tough.
We’d be delighted to receive well thought-out comments from readers to add to this issue.
Added February 8, 2006
A reader provides comment:
Since this person is a government worker, chances are the worker belongs to a union. Harassment, as well as worker disability, are union issues and this person should contact a union representative for assistance and representation in this matter.
This astute reader adds the issue of workplace harassment contrary to a union contract to the issue of employment discrimination based upon actual or perceived disability, and notes the possible, perhaps probable, availability of union representation in either case. We are grateful for the comment.
Many U.S. government employees are in a “collective bargaining unit” which is usually represented by a union. The ability of the union to deal with any issue depends on the wording of the “collective bargaining agreement” (the “union contract”) and the resources of the local chapter of the union that represents the bargaining unit. The alternative as to the discrimination issue might be a counselor in the agency’s equal employment opportunity (EEO) office (the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission may not have initial jurisdiction in a U.S. agency matter, but it’s worth looking into). While the agency EEO office is supposedly independent, in fact it is usually part of the same management that is at fault either directly or by failing to take positive corrective action. As to the discrimination issue, the employee may be faced with a choice in the very beginning of going “the union route” or ”the EEO route.” If so, the union representative (usually a “steward”) can provide counsel on making the choice. Whether a claim of harassment could be represented by the union in addition to a separate claim of discrimination brought before the agency EEO office is something to consider.
Despite the existence of anti-discrimination laws (and, possibly, anti-discrimination provisions in union contracts), workplace discrimination remains a disturbingly frequent occurrence in the workplace. The remedy should be easy, and sometimes it is, but too often the employee faces an uphill battle.