accommodation

You need to consult with an attorney and/or a disability advocate with experience in disability accommodations disputes. If you have difficulty promptly contacting such a professional, then you may want to meet with representatives from the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) or your state Fair Employment Practices agency (“FEP”). Based on what you have written, you probably should file a charge of discrimination challenging your employer’s denial of disability accommodations ASAP.

Management has evidently endeavored to set you up for termination. Moreover, your immediate boss apparently does not have a basis understanding of your disability. During your new supervisor’s tenure, things have deteriorated. (I presume you worked well with your former supervisor because he or she accommodated your disability.) In light of your specific disability, requesting written instructions and responses thereto should not be reasonably viewed as a slight to the supervisor. However, it does not seem that your supervisor or the rest of management have any intention of being reasonable with you. Instead, they seem intent on pushing you out the door.

Again, I would urge you to take the aforementioned steps to file a charge of discrimination as soon as possible.

ESteele, thank you a lot.

Yes it is all true, and you are right.

I asked my doctor to give me a paper support today.

And am going to ask one more time my only accommodation, as I have documented that I am asking for several months already ONLY our communications will be counted and the digest will be written as boss' direct orders+ my acknowledge--so as the advice from friends I need to have his answer on my now very last request. He put in his "official reply" that I did ask the 3rd party to be present while I did not and I wrote last time October 26 "I need ONLY one accommodation -writing".

I contacted today by phone one of the offices that you suggested.

In a few words... it is hard: people who are working there are not enough competent may be, -nobody knows my Asperger Syndrome. it would be much easier for them would I have more common disability. Are you available to contact out of forum?

You are welcome.

I am sorry that you encountered someone at one of the agencies who did not fully comprehend the nature of your illness. Unfortunately, many individuals who have worked in the employment discrimination law area do not have experience in disability accommodation issues, much less possess a working understanding of Asperger Syndrome.

I would again recommend you confer with a disability rights advocate. Perhaps you can contact someone who has assisted you with your disability. While not an attorney, he or she may know experienced lawyers and/or agencies which can possibly offer you assistance.

Additionally, general websites abound offering to match you with a lawyer or lawyers desirous of possibly handling your case, e.g., (removed) I can also specifically recommend contacting the National Employment Lawyers Association. Both NELA and these general websites can potentially put you in contact with dedicated counselors experienced in this area who would consider taking on your denial of accommodations case.

Thank once again a lot. I was able to call and get someone at EEOC . It is impossible: all they do is to file a charge. I need to decide to do it or not. I am not sure.They are NOT advising, they are ONLY filing a charge. I requested the accommodation "writing down the orders and counter count by me".Because the situation is : boss saying -"as you stated" and "as I stated" - and neither one ever happened. So in order to fire me it is enough to put: "as you stated you can not perform your essential job functions and so i stated you need to leave"- so it is enough for him to say ANYTHING and to fire me in 2 short steps. And now he denied the ONLY ONE accommodation I asked -"writing down"- because he transformed it in "accommodation to communicate only by e-mail and to have a 3rd party presence"-which i did NOT asked. "To e-mail everything" has nothing to do with writing down especially where it has a financial obligations included. So my request was twisted and changed and denied. I have documented WHAT exactely I requested- I have paper proof, and he has only his twisted words.To make next step I can do only in writing! I am not able to have personal oral conversation, writing is my first device of communication.I am being bullied. I can not to afford an attorney to represent me; I can not have the advice from federal EEOC; and all attorneys are agree only to start the case, because it is what makes their business. I need advice-how to discuss my true needs,while I am non-verbal orally by my genetic and physiology. In a small company of 19 one worker sued boss, got the agreement,won;2 became whistleblowers and left;one attempted suicide fearing the termination- for less than a year since a new boss came.Last one was hospitalized and his hours were diminished. Dead end: I cant afford the attorney; in contingency attorney coming only if am fired or suing. I left a message on NELA.

As you stated earlier, there may be a value in restating your request for accommodation in clear, unmistakable terms: You want to communicate with your supervisor in writing. You especially want work instructions conveyed to you in writing. Your supervisor’s reported “interpretation” does indeed twist your actual request into an unrecognizable form!

BTW, did your prior supervisor consistently communicate with you through writing? If so, what explanation has your current supervisor given for not doing so?

With respect to the EEOC, the agency will not offer “advice” per se. Agency staff will process your charge through the intake process. The matter will subsequently be turned over to an investigator. Nonetheless, considering your present situation, it probably behooves you to file a denial of accommodations charge as soon as possible.

Finally, with regard to an attorney, you may have to continue searching for a potential lawyer who would be willing to handle your case on a contingency or pro bono basis.

It is the outrageous situation, even for neuro typicals. Whole staff has anxiety.One person was going to CBS channel.Everyone afraid to be terminated because it was promised to every single worker. I did not communicate with previous boss ever in e-mails, nor had had 3 person.It was absolutely incredible leader.I am a musician, only one there. I suppose to play instrument- I have mostly non verbal profession anyway. To have communicate ONLY BY e-MAILS is quiet different from "instruction conveyed in writing". This new one finally brought ALSO a neuro typical office manager to have a pen ready, because the boss is changing his orders on 180 degree opposite constantly. Several attorneys advised to audio record-which i believe is illegal.Obviously,he has a reasons to avoid writing, his, being a native language possessor, is contradictory and using to substitute subjects constantly-intentionally or not. Our accidental e-mailing is already enough for a "case". I did not communicated in writing with a previous boss for previous 5 years, but i did e-mailed to office manager who was my immediate boss previously and it worked excellently,as well as everyone accepted me as an awkward personality, and now I am not allowed to contact her and was promised a termination for e-mail contact with anyone including a boss.My writing background is: I was allowed to substitute oral examination by writing in school, though at that time in my country Aspergers was not existed as a diagnosis. Also with my therapist my main communication is a writing from my side;he is saying; "do not stop to write me"; same with my present teacher. Staff is suffering too, but I am one who is bullied and harassed the most. All Aspergers are bullied and victimized as the definition of our problems. Staff somehow adjusted and "playing the games". My nature, said therapist not let me do so.I even tried. It does not work. If you a lawyer-- my ,our situation is truly odd, some sort of almost fiction,Markes, Kafka, because the boss has to take every day a tons of steroids for a life long. This is a part of the problem. It might a bit excuse him-- he does have health issues may be more than...

It seems he plans to rewrite my job description with including the accommodation which I do not accepting as it is not one that I requested,it is the only with what he "interpreted". I will write him tomorrow that i do not accept his interpretation of my only accommodation and will not sign it, and I need to restate my request,then I will go to the attorney for a single consultation of 1 hour (if you know anyone who is good for Aspergers in NJ?) and then will return to a boss, and if my only one accomm. will be denied, then will start to file a charge of denial. If it is right. Thank so very much-- I am getting from your answers so much more than from hours questions from many of those who tried: I see, that my 2nd language and my non-lawyers language will make a lot of troubles for me; I need to write it down as untwist-able. So request of "to have work instructions conveyed by writing and myself countercounted it", also "not to change it as a 3rd person presence which is in no way satisfies my need in conveying in writing".

I need the advise.I am music a Director/Organist at Catholic church.Boss-a new Pastor,he is trying to retaliate me,discriminating my disability, denied the only one accommodation. He ordered 4 rock guitars with huge loudspeakers to play next to me on organ loft past Sunday November 20. I had pain in ear,shaken hands,nose bleeding,high lood pressure.Of course it is against the liturgical norms, but he is targeting me. It is now a physical harassment, the hearing damage will be not repaired, and i am making my living with hearing as a musician also. If I refuse next Sunday to be exposed again, he will fire me.The doctor's support I'l have on Tuesday (ear doctor,also as Aspergers, i can not bear large noise pollutions and alarms). But then he will reduce my work load: he did same with cantor already. i sent him a letter, which he ignored. i looked through OSHA:not sure it can be inspected. Now the dilemma: how to refuse to damage my hearing,and not to be fired.