I am a teacher with relapsing remitting MS which is deteriorating. I am now at a point where I wish to ask for adjustments to my work and would like to know what kind of reasonable adjustments I can request. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi,
The law has no guidance here, and perhaps rightly so, because what adjustments might help are personal to the individual, so there’s no list you can pick from.
Also what is “reasonable” - in terms of both cost, and any burden/inconvenience to other staff will vary depending on the employing organisation. If it was a small village primary school, with only half-a-dozen teachers, and a very small budget, they wouldn’t be expected to have as much flexibility as a huge school, with dozens, if not hundreds of teachers.
“Reasonable” does mean “reasonable to both parties”. Just because something might benefit you does not mean they necessarily have to do it, irrespective of cost or disruption. A reduction in hours, or more flexible hours, is one thing a lot of people with MS might be keen to consider. But remember that if they agree to you going part-time, they don’t have to still pay you full-time money. Also it’s not just pay that would be cut, but ALL associated benefits (like pensions) in proportion.
Whilst I’m not a teacher, with hindsight, I’m very relieved I didn’t switch to part-time working. I had considered asking to go on a 3-day week. BUT, this Summer, I was made redundant (nothing to do with MS - hundreds affected). If I’d switched to part-time working, even as little as one week before the announcement, I would only have got 3/5 my redundancy payout, because it’s based on the hours you’re working at the time - regardless whether you’ve been working much longer hours for decades! So I’m thanking my lucky stars I hadn’t yielded to temptation and cut my hours, only to see my redundancy pot halved! These are all things to think about.
You might want to think about relatively small everday things first, that are (a) unlikely to be controversial, and (b) won’t have a massive impact on your finances. If you haven’t already, could you ask for a reserved parking space, close to the buildings? If you regularly have to teach in upstairs classrooms, could you ask for room allocations to be altered, so this is minimised? If you have a particularly heavy day, that always causes problems, could you ask for your duties to be more evenly spread throughout the week?
These are just some thoughts I’ve come up with at random, but won’t necessarily be the best for you. You need to sit down and have a think about what would really make life easier. Perhaps a wheeled trolley for books and/or computer, instead of having to lug them over a shoulder - that sort of thing. At work, I had an agreement that I was not expected to lug a laptop to distant meetings, because it was so heavy. Also an agreement that if I was required to travel, I must have a pre-booked train ticket, and finish in time for my train, because I couldn’t risk not getting a seat, and having to stand all the way home! Again, probably doesn’t really apply to teaching, but small examples of things that helped me.
Tina
Have you contacted Acces to Work https://www.gov.uk/access-to-work/overview****?
They can help with reasonable adjustments to help you at work
Good Luck!
Anne
Hi
I have had a number of adjustments…
Car parking next to building
Mobile air con unit for the 1 hot day a year
Adjustable chair giving back / shoulder support
ergonomic computer mouse
I have also adjusted my work pattern to 34 hours a week over 4 days giving me a 3 day weekend to get those extra zzzzz’s
Access to work are excellant and a valuable source of experience.
All the best
Neil
As you are a teacher, do you work for a local Council? I work for a local Council and I requested they send me to their Occupational Health which was the best thing I done. I ended up with flexi-time, special mouse and keypad, parking space outside building and being seated next to a window for when it is hot. If this is an option for you you really should ask. I also agree with Anne try access to work they are great.
Good Luck
Claire
Access to work are a valuable resource…u are assessed by in ur wworkplace…vv. Knowledgeable
I wonder if you are a member of a union? If not I would suggest that you join, they have great experience of negotiating and it would be good to have someone on your side. You should also contact Access to Work who can give you practical advice. Having said that it would be as well for you to come up with your own plan. How is your day to day life affected by MS? How would a change improve your ability to carry on in employment?
The most obvious answer is a reduction in hours. How would this fit in with your contract? Is there a natural split? How could it be managed? Is jub share an option? When you put your proposed adjustments forward you do need to have an Action Plan to put forward. Suggest some sort of trial basis - say half a term - then get the working arrangements reviewed. That way you can build in the framework for making sure it works to both parties advantage.
Regards
Hi there I am a teacher and my school has been great at meeting all of my requests so far(currently writing letter re. Next year’s timetable). At my request I have a parking space close to school entrance, teach in 1 room, I am 0.6 and do this over 3 days so that I have 2 rest days. If necessary I ask for a late start on a parent’s evening night and have requested cover if I feel like I won’t get through the whole day. I have a regular catch up with the head and have found being very open about things means they have been incredibly supportive. You know yourself and how you feel so I would ask for as much support as necessary. When I have faced any resistance I have spoken to the ms society via the helpline and my line manager. I am waiting a referral to occupational health. Kx