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I hate it when that happens. Work should be about tasks and objectives only. And being polite to everyone in the office is key but not to the level of "clique friends".
And if people sense you do not like them. They do react in ugly ways. I've seen it happen to me. lol. I guess they wanted my approval after all.
It is possible that this is workplace discrimination. Disability is a protected class. And if you are forced out of your job because of duress. You can bring up disability in your complaint to EEOC.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Huckleberry3911948
you dont like them do you.
that is why they want you to leave.
This is why I couldn't take an office job. Here is a good cubicle, it comes with a view to die for.
Pay is crap at first though.
Oh, yeah, great film!! One of my favs...I actually own it.
Lumbergh is everyone's worst boss...that Gary Cole did him spot on. "Um, yeah, we're going to need you to move your desk to the basement."
PS He does a great Mike Brady in the Brady Bunch parody movie.
Guess what, today my manager came by my cubicle and announced that a colleague and I were being expropriated back to our original seating areas, apparently because a supervisor in another adjacent apartment wants the space. The thing is, I fought long and hard with management to move me to where I'm sitting now due to various factors that negatively influenced my health and productivity in the area I used to sit in.
Some of the main problems were noisy colleagues, a noisy copier, being next to the lunchroom and to top it off, I have this sensitive hearing condition whereby the sound flooding from peoples' headphones (they actually provide CSRs with them) triggers pain and irritation, requiring me to wear filtering earplugs, otherwise face pain all day long.
Now the thing is, my CS colleagues in the original area were loud and inconsiderate, some of them setting their cell phone ringers to loud, instead of silent or vibrate...and I took it all the way to management and HR.
Anyway, I really don't want to go back to that area...where I'm sitting now is quieter, there's less sound to irritate my ears and I've got the benefit of independence, away from management's eagle eyes. But it seems I have no choice, because according to the manager, she wants me to move back to the noisy area within the next 1-2 weeks. This blows. I feel like they just think about their own needs (now they'll be able to spy on me even more) , not mine....and that any progress made is poof! gone...
I'm starting to think it's time to start looking again....because if a manager is willing to put an employee's health at risk, then I don't know if I can take it. My stress levels will surely sky rocket...and in other news I heard the second position I'm gunning for is up in the air again, plus the hourly rate is lower than expected. Hmmm
If you have legitimate health concerns, then I think that you need to address them w/ HR,although I can't see how they would be able to accommodate you.
Also,just FYI, you are invalidating your health claims by stating that you like your current position because you can't be seen by management. If you are seeking affirmation and/or empathy that may not be the way to go about getting it.
My two cents: Move and then see if you move back at a later date...suck it up and deal w/ it...or quit.
Even if you have a disability, an employer ONLY has to make reasonable accomadations for you. They do not have to just follow whatever you want them to do.
A LOT of people have a problem sitting in noisy environments. It used to drive me nuts and would make me beyond irritable and give me a splitting headache. I cope. I also listen to music in soft over the ear headphones at a low volume.
Our chairs don't particularly suit my back, but I cope. I have 8am meetings that tend to wreak havoc with my home life-- I cope.
You, on the other hand, sounds like ANYTHING that you can complain about you do. ANd the fact that you even throw out management wanting to spy on you or having it easier to spy on you in the other location completely invalidates any type of reasoning why you can't sit in a noisier area.
Even if you have a disability, an employer ONLY has to make reasonable accomadations for you. They do not have to just follow whatever you want them to do.
True. The manager reminded me that it's an office, that they made accommodations by asking people to turn off their cell phone ringers (to me that's common courtesy and I can't believe it took complaints to fix that...we work with financial information and as I told him before, some call centers like banks specifically forbid cell phones on the production floor, due to the risk involved. With camera phones, a snapshot of account information can be taken, though a screen shot will do that same).
I think that ultimately he wants me seated close to my team, be able to watch my comings and goings and, plus my current seat is needed by another department. However this does not change the fact that I will no doubt be more stressed, face pain and decreased productivity with the seat change and I may have to address these with HR. The challenge for me though is that I'm already on thin ice with the lateness issue and have been offered accommodations, so to request further accommodations for a second medical condition might be too much to ask for...I dunno. For now I'll have to resort to wearing earplugs, perhaps starting white/pink noise therapy (there are machines for that), get noise cancelling headphones but not play music, etc.. Any other suggestions besides telling me to stop whining?
I have the same hearing issues that you do, and frankly I don't think that it's anything I should expect my employer to accomodate. As you work in e-mail customer service, the appropriate accomodation would be to allow you to wear earplugs. You can get custom fitted plugs that cancel up to 30 Db for $75. I'd strongly suggest it.
I have the same hearing issues that you do, and frankly I don't think that it's anything I should expect my employer to accomodate. As you work in e-mail customer service, the appropriate accomodation would be to allow you to wear earplugs. You can get custom fitted plugs that cancel up to 30 Db for $75. I'd strongly suggest it.
Have a link for those custom plugs? Feel free to PM me.
I currently wear custom fitted ones called Musician's earplugs with removable 15 or 25 db attenuators (filters) that cut certain tones and volume, but still allow you to hear "naturally" and enjoy music. I use these to listen to the car radio, at home and at work when, in my current spot, the guy in the next cube turns on the stereo. However, if you've done any reading on hyperacusis, you'll know that the reliance on earplugs is not recommended for long term or extended periods, but only when absolutely needed because the brain becomes used to the reduced sound with them in, but as soon as you're exposed to certain noise without them, instant pain results. I call it the "lazy ear" syndrome.
The Hyperacusis Network. Many patients have seen improvement in sound tolerance through the use of sound generators (special hearing aids) that emit broad band pink noise. This retraining therapy suggests that the ear will become desensitized to sound by listening to broadband pink noise at barely audible levels for a disciplined period of time each day (usually 2-8 hours a day). This has been proven to help over 90% of hyperacusis patients maximize the tolerances in their ears. The name of this treatment is called Tinnitus (Hypeacusis)Retraining Therapy or TRT. To find a list of current hearing professionals who administer this treatment, go here:
Another method is to have the patient listen to a pink sound CD. To summarize, pink sound has been found to be very helpful in retraining ears to re-establish their tolerances to sound. This can be done through two delivery systems: special custom fitted hearing appliances called sound generators or listening to a CD player. These methods represent great hope and can help the hyperacusis patient but they are not a cure.
Individuals who suddenly come down with hyperacusis go through a distressing crisis period where it may be difficult for the patient to sleep restfully at night. Getting proper sleep and reducing stress levels are very important and some medication may initially be needed to help facilitate this....
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Now about TRT, I looked into it locally and a clinic offers it for $200/hr with a $400 minimum. I don't know how often it's recommended, but if that's the best solution and it ends up costing an arm and a leg, then without sufficient medical insurance , you're up the creek. This is not treatment I can have my ENT Dr. refer me too, so either I cough it up out of pocket or try other therapies. Yeah it sucks to feel like a basket case with medical conditions, and realize nothing is perfect ,so we'll have to see how this seat change thing works out.
As much as all this information on hyperacusis makes scintillating reading, I think the answer to your original question can be simply summed up in one word. Yes.
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I don't know how often it's recommended, but if that's the best solution and it ends up costing an arm and a leg, then without sufficient medical insurance , you're up the creek. This is not treatment I can have my ENT Dr. refer me too, so either I cough it up out of pocket or try other therapies. Yeah it sucks to feel like a basket case with medical conditions, and realize nothing is perfect ,so we'll have to see how this seat change thing works out.