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GodzillaWoman
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19 Nov 2015, 3:38 pm

Does anyone know of any good, brief introductions for employers on what autism spectrum disorder is, and how it affects autistic employees? I've found some material online but a lot of it is pretty long. I'm getting ready to do disclosure to my managers, and I'd like to give them some reading material. I thought that a short intro might be good if they don't have time to read the longer material right away, or feel like it's more detail than they need.


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izzeme
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20 Nov 2015, 7:18 am

Only direct co-workers (those who you will be doing projects with) need the full story.
All an employer needs is: "i got these issues, and i will do X or request Y for them to not be a problem".
Any more information is surplus, and might get in your way, the classic "need-to-know" disclosure policy applies here as well



SocOfAutism
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22 Nov 2015, 2:01 pm

izzeme wrote:
Only direct co-workers (those who you will be doing projects with) need the full story.
All an employer needs is: "i got these issues, and i will do X or request Y for them to not be a problem".
Any more information is surplus, and might get in your way, the classic "need-to-know" disclosure policy applies here as well


^ I agree with this. And remember that only documented disclosure is ADA protected, which means that unless you provide something from your doctor you could be denied accommodations or they could repeat what you say.

And please consider taking a look at my survey! It will only be open for one more week! I would be very interested in hearing your before and after experiences!



bimini3
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24 Nov 2015, 10:39 am

Is there a real need to disclose?

Personally, I would not. Most people will not understand, even if they do try to understand, or even if they do understand they may think you are different (and thus cannot be trusted or relied on).

There is really no protection under the ADA. No, they cannot fire you for being on the spectrum (or any other Disability), but they can find or even make up a dozen other reasons for termination and create the proper paper trail to prove it.



ASDLibrarian
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11 Dec 2015, 1:53 pm

I have had a job for three years, and I have never felt that disclosing would be a good way to go. Socially, I am not the greatest, but I feel like people have adjusted to my quirks, and are satisfied with the way I deal with customers because other than some small talk, there is really no personal conversations I have to do with customers and am comfortable with answering questions. The only issue I mention related to my autism, is my poor motor skills when it comes to writing, but that is countered with more jobs being done on computers than actual handwriting, and I don't even need to mention I am on the spectrum.

Overall, I just feel like that disclosing has no real benefit or minus for me and I am able to perform my job without disclosing.



AutisticIan
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11 Dec 2015, 3:53 pm

My advice would be to be very careful and not rush as there is no way back once you have told people. I have disclosed to a number of colleagues where I work. I am not the only one there with Aspergers, there are 6 of us out of about 40 people. One colleague is diagnosed and was recruited knowing he had Aspergers - he is very good with computers and maths. I do not think the others have disclosed but we cannot really hide who we are from people we work with every day.

I have found a conversation along the lines of "I need your help with context and diplomacy/politics so I can reply to an email. I have a blind spot with this as I have Aspergers." tends to go well as I am not just disclosing but asking for help and giving a reason.

I am lucky as we have a very good manager who has created a very cooperative workplace culture. There are other places I have worked with a less pleasant bullying culture where disclosure would have shown a weakness which some people would have exploited.



BeaArthur
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11 Dec 2015, 7:25 pm

Godzilla Woman, may I ask why you want to disclose?


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GodzillaWoman
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17 Dec 2015, 6:56 pm

BeaArthur wrote:
Godzilla Woman, may I ask why you want to disclose?


Sorry, just noticed this question. I've had some issues with executive function, mostly--staying on budget, on time, and on task. I do pretty well for several weeks and then have a major problem because I didn't do a good job estimating the amount of time or money I would need to do a major project, or because I misunderstood or forgot an instruction or procedure. It seemed to be baffling my boss that I could do so well with the technical aspects of the job, but goof up things that most of the team managed with little effort. I was going around in a constant state of anxiety that I would forget or misunderstand something, or say something that would annoy my boss or cause all my co-workers to stare at me like I'd said something really weird. I would ask a favor of my boss, only for her to yell at me for half an hour for not asking it the right way.


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BeaArthur
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17 Dec 2015, 8:59 pm

An alternative to disclosing could be acknowledging that you've had some difficulty, say, with staying on budget, and asking for some guidance about that. Employers generally are favorably impressed with employees wanting to improve themselves. To many, asking for a disability accommodation is the same as asking to be excused for your faults. I have not disclosed autism, but when I requested accommodations for physical disabilities, I always sensed it was viewed as an imposition.


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Butterfly88
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18 Dec 2015, 3:24 pm

It depends what you need to tell them. For example, if you need to let them know about sensory issues you could try saying something like "my senses get really keyed up, would you mind keeping the volume of the music down".