Does the job know your diagnose?

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Hello everybody, I'm new here.

I am very interested to hear your experiences with telling your job that you have AS (Asperger syndrome) / ASD (Autism Specturm Disorder), and what kind of job you have.

About me:
I am a 24 year old male, diagnosed with Asperger syndrome on the high end – still I am stuggling pretty hard with executive functions and ADL, low enerdy, anxiety and depression.
I work par time in a pre school (kindergarden) institution and love my job. Suprisingly I do very well in my job, and communicate very well with the kids – in fact i communicate better with kids than with adults at my own age. I find myself more compatible with the childrens world than the adult world, and because of that do exceptionally well in my job. This is the one situation in life I have ever done best.
My job does not know of my diagnosis, but they know I are having problems with depression and I was actually hospitalized for one (1) year with serious depression – that they know.

Do your job know of your diagnosis? How much do they know?
What was their reaction to the knowledge?
What kind of job do you have?

I have no idea what the company that employs knows about me but at this point, I do not think it matters. That is because I do my job well, plus it is hard for them to find people willing to do the job for the pay we get. They cannot be too picky.

There are 2 people at the company that knows about my diagnosis. These are people that I use mainly to assist me with the company politics and such.

I am a software developer. I am not officially diagnosed (yet!) so no one at work knows about it . Instead of coming right out and sharing with my department, I have explained specific traits. For example, a few weeks ago I told the boss that I do much better when I get new information in writing or a diagram rather than in person.

Once I have an official diagnosis, then I will debate the merits of sharing/not sharing.

As soon as I clear my background check (piece of cake)
I will start a new job

My boss knows, I declared it in the interview process.

But then I will be working with Aspergers and learning disabled students
in a private school designed to meet the needs of students with Aspergers, Autism, and
other Learning Disabilites.

In that environment it can be a tremendous assett.

Do jobs even usually ask if you have a certain diagnosis? That's what I'm worrying about when it comes to me applying for my first job recently.

Jobs usually are not supposed to ask during the hiring process.
There exist ethical and legal reasons why they would not want to.

It is also usually considered bad form to submit non pertinent information during the interview process.

I was straight forward about my Asperger's because I applied for a job where I will be working with children who have Asperger's, high functioning Autism, and other non language learning disabilities.

Therefor, my having Asperger's is directly related to how well I can relate to and with those who I am asking to be able to help.

I lifeguard and teach swim lessons during the summer at a local pool. I did not specifically tell my boss about AS, but he knows I'm a little on the unsocial side. I've learned how to work around my AS and it hasn't caused any problems at work so far, except with one co-worker who hates my guts anyways.

--->Yes. They asked briefly what it was. I mention it from tiem to time, but they don't seem to retain the info.

---> The first guy I told (a manager, pretty cool guy), reacted with curiosity and interest. Then he asked whether and how it owuld affect my job performance. After that, he thoght for a few moments, and then he said, "Well, now I can see why you dressed up as Spock for Halloweeen!" Most of the others don't take it seriously. Several coworkers seem to doubt that I have a real diagnosis, because they were surprised to hear that I do. One of them was outright antagnoistic and said that I was normal, which to me, was sort of an insult. I don't want to be normal, based on what I see of them!!

--->I work in the bakery and deli of a grocery store, which involves a lot of multitasking and customer service, and constant noise and interruptions. It is a challenge!!

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I did quit a job that I had working with disabled people, because once I got diagnosed, they started treatign me differently and would not let me work with autistics or other aspies anymore: virtuallly the only people I really enjoyed or had anything of real substance to offer. [/b]

Do your job know of your diagnosis? How much do they know?
No. As a part-time worker hoping to get a full-time, I don't want to ruin my chances.

What was their reaction to the knowledge?
They don't have that knowledge, but I repeatedly tell them that I don't like too much noise, to many people, etc. so that they don't expect me to go at the restaurant with them for instance, or that they don't feel hurt by my distant behavior.

What kind of job do you have?
My work is related to tourism and involves constant contacts with clients which is another reason not to tell my boss about my AS.

Alexandra

If your AS does not cause severe problems, I do not see why it should matter if information is withheld.

I didn't tell my employers, but my boss sort of guessed!

When I first started the job, there was no need to say anything to anyone, as my boss at the time was very quiet, gave me one task at a time, and always spoke in a very clear and direct manner. I had no need to say anything to anyone about AS.

It was when he left to go to a new job and my new boss started that the problems began. She is very bubbly and enthusiastic and a nice person, but she doesn't communicate in a way that is compatible with my ability to comprehend.

I saw an old pattern of many previous employment disasters begin again. Being asked to do things, but asked in a vague way. What I mean by this is as follows:

My boss would mention that 'we could do with a spreadsheet to record this'.
My unspoken reaction 'yes that would be nice'.
Action on my part: none, no instruction had, in my comprehension, been given. A couple of days later, my boss would ask 'have you done that spreadsheet yet, can I have a look at what you've done so far?'
My reaction - '.....huh?.... what spreadsheet?'
Her - 'the spreadsheet I told you to do'.
Me (becoming upset and angry, unable to temper response appropriately so beginning to unintentionally raise my voice) - 'you didn't ask me to do a spreadsheet'.
Her - 'Don't speak to me like that, I don't like your attitude'
Me (upset now) - 'what attitude?'
Her - 'I don't like the way you talk to me so abruptly - I asked you to do something and you haven't done it. Your attitude has no place in the office'

Anyway she guessed what the problem was, and we get along much better now she knows! She communicates much more directly, writes stuff down if she has a list of things for me to do, and reminds me to do things without any hint of accusation. Much better all round.

My McDonald's manager probably thinks there's something wrong with me, but I haven't said anything, and he hasn't asked. I'm just saving up with a long 4 years before college, so I don't really worry about the job. I sent in an electronic application to Acme at the same time I applied at McDonald's, so if I ever get called, I'll have another job to pick up right away if I want to.

Hi Folks,

My professional colleagues in a state government disability service told me I was autistic years ago. The reason I went for a formal assessment was that I was being harassed by a certain type of so-called caring welfare worker [always female] because of my blunt and direct manner. As for empathy, I have none and the kind of highly emotional so-called caring NTs who work in disability found me confronting so demonised me. Hence I thought that the formal diagnosis would offer me some protection from abuse. How wrong I was. It continued as before and a new problem arose: I could be a professional or an autistic, but I could not be both and work in the general developmental disability field. It appears that autistics are supposed to be handicapped, but I am not. I am very good a many things professionally and personally, but I do not play the "role" that these NT disability workers believe I should play. After 29 years as an educational advisor, specialising in autism and being AS, I find that I am frequently told by "matronising" disabilty/welfare professionals that I know nothing about autism: what I say and do is not in any of the text books these people have read or written, thus I am wrong. I wonder why?

Jim Crawford

Jim,

This happens more than you think. Up in the cities recently, I heard that a principal was aghast to the fact that someone with a disability could help another person with a disability.

Yet, with me, neither my manager nor the school district, even if they suspect something, care what I have as they feel I am good with the children (I am a special needs school bus driver).

Simply put, there are certain people with the mindset that those with disabilities are the victims and because of their disability, cannot help others with a disability.

BTW, if the social services department does let you go, you should see if you can become an advocate and use your blunt direct style against your former coworkers

Hi Louis,

Thanks for your response. You will be delighted to hear that over the years I have "sorted out" a number of the people who have attacked me by seeking formal action and threatening legal actions for defamation, etc., but it still does not stop. I really do not want to "play" this "game" of personality, power and politics. It is so time and energy consuming and my level of anxiety goes through the roof. It distracts from what I am good at [like you]: working with ASD children and adults whose "language" I speak as a "native". It is clear that in the NT world clinical competence or performance [even at an exceptional level] in some specific skill or academic area is not the final arbiter of acceptance. It is "clustering" and "belonging" with like-minded sentimental NT people that sees one accepted or rejected. I do not care to play these games. Ego is not an issue for me, only the accuracy of what I do: if it works, it is correct, if not I change the model.

As I get older I am becoming more and more tired of fighting and am withdrawing more and more, whereas ten years or so ago I would have demanded, on principle, restitution if someone attacked me. However not fighting brings its own stresses as I really need [autistically] that the formal rules of correct behaviour be upheld. I find that each incident/confrontation reverberates through me for months on end, whereas NTs seem to get over confrontations almost immediately and cannot understand the very great damage they do to me [and I assume other ASD people] by their casual, careless social "spite" behaviour.

Jim Crawford.

Good, I got my first job. At least I don't have to worry now. I hope I can keep it.