The danger of falling into the trap of situational disability, which is one of a number of reasons for denying a disability retirement application, can come about quite regularly. Especially because, in the face of contending with a medical disability that is serious enough to warrant changing one’s career, of filing for medical disability retirement — there is often the Agency’s contentious response, of needing to have the continuity of the work accomplished, of being insensitive and lacking compassion for the applicant; in such a context, the applicant views the Agency’s response as hostile.
The employee/applicant, then, in filing for disability retirement, will often make the mistake of focusing upon the hostile work environment, or the lack of compassion and empathy on the part of the Agency — and this will often warrant a denial of disability retirement based upon the medical condition of the applicant as being “situational disability” — meaning that the medical condition of the employee/applicant is limited to the work situation of that particular office or agency. This is a completely wrong-headed approach for the applicant.
That is why, when I represent my clients, I am singularly focused upon the 2 or 3 main issues that form the essence of a disability retirement case, and insist upon focusing my clients upon those very same issues, while setting aside those tangential issues which can ultimately defeat a disability retirement application. Understand that these peripheral, tangential issues may well be “important” to my client — but I would not be doing my job in representing my clients if I allowed the peripheral issues to become “front and center” — for that would be a disaster for my clients. I represent people to obtain disability retirement benefits. That is my job. That is my focus. If I allow my focus to waiver, then I am not representing my clients properly.
Sincerely,
Robert R. McGill, Esquire
Filed under: OPM Disability Actors - The Agency, OPM Disability Actors - The Applicant, OPM Disability and a Hostile Working Environment, The Job of a Federal Disability Attorney | Tagged: abusive supervisors and federal disabled workers, an issue that can defeat a federal disability application, civil service disability, disability retirement opm, emotional distress at the Post Office, federal disability lawyer, federal disability lawyers not immune to emotional issues, federal disability retirement, federal employees disability, federal injured ill workers, FERS disability retirement, harassment and bullying by federal government supervisors, harassment is not a medical issue, hostile work environment for federal workers, hostile work environment in the Post Office, intimidation against the disabled federal worker, is it an eeo claim or an opm disability claim?, Keeping Emotionalism to a Minimum, OPM Disability Application, paying attention to the essence of a disability retirement case, Post Office disability, Postal Service employee advocate, proving opm emotional disability, reasons for opm disability retirement, Situational Disability and the Federal Worker, situational federal disability, situational OPM disability, top reasons for denying an OPM disability application, USPS a culture of fear and intimidation |
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