Surely you can’t refuse?

[beepbops]

I work in marketing. One of my colleagues refuses to do public speaking because it causes them to feel very anxious, tight chest, unable to sleep, sick, the whole works apparently. I understand it can’t be nice and do know how it feels but it places the burden onto other members of the team. It is true and they are great other ways round but reluctant to even give this a go, usually standing up in front of about 20 professionals and rarely can be as many as 100. It’s not often we are asked to do it maybe four or five times a year. I’m not sure it’s fair that exemptions continue to be made for this when a lot of people (myself and other colleagues included) do feel awkward and uncomfortable about doing it too, surely you’d just look for a job that’s not going to involve this if it’s going to cause you so much angst! A quick google tells you it’s one of the most common phobias among adults

My colleague has anxiety around public speaking, we have to present to between 50-100 people about 4 times a year, the rest of us just take in in turns. Tbh if i was in your team and you moaned about this to me i would not be impressed with you. At the number of times you are saying this does not have a big impact on your work life.

I don't know, I tend to think that if a person cannot do public speaking, they need to find a job that doesn't include public speaking.

It's a little different if something happens to change a person's situation after they have a job.

I suppose the difficulty is deciding if the public speaking element is integral, or just a kind of add on. But employers are not required to accommodate any kind of thing that counts as a disability if it actually prevents a person from fulfilling the role the job is about.

I have a marketing degree but just couldn't do the presentations involved with the job so left the industry. I panic so much that I can't cope so now I'm quite clear with jobs that public speaking is not ever going to be on agenda.

I'm about to apply for my dream job but I will turn it down if public speaking is involved. It's that bad.

I can't believe that with mental health awareness and inclusivity being such a hot topic in current affairs, in 2023 that you cannot be aware that there is a very marked difference between the very common feeling of 'discomfort and awkwardness' (and even anxiety) and a set of physiological symptoms that manifest themselves as a result of a disorder and can impact peoples daily lives as you have described very detailedly in your OP that it interferes with her daily life, to the degree that it could be classed as a disability under the Equalities Act 2010.

Anxiety disorder is not the same as experiencing temporary anxiety. It impacts your heart rate, sleep, cognition, irregular heartbeats, chest pains, extreme perspiration, dizziness, nausea, stomach problems and/or diarrhea, respiration, numbness/tingling/pins and needles, tiredness, headaches, and of course, this is just common symptoms before you reach a panic attack.

Anxiety is not just feeling worried and a bit panicky. I can absolutely guarantee you if your suffered from it, you would not be 'unbothered' by it - your physiology, including the involuntary release of hormones designed to force you into feeling extremely bothered physically and mentally, would make sure of it.

As such, it's a good thing your employer has made, what seems very obvious to be the case, a reasonable adjustment for her. It could possibly be discriminatory if she does not progress in her career as a direct result of this disability unless it was absolutely necessary that she take part (which at 4 times a year, seems it's not). Justifiable discrimination isn't an easy cause to prove.

You might want to educate yourself a bit, and whilst you're at, be careful. Some equality training might be helpful for you.

As someone whom has been on the receiving end, I can tell you that 'because other staff don't like it' isn't justifiable discrimination, and can land people in court.

Love this post! 👏🏻👏🏻

I agree. What the OP described is how many of us feel at some time or other, it doesn't mean we are suffering from anxiety as an illness. I have been working for nearly 50 years and have yet to meet anyone who couldn't rise to the occasion when necessary. If someone really can't cope with public speaking why take on a job where it might be necessary? The world has gone mad.

The mental health card is thrown about like a piece of paper these days. It absolutely infuriates me and makes life harder for those of us generally struggling day to day.

At no point has the op said, her manager has made a reasonable adjustment. Reading the op and not making up any trauma responces to suit my own narrative, it sounds like general nerves. So unless she can prove its anxiety, she pulls her weight.

es I agree with your last sentence however the OP will never know if the employer is facilitating such an accommodation unless their colleague chooses to disclose this.

I can imagine that from the point of them initially discussing this with their line manager to any adjustments being put into place has been drawn out and other strategies tried first.

We are but speculating.

What i will say though is that there are a great many people recruited into jobs where they're unable to carry out certain duties at all or without adjustments being made / funding spent to assist them in doing so. Conditions which they may choose to disclose at interview or within their pre employment health questionnaire (which would then trigger an OH referral).

People can have the difficulty beforehand or it can develop during their employment. It is the employer's decision whether they choose to take this on board etc etc.

Access To Work are also on hand to assess an individual for eligibility for funding of up to tens of thousands of pounds towards equipment too, to allow them to work within their role alongside a health condition. And not all of them qualify under the EA2010 either.

You wouldn't believe the roles some people have alongside their "restrictions" and I'm meaning that in a positive way

Before you turn anything down please do explore it further. See my previous posts

I do think it depends on how integral public speaking is to the role. If it was made clear that this is part of the job criteria before he/she applied for the job then I think it is off. It also depends on whether she/he developed the anxiety after already having the job. Another factor is the impact it has on the rest of the team. What if nobody likes that part of the job?
Resentment built up where I used to work as 2 members of a small extremely busy and understaffed team pushed to get a part of their job removed, both citing mental health issues. This meant that the other staff all had to do this shitty part of the job- everyone’s least favourite part. It caused resentment amongst the team. The 2 people did not make up for it in any other way, they simply left everyone else to struggle doing the crap bits.
Quite frankly everyone knew it was bollocks they just wanted their own way. They knew what the job entailed and agreed to it during the interview stage. It was made even worse when other staff were ill or asked for a break from this part of the job and couldn’t be granted a break because A & B would not do it, so it was always down to the remaining staff.

At no point has the op said, her manager has made a reasonable adjustment.

But presumably this woman's manager is aware she doesn't present. And if they're not happy with that they can address it, but if they are it's not really OP's business why - maybe it is a reasonable adjustment, maybe she's just a great employee so the manager thinks it's worth it to not make her present. My colleagues are not aware of my medical history and the health condition I have that means I sometimes wfh slightly more than the general company policy allows.

If OP thinks she is having to do too much presenting, she can address that as a separate issue with her manager.

You shouldn't be working marketing if you can't talk to a small group of people. I don't like doing it but it's part of my job. There are no exceptions in my role - people have to front up and do it. It's not marketing - it's a technical subject so who knows what sort of questions you will end up fielding. The first time I did it, it was terrifying but I did it. I am absolutely against people being able to wimp out of parts of their job because they just don't like doing it. I will make allowances for somebody who is absolutely amazing at 95% of their job to make life a bit easier for the 5% of the role but it doesn't sound like she is amazing in every other way.

The fact that she is unable to speak in public to the point that it impacts her job surely proves in itself that it's anxiety driven?

@MeinKraft That's not really probative is it. She is getting away with avoiding part of her job duties. I mean everybody feels a degree of nervousness about public speaking and not most people don't look forward to it. That doesn't mean that this person has some deep-seated anxiety because she is not suffering any detriment by refusing to do her job. I have seen people who were nervous and worried step up and do it. They maybe weren't the best performances at first but people did get better and more relaxed with more practice.

To be honest this is much more telling about her attitude to work than being physically unable to do presentations due to crippling anxiety. If it was a daily fundamental part of the role then sure I can see why perhaps the reasonable adjustment isn't so reasonable, but it doesn't sound like that's the case. If you feel the onus is too much on you then speak to your manager about your workload please don't mention that you're resentful they don't have to do them.

It's no one else's business is why, reasonable adjustments don't get broadcast to the team thankfully. The manager presumably is aware that she doesn't do presentations, and is probably managing it. I'm not sure who you think you are either, judging that she's putting it on or minimising she's just a bit nervous when there's no way at all we could know that from what OP has said. There's an irony with people who struggle themselves assuming others are faking it, that's just as counter productive as people putting it on.

Threads like this really make me despair.

Where has the quality of showing care, compassion and consideration to other people gone?

Yeah been there, severe anxiety and panic attacks, many triggers but the idea of being ‘trapped’ on stage presenting was definitely one of them. The easy solution is to avoid (I left a great job early in my career because I just couldn’t do it, the anxiety was all-consuming).

This was back in the days when mental health was absolutely not discussed at work and not part of an employer’s pastoral role. Eventually took matters into my own hands as it was so career-limiting and took a many-pronged approach of a diagnosis/meds, hypnotherapy and CBT, and presentation/media training. I’m still prone to anxiety attacks generally and still get nervous presenting, but I can handle it and in my late 40s am actually getting quite good at it, which would have seemed impossible a few years ago.

Now these conversations are less taboo and even encouraged in most firms, I would have loved for colleagues/boss/HR/whoever is the wellbeing lead to have a conversation and gently suggest and put in place a supported plan to help me try and get a handle on a bit of my job that was holding me back from achieving my potential.

YANBU OP. I'm a teacher and part of our job is to be on the assembly rota to do whole school and key stage assemblies. We do one whole school and one key stage assembly every 3 weeks (so usually 4 per half term). These need planning (trust me an assembly is not just reading a story and singing a song anymore...we have to make them 'interactive' and get given a theme each term).

One of our teachers refuses to do theirs as they 'suffer from anxiety' - so the rest of us have to pick up theirs...meaning we now have to plan and deliver 5 assemblies each half term!!

The thing is, we all know they don't 'suffer from anxiety' - they just can't control the behaviour (and are generally poor at their job in many other areas, so we also have to pick up there too...very unfair!) And before anyone says anything...they really don't have anxiety...they even brag about 'pulling the wool' over SLT with their claims, believing that the rest of us should do the same to get out of things!

Our head won't do anything though as they are related to this individual!

So yeah...it's annoying when others are expected to do more when someone else refuses to do their job properly. If it's part of your job, you need to step up and do it, or seek help for whatever is holding you back...not step back and leave others to cover your arse!

But that sounds like a completely different situation, since OP isn't actually disputing the quite severe sounding symptoms her colleague has, and says she is generally a very good colleague

Why can't they at least plan and someone else deliver?

I would not ever do public speaking and would not look at a job that meant I had to do it. My absolute worst nightmare. If you are able to make this persons life easier, then why wouldn’t you, if it doesn’t bother you and would ultimately make you look like the better person.

Of course it can be. Anxiety can very much be specific to situations.

I was harassed by an ex colleague, so my trigger ended up being email and phone notifications, because I was scared he would try to "get at" me somewhere I felt safe. But no trouble with presenting or public speaking at all.

But as a manager, I'm not fussed by this concept of getting people out of their comfort zones. I got more out of my staff by letting them thrive in their comfort zones than by letting them underperform for the customer.

I think there’s a fine line between acceptance and enabling with anxiety. I have (GP diagnosed) anxiety and I have to push myself. It’s no fun being stuck in ever decreasing circles but some people don’t see that.

Weirdly I LOVE public speaking 😁

Except this seems to be very specific?