To find it ridiculous that my work is encouraging those with neurodivergence to add details of their neurodivergence to their email signatures “so colleagues can accommodate your needs?”

[SnugShaker]

I get the intention behind it but it just feels like an uncomfortable and unnecessary step. Why should employees be expected to disclose their neurodivergence in a public way, especially when it could lead to unwanted assumptions or even stigma? There’s a line between creating an inclusive environment and putting the burden of disclosure on individuals, and it seems like this might be crossing that line. Shouldn’t accommodations be handled in a more private, respectful way without having to broadcast personal information?

Bonkers. We truly deserve to become extinct.

This reminds this one time my friend praised her colleague she should be proud of her career success considering she had the Down Syndrome.
Her colleague snapped back at her and said what on earth she was all about. She did not have the Down Syndrome.

a list 3 positive attributes that they have

bleurgh.

Actually a thyroid condition is considered a disability.

I just think all the labels we have these days are a double edged sword. On the one hand, a label means, diagnosis, treatment, understanding of your own struggles and on the other hand it means being defined by neurodivergence and possible discrimination.

I'm pretty sure I would qualify as neurodivergent but I've never gone down that route because I don't really identify with being neurodivergent and I just want people to see me as I am without labelling me.

It’s interesting how you explain your misunderstanding of cognitive differences by comparing them to piles.
Would you like some signposting to good information so you can learn what neurodivergence means?

Ever having had cancer is too, even if you have finished treatment and have no symptoms.

Yes, one of them is 'curious', which she has said is basically 'nosey' 😆

Tbh though, whilst I agree with you (all good meetings should have an agenda and follow up notes etc)

it’s really pushing work upwards.
I’m senior, I will be in 6 meetings today. Many of these are organised by me with people who work for me to communicate information and expectations, request work, discuss projects or get updates.

who would do the agenda and notes? Me. Who would be the one logging in at 7pm to send out today’s action points (in the right format- ie bullet points, at the right time ie whatever their email says about working hours etc etc) and to send out agendas for tomorrows 4 meetings? I don’t have a dedicated EA, I would have to do all of this.

extra admin work to support people who have been recruited to support me, as in work towards a common purpose in the directorate and provide an internal service. Yet they can have agendas and notes made for them… by me.

can you see that this might sound simple to the person who wants it, but snowballs to the person providing it?

Only a crap employer would allow a member of staff use ND as an excuse to bully people. Disgraceful

I’ve seen this with a health professional I work with- she states her preferred way of communication is email rather than telephone which is what I do for her and works well

As a ND person I would hate this and would refuse.

Dear God. The whole reason I regularly burnout from masking my ASD is because I want to seem "normal" like everyone else. Announcing my differences to all and sundry is horrifying to me!

I also don't want or need other people to "accommodate" my neuro-divergence (other than those closest to me obviously).

I would be very careful of this. Jobs are really starting to dry up - masking will have to continue.

If I were to be 'encouraged' to share my private information regarding Protected Characteristics with all and sundry, my signature would be along the lines of;

'AuDHD, Autism, Autoimmune Disease, going deaf + tinnitus, having hot flushes. Don't phone me, never use handsfree if you still insist upon calling and don't get offended if I haven't got a clue who you are or when I say 'I can't hear you, I'll come to you', DON'T MUMBLE on the phone or in person and when emailing (as let's face it, I will forget your request in roughly five minutes otherwise), get to the point; what do you want, why do you want it, what is it going to be used for and when do you want it by?

If it's outside my usual working hours, role, payscale or you're coming to me having ignored my suggestions about what would be the most accurate, efficient and speedy way in which to do something, Tribute is accepted via the medium of non-dairy iced coffee with caramel (soya or coconut), chilled glass bottles of Diet Coke, gluten-free Kit-Kats and houseplants that won't poison cats. Oh, and if whatever you want requires standing for more than five minutes, walking, anything over the temperature of a fully air-conditioned room, being in a location with multiple other people talking or worst of all, other people talking, rustling sheets of paper, singing, cheering or clapping, the answer is going to be no. Other than that, I'll see what I can do.'

It would definitely mean we'd need larger spaces for the signature box. As would ACAS on the Early Conciliation form - when that's completed approximately 20 minutes later.

If they did or didn’t I think I would ignore it anyway, I’m not pandering to this nonsense, every human being ( neuro or typical) has their quirks and issues, I won’t be treating one set of people differently

Encouraged is just their fancy wording for coercion.

It’s firstly outrageous to request people disclose medical information on an email footer, so inappropriate and secondly if someone is doing a job any adaptation is between them and their employer and not for others to second guess

There’s so much muddy thinking around what neurodivergence even includes. It often gets used as shorthand for autism or ADHD but the brain doesn’t slot neatly into binary categories.

Wondered how long it would take for you to get to this old chestnut OP.

When I returned after a period of sick leave due to autistic burnout Occ Health encouraged me to add a line to my email signature asking people to drop me a Teams message before calling as I find being called out of the blue a little challenging sometimes.

I suppose people will infer whatever they want from that but for me it makes a massive difference but I'm not literally saying "Im autistic" to every person I email.

Yes, this is the flip side of saying that it's wrong to nit-pick the writing of someone with dislexia: it suggests that it's ok to do it to someone who doesn't have dislexia.

I think it's sad, we've developed a society in which you have to scrape and beg and bring your doctor's note in order to cojole those around you into treating you with respect.
You shouldn't need a diagnosis to be entitled to expect your colleagues to not be d*cks.

I wouldn’t want this kind of thing in my workplace. Unless someone gives a clear explanation of their adjustments, just adding a note in a signature feels a bit pointless, I rarely read signatures unless I’m looking for specific information.

In practice, people who want to share this kind of information usually make it known anyway. I work with someone on the spectrum who brings up his autism frequently, and it’s clear he struggles with aspects of his role. By contrast, I’m dyslexic but I’ve chosen not to share this at work, as I don’t want to risk being labelled in a way that might affect my progression.

Openness can be a double-edged sword. The colleague who speaks about it openly is unlikely to progress beyond his current level, senior staff have even commented that he was hired a grade or 2 too high. While not everyone wants to move up and some are happy staying in the same role, in those cases sharing might make things easier, as people naturally avoid asking you to take on tasks they know you won't complete. But if you do want to progress, that level of openness may not help.

I had one where the message says “due to my autism my email style is sometimes unintentionally quite blunt. While I am working on this, please do feedback if you receive an email where my time hasn’t been adjusted and causes upset. You can let me know directly or via my manager.”

I quite liked it and wondered what the “story” was that led to that message 😂. His reply to me was fine but we do sometimes deal with awkward people and I can definitely be blunt (not autistic just low tolerance of dickheads) so i wondered what my message would read, but then realised that if my email upsets someone that was probably deliberate and I don’t need the feedback, just for them to do their job as requested.

I think this is normal teams etiquette - send quick chat to say, are you free for a quick call about xyz? (Never leave anyone hanging re the subject of the incoming call)

Management have crazy ideas. We were once advised to have sign language in pictures on our e-mail signature. People may be deaf, but can usually read!