The Productive Pessimist

  In a recent  i paper article , Suzanne O'Sullivan opines about "seeing 20-year olds with 20 diagnoses".  I saw the headline, and read the article expecting to see at least one   example  of these people with "20 diagnoses", so that this article could have been exploring co-morbidity, and linked chronic conditions (eg, where multiple impacts often or always occur together, but are diagnosed separately because of the way the healthcare system functions, or where one condition triggers a cascade health impact, which can result in multiple diagnoses, although in reality, the cascade impacts are more so symptoms of  the original, initially diagnosed, condition.) There were no  examples of these people with "20 conditions". Not even examples of the kinds of conditions which are being seen in the same person. Conditions, in fact, were never actually mentioned, except as something of "questionable value", especially if they "require constant v...

  Personal Independence Payment, or PIP, is a working-age benefit which individuals with recognised disabilities can apply for to support them with meeting the additional costs which those disabilities can incur in daily life, and in accessing employment. While PIP is "not means tested", this doesn't  mean it's "just handed to anyone who says they're disabled" - non means-tested just means that an individual's income and savings are not considered when their application is being assessed. This is often the first issue that comes up when PIP is being discussed in media, both mainstream and social - "non means-tested" is frequently thrown around media discussions very casually, allowing the assumption  that "they're just handing it out to anyone!" rather than, in contrast to the unemployment and under-employment benefit that is Universal Credit, which brings income restrictions for those in part-time or gig-economy work, as well...

  Life being stressful isn't  an illness.  That's entirely correct. But "life being stressful" also  isn't acceptable to employers, either. It's not going to be the case, in the UK, in 2025, that if people "just stop going to doctors and claiming mental health issues and getting signed off because life is a bit hard, then we wouldn't be spending so much on welfare!" . "People don't like you" . "You're impacting your colleagues' morale" . "It's unfair of you to make your colleagues worry about you by being clearly upset" . "You can't talk about feeling burnt out when there are people dealing with far higher workloads than you - everyone is burnt out, but we have to keep going" . "If you aren't happy to be here, f-k off and get a different job" . "I'm sick of you coming in here looking like you want to k*ll yourself - why don't you just f-king do it, so the rest ...

  Today, I attended a webinar on "Capability and Ill-health in the Workplace".  It was hosted by a corporate insurer who provides HR consultancy services. Those attending were business leaders and HR representatives, and the Q&A at the end made it clear they believed they were only in a "room" with other  leaders and HR reps. Their attitudes around long-term ill health and disability were immediately presented as: . This is an intolerable and ridiculous burden to us as employers . This is too expensive . These people are taking the piss . It's not going to be fair to able-bodied people who have to pick up their slack. This is also the attitude I've personally, directly  encountered as someone trying to work whilst also being disabled.  It's the attitude that lost me my last job - a job I mostly enjoyed, and a role I'd hoped to build a career from. Employers. HATE. Disabled. And. Chronically. Ill.  Employees. They do not  want to employ disabled p...