Employers should know that people with Parkinson’s can still contribute in some capacity depending of course on what type of employment they work at and how bad the Parkinson’s effects the individual. I haven’t been working for at least 2 years, and I continued to work for a couple of months after my diagnosis but I was struggling for at least 8 months before I was diagnosed. I felt supported by my employer/co-workers, but being a Carpenter and working in the construction industry made it impossible. OHS comes first.
The most debilitating issues with regards to my working capacity were slowness of movement, fatigue/lack of sleep, muscle stiffness/rigidity, standing, walking, sitting for long periods, anxiety and depression, problem solving and memory issues, pain, tremor/Dyskinesia/ Dystonia. The times of the day that I found more difficult varied. Reduced hours could have been helpful to support me to stay in the workforce longer. A formal process was undertaken to determine my work capacity and support requirements, but it made no difference because I couldn’t complete tasks. Disclosing to your employer depends on the type of employment. I did seek advice about my rights as an employee. Everybody’s situation and level of disabilities are different. It can make it very difficult for all parties. Some people have problems even with medicating bloody PD.
