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cubesquareddigital · 3 years

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Work vs. Mental Health

aka KNOWING YOUR RIGHTS FROM YOUR WRONGS

We’re passionate about promoting positive mental health here at CubeSquared, but we know not everyone is, so we wanted to put something together to help those (especially given the impact of the coronavirus) who may be looking for work with a mental health condition in tow.

Confucius once said "find a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life". Well that's all well and good for him and his corner office, but what about the rest of us? What about the rest of us just trying to get through the day without punching that buffoon from Sales or from getting caught nicking all those pens? Exactly.

If those work-based annoyances aren't enough, if you're living with a mental health condition, then work can be so much tougher. For some, just getting out of bed is a Herculean task, let alone coping with additional deadlines, a huge workload or trying to create a PowerPoint slideshow that won't send everyone into a coma.

Just like life, work colleagues and management will have different viewpoints when it comes to mental illness. Some will be accommodating of your needs, others won't and it will be a source of contempt. Screw those guys!

With these different points of view, how helpful employers are will vary wildly, so it's important to know what your actual rights are. Can you punch that idiot from Sales? Probably not, but where DO you stand? If you're in the UK (like we are), we can try and help, so let's take a look at another of our world-famous* Top 10 lists! Let's bloody do this!

(* - not actually world-famous)

1. BEFORE YOU START WORK

Let's start before you actually have a job! What do you mean that's cheating? Oh you sound just like that douchebag from Sales!

If you're in the position of looking for work, let's face it, you're not alone in that, it's important to know where you stand as you sit down for the interview. See what we did there? Let's say, for the sake of argument, you have depression. What next?

Any prospective employer can NOT ask you about your mental health, unless they are:

Asking about any reasonable adjustments they need to make during the job application process.

Checking they have applications from a wide range of people; this might also include sex (as in gender, it's not a 'Yes Please' / 'No Thank You' thing), religion, sexuality, race, etc.

Ensuring that you will actually be able to do the job you're applying for.

2. TO DISCLOSE OR NOT TO DISCLOSE. THAT IS THE QUESTION.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with being open about any condition you might have, it's just that you don't HAVE to. If you want to be open and tell them, feel free. The question you might want to consider though is whether to tell them before or after you get the job. If you don't get it, then I wouldn't bother!

If you DO disclose, then you will be protected under the Equality Act 2010. This means you can get any extra support you might need at work, ask for any reasonable adjustments to be made and, hopefully, get support from your lovely new work mates. Depending on the environment, that might work against you (if they're a bunch of A-holes), so it will be your choice. Just remember, you're not legally obligated to do so.

The key words here are 'reasonable adjustments' If you want them to build you a solid gold throne to sit on, then you're probably not going to get that, but if you need to sit in a particular part of the office, for example, or building in some 'work from home' hours, then you can certainly ask. It boils down to whether you would be at a 'significant disadvantage' without it.

It's not as onerous at it sounds. Employers don't necessarily have to foot the bill for any changes. They can get help through the Access to Work scheme, which can help to pay for practical support their employees might need to help start or stay in work. Also, if the company has an Occupational Health department, then they may be able to help with this.

It might also be worth noting that when looking for a company clever enough to hire you, you might want to look for firms that display the 'Disability Confident' symbol. Like ours in the footer of every page (just scroll down, we’re not lying, in fact we’re very proud of it!)

It was launched by the UK Government and was designed to encourage firms to recruit disabled people (this includes depression by the way). It does mean that they are more suited to hiring (and keeping) people classed as ‘disabled’.

3. THE EQUALITY ACT.

Whilst we're on the subject of the Equality Act, nice segue I know, let's touch on that piece of legislation a little. It classes depression as a disability, so is covered by this piece of legislation. The Act also covers things like bipolar disorder, dementia, OCD and schizophrenia, in fact anything that is a "substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities".

Because of this, employers can't (or shouldn't at least) discriminate against you when you apply for jobs, have a job or if you lose it through redundancy.

4. BENEFIT BITS

If you're starting work after being on benefits for a while, then it can be a financial tricky path to navigate. The time between getting your last benefit and your first bumper pay day can seem like a lifetime.

You may also be able to get benefits AND work, depending on how many hours you work. This applies if you've been on either Employment Support Allowance or Jobseekers Allowance.

5. SICK PAY

You've got your dream job (hopefully it won't be a nightmare) and things are going tickety-boo, but then you have a bit of a turn for the worst. Now what?

If you need to take time off for your physical or mental health, then there also things you need to be aware of.

How much time you can take off ill, and how much you'll get (or for how long) will vary from employer to employer and their own policies. It might also be dependant on how long you've worked there, so giving a definitive answer here is a little harder.

Most will give you full pay for a short while, before reducing it to half-pay. When that happens, or stops completely, providing you have been off work for more than 4 days, then you can apply for SSP (Statutory Sick Pay) for up to 28 weeks. Then 28 weeks later? The zombies come ;-)

6. WORK....UNTIL YOU CAN'T

If you're off for more than 4 weeks, then your employer can refer you to Fit for Work.

This is a UK government-funded initiative which offers advice on returning to work. They can also refer you to a Occupational Health professional (if your company doesn't have one) who will work with you to create a 'return to work' plan. So that’s nice.

7. I'M BACK BABY!

Depending on how long you've been off for, even if it's only a short time, going back to work can be tough. Not knowing the reaction you'll get from colleagues when you return or even if it's just FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), then it can be an anxious time.

You can help to ease that by keeping in touch with your manager while you're off. This will mean that going back to work can be a little less daunting. You don't have to be 'cured' to go back to work, as long as you can go back without making yourself worse or you don't feel under any pressure to go back, you should be fine.

You may need a ‘fit note’ from the GP and, if you do, you can ask them to recommend adjustments on the form for your employer to see, e.g. reduced hours at first, etc.

8. I'M NOT BACK BABY!

If your short-term mental (or even physical) illness becomes a long-term problem, then your employer can eventually decide to 'let you go', providing there are no reasonable adjustments they can make to keep you there.

This isn't a decision they'll take lightly, but remember that they're trying to run a business and can't keep your job open forever. They won't want to lose a good worker, so try and look at objectively before firing off any strongly worded emails in the middle of the night after one-too-many bottles of wine.

9. MAKE A COMPLAINT

We'd like to think that all employers are honourable and trustworthy (like us), but sadly that isn't the case. Whatever your circumstances and whatever kind of employer they are, they do have to adhere to the law.

If you've lost your job, but you feel like they haven't done this lawfully and you have been unfairly discriminated against, then you can make a complaint. There may be an opportunity to do this informally at first, just in case there has been a misunderstanding or miscommunication that can be easily resolved. If not, then it's time to kick on!

The company will have their own procedure for formal complaints, so speak to their HR or Personnel Department (or the Office Manager if they're only a small firm) and find out what the procedure is. It might be worth getting in writing if you can. If this doesn't help, then you can take it to an Employment Tribunal.

10. MORE INFORMATION.

Obviously there are a multitude of people reading this and any number of individual circumstances to consider. We don't have ALL the answers, as shocking as that might be.

If you need any further help with work, then there are a number of organisations that specialise in this kind of thing. Citizen's Advice (they're not a Bureau anymore apparently) are a great place to start, but also an organisation called Benefits and Work have some excellent resources and an active forum where you can ask questions and (hopefully) get some answers.

If you're going through something, then probably someone else already has, so it can be a useful weapon to have in your arsenal.

We hope you find some useful hints and tips here, but these are just ours. If you've got any more to share, then please let people know in the comments section below. We're off to punch that pillock in Sales ;-)

Blog photo courtesy of Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

#mental health #disability confident #workers rights #Citizen's Advice #mental illness #Employment Tribunal #SSP #Statutory Sick Pay #Employment Support #FOMO #Fear of Missing Out #Fit For Work #creative industry #Equality Act

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aethelflaedladyofmercia · 4 years

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What Might Have Been - 18

@goodomenscelebration - Themes Prompts

Still posting as many as I can, so catch up on AO3!

CW: Torture, kidnapping, violence (none graphic).

The vote a few days ago decided that Milton Keynes should be destroyed, but the spread-out nature of the town means only the McDonalds got wrecked. Please feel free to imagine any sections you like being destroyed off-screen (except the Ikea, which I was told must remain intact).

Note to new readers: Kasbeel is the identity our Aziraphale is traveling under in this alternate universe. “Aziraphale” is used to refer to his AU counterpart except, notably, when it is not.

Wayward

“Run! Keep running!” Kasbeel flew, gliding at the back of his charges, scooping up the ones who fell behind and carrying them forward. He glanced behind him. At least twenty, thirty, forty angels descending on them from the sky.

Grabbing Ollie, he carried the boy to the front of the crowd, handing him off to an unburdened adult. “Lyla, I think you were correct. This is a planned strike. They knew we would be here.”

“Yeah. Told you.” She puffed, legs pounding on the pavement. “No way. This many people. Went unnoticed.” To their left and right, wide strips of blighted earth corralled them, forcing them to continue their straight path. “I thought we were in a town, where are the buildings?”

Aziraphale flapped his wings, gaining a bit of height to scan the road ahead. Then he plummeted down to land beside her. “Milton Keynes,” he explained, glancing back again. “Take a right at the next traffic circle, you should have at least half a dozen business parks to choose from. Plenty of parking lots, plenty of offices and stores. Split up, but keep the groups together. I’ll try to distract them.”

“You’re not going to freeze up again, are you?”

He closed his eyes, trying to sense the swarm of angels. Yes. He was there, somewhere. “I don’t know, my dear.”

She nodded. “Everyone follow me! Get ready to scatter, on my mark, not before!”

Kasbeel stopped running, and turned to face their pursuers. They stretched across the sky, rank on rank of shining pale wings, coming to take the people he’d sworn to protect.

Not on his watch.

An abandoned car sat nearby. Throwing every bit of power he could spare into his strength, Kasbeel grabbed it by the fender and threw it into the air.

The car spun through the air like a frisbee and struck two angels out of the sky. The rest wheeled, breaking ranks, scattering to attack from all directions.

One of the tumbling angels crashed through the roof of a fast food restaurant nearby. That wouldn’t slow them down for long. Kasbeel kicked off the road and flew across the tainted earth, looking down through the hole in the red roof, just as the other angel scrambled to his feet amongst the broken tables, struggling to straighten his helmet.

The angel unsheathed a flaming sword. “Identify yourself!”

“And ruin a perfectly good alias? I should think not.” The angel leapt upwards, wings unfurling; Kasbeel dropped like a stone, tackling the other angel around the middle before he could even swing his sword, slamming them both again into the tables and the cracked tile.

The other angel quickly regained his feet while Kasbeel rolled aside, looking for anything he could fight with. A chair? A table leg? No – he scrambled to the soda fountain, pulling it off the wall, and threw it at his opponent. But the flaming sword cut it in half without even slowing down.

The other angel finally got a look at Kasbeel’s face, and blinked in confusion. “Guardian…?”

“Er,” Kasbeel flapped his hands nervously. “Yes. I am your leader and – and you should return to our base peacefully. Oh, and leave the sword, please.”

“No,” the angel shook his head, stepping back into an attack position. “I don’t know what kind of trick this is, but you are not him.”

“Ooooh, I don’t have time for this,” Kasbeel groaned, looking for anything else to throw. No luck. The other angel was surely about to charge.

So Kasbeel charged him first, dropping down to roll into his legs, bowling him over before he could begin to react. He grabbed the flaming sword with both hands and twisted, pulling. “Terribly – sorry – old chap. But I need – a weapon!”

“I’m not going to—”

Kasbeel punched him in the jaw.

The other angel flopped back, stunned, just long enough for Kasbeel to pull the sword from his grip and take off, up through the roof, back along the road.

Trumpets rang out through the air. He felt them tug at his mind, felt the other him accept them, absorb the orders into his mind unquestioningly, unhesitating, while Kasbeel struggled against the riptide of obedience.

No. Fight it. We’re on our side. Our side. Not theirs.

He flapped his wings, hovering over the road, resisting the urge to fly forward, to join his brethren.

This was, often, the best he could do. Against any other angels, he could fight, he could lie, he could protect his charges. But here – in the presence of the Guardian of Humanity – he could only hide or flee.

Angels swooped down into the nest of office buildings and stores up ahead – a voice screamed –

“They are my people,” he growled under his breath, “my wards…my godchildren.”

He snapped his wings open, catching a bubble of heat rising from the concrete below and let it lift him up – up – up – until the entirety of Milton Keynes unfurled below him.

“I protect them. Not you!”

He folded his wings and dropped, a white streak cutting across the sky. He hit the pavement in a roll, coming up in a crouch, his sword pointed at one of the seven angels in the parking lot. Each held one of his children.

“Unhand them. Now.”

Lyla tore up the road, clutching Alex’s hand, who held Chloe’s, who held Mickey’s – a chain of eight children and teenagers running as fast as their legs could carry them. They’d taken a wrong turn.

Wide open parking lots were visible on both sides, just beyond the stretches of blighted land that had once been cheerful grass and trees lining the street.

Her arm jerked backwards. “Lyla!” Ella called. “Ollie tripped!”

She ran back to the end, scooping the tiny boy into her arms. “Who else has a Mark? Ella? Mickey? Grab the littlest ones. We’re going to have to make our stand here.” A banged-up car sat nearby, that had crashed into the divider, spinning, blocking the road. “Maybe if we hid behind –"

“Lyla! Over here!” Alex had run further ahead, pointing excitedly to the left. “There’s a – a – a turning place! We can get in that building!”

“Go!” She waved the others ahead and clutched Ollie as tightly as she could. “Good job, Alex,” she called. “I knew we kept you around for something.”

“Looks like a bank,” the thirteen-year-old called with a grin, running backwards. “A huge one! We’ll be able to—”

None of them saw the angel until too late, dropping from the sky, gathering Alex up in her arms. “Take the innocents,” she instructed, with a dazed smile that almost reached her silver eyes. Four more angels appeared around her.

“Let me go!” Alex screamed, kicking and squirming, trying to scratch the angel’s face. “I’m not innocent! I’m a – a rebellious piece of shit, I will destroy your garden!”

“Scatter!” Lyla screamed, but there was nowhere to go. The four angels moved quickly, surrounding them, as the one with gold-tipped feathers and scars down her arms gently lifted into the air, holding the screaming, fighting Alex as easily as a baby.

Another angel picked up Chloe, a third took Isaac out of Ella’s arms. Dominic and Mariah crouched behind Mickey, who held a brick in his hand, looking ready to fight the angel in front of him. And the last one stepped towards Lyla. “No,” she moaned holding Ollie tightly. “Not again, not again, you piece of—”

A flash of white slammed into the angel, and the two rolled away in a flurry of feathers, crashing into a car. Kasbeel came up on top, sitting on the other angel’s stomach, fiery sword pointed downward. “Do you know who I am? Look at me! Do you know who I am?”

The pinned angel blinked. “A…Aziraphale?”

“Yes!” Kasbeel dabbed his forehead with a sleeve, where sweat and golden blood mixed together. “I am Aziraphale, I am the Guardian. You will leave these children – these innocents – and return to New Eden. Do you understand?” He looked at the other angels, numbly holding their abducted charges. Two more brows were beginning to furrow in confusion.

“But…” the angel holding Chloe started. “Our orders?”

“Orders change. This is…this is right from the top. As you can see. Now put them…down…” He stood up, watching the other angels.

Chloe was back on the ground almost immediately, but the angel holding Isaac stood, still smiling, head tilted to one side. Kasbeel walked towards her, sword pointed forward, burning with blue-white flames. “Do not make me fight you,” he said, slowly and clearly. “I only want you to put the child down…and return to New Eden. Can you do that?”

The angel tilted her head the other way, then handed Isaac back to Ella. A second later, all four of them shot off into the air.

“Oh, thank humanity,” Kasbeel murmured, staggering a little. “I think it’s…starting to work.” He smiled blearily at the children.

“Kasbeel! Are you alright?” Lyla ran over to look at his head. A gash ran just under his hairline, thin but bleeding quite a bit.

“Tip-top and tickety-boo,” he shook his head, blinking his eyes rapidly. “It’s not as bad as it looks.”

“Wait – Alex!” Lyla spun around, counting her group. “They still have Alex! An angel with white and gold wings…”

Kasbeel scanned the sky. “Over there, I see them.” His wings flapped – sounding heavy and noisy compared to the other angels – and off he went into the sky.

“What was that?” Mickey demanded, coming up beside her.

“What do you mean?” Lyla didn’t take her eyes off the distant white specks. They stood out against the sky, which seemed a little dimmer than it had been; one circled the other, little flashes of light against the dark blue. She couldn’t see Alex at all.

“I mean – how did he do that? Convince the angels he was their leader?”

“Hm? Oh, Kasbeel looks just like the Guardian of Humanity. He’s, I don’t know, a clone or something.”

“The hell does that mean?” Mickey demanded. “Clones? You seriously think that’s how angels work?”

“Um, yeah?” Lyla glanced down just for a second to frown at him. “Like all those demons that look the same? What are they called, Eric? Same thing, right?”

“No, not the same thing.” Mickey scratched at his Mark, black brand just above his right eyebrow. “How long were you with the Marked ones before you joined him?”

“Only about two minutes. It’s kind of a weird story.”

“Because I was with them for seven years,” Ella said, stepping up to her other side. “And that thing Legion has going on? Is unique. No other demons are identical like that.”

“And definitely not any angels,” Mickey added.

“What?” Lyla glanced between them. “You’re wrong, ok? I saw it myself. The Guardian took my brother right out of my arms. He looked like Kasbeel, talked like him, even smiled the same way. It was really scary. But they were both there – at the same time – so I know it’s not some kind of trick.”

“Look, even if they’re, I don’t know, twins or something?” Mickey shook his head. “Angels can’t just – override orders like that. I used to fight against them. And the angels are…look, once those trumpets go, nothing in the world can change their minds. So that? That was impossible.”

A trumpet blast echoed over Milton Keynes.

One of the two white shapes above departed.

Kasbeel clutched Alex tightly in one arm, his sword in the other, flapping exhausted wings to try and stay aloft. “Are you alright? Can you hear me?”

“Nnnnh,” the child managed, drowsy. The Retrieval angels often put their captives to sleep.

“It’s alright. We’re almost down.” He’d drifted away from the shopping area. Below was some sort of oddly-shaped grid of roads, filled with almost-identical houses. It looked like the other angels were departing. He didn’t know if there were any losses, but he couldn’t rush after any more until Alex was safe, anyway.

He landed, stumbling, at an intersection: brick road, brick sidewalk, brick walls surrounding the blighted gardens of brick houses. The trees that had once stood at every corner were long dead, but it still seemed shady and cool. He put down his sword and carefully stretched the child out on the ground. “Wake up, dear. I’ll need you to find—”

Something stuck his ribs, sending him staggering down the street, dropping his sword.

Kasbeel looked up into –

Into his own face.

Aziraphale, the Guardian of Humanity, armed with a flaming sword. Two flaming swords, as he retrieved the second from the ground.

The wave of obedience crashed into Kasbeel again, but it was scattered this time, less certain. Perhaps he’d finally learned to resist it properly, or at least enough to stay on his feet.

“Did you kill any of our brethren?” the Guardian demanded.

“No. Certainly not if you heal the ones I fought.” Kasbeel pressed a hand to his ribs. They hurt, but he could easily have been killed if the angel hadn’t wanted answers. “Did you harm any of my children?”

“I would never harm any human,” the Guardian said simply. “Who are you? Where did you come from?”

“That’s…rather a complicated question.” He scrubbed at his forehead, trying to think clearly. “Where do you take them? Is it far?”

“New Eden. Its location is one of Heaven’s most guarded secrets, you won’t get it from me.” He slowly circled, eyes locked on Kasbeel. “Are you here to stop my work?”

“Not initially,” he conceded. “But I’m afraid it’s become something of a hobby for me.” Another wave lapped over his mind, telling him to relax…filling his mind with questions…

Why would an angel’s mind be full of questions?

“An interrogation,” he realized. “I’m not resisting, the orders are just confused – you’re interrogating me, and I’m interrogating you back.”

Well, if there was one thing Kasbeel was better at, it was asking questions. He’d had the very best teacher. “Why would they send you? Do they not know who they’re dealing with?”

“I do as I’m ordered, and I don’t ask questions. Why would you resist?”

“Because I cut ties with Heaven years ago. As you should have. Why are you helping them?”

“This is what’s best for humanity.” The Guardian sheathed one sword, keeping the other unwaveringly pointed at Kasbeel’s chest. “It’s for the best.”

“It most certainly is not!” Kasbeel spread his arms, gesturing to the rapidly dimming street. “Look around you! This world is dying. What will remain? Not food, not books, not music. Why aren’t you trying to protect that?”

“I am protecting it! The humans will recreate all that in New Eden. Once they learn to obey. Why would you want to stop that?”

“Because I happen to have noticed, young man, that it is humanity’s disobedience and – and willful nature that leads to their best developments!”

“I’m not younger than you.”

“You’re certainly more foolish.” Kasbeel stepped forward, ignoring the blade, looking only at the Guardian’s eyes. They were wide, worried. The interrogation wasn’t going as planned, and he didn’t know what to do. “Look at yourself. The Trumpets might make it easier to practice perfect obedience, but they leave you unable to adapt. Every soldier knows that’s more important – I learned that in the first war! Why didn’t you?”

“I did,” he said through clenched teeth. “But things…changed…”

“They certainly have. And now it appears that I can command your soldiers. Your days of stealing children are coming to an end. I will find your prison and—”

He was cut off by a hand slammed into his throat, shoving him against the wall. The Guardian towered over him, holding – not a sword, a little glass screen, like what the angels used in Heaven, like Crowley’s smart telephone.

This one showed an image of Crowley, chained to a wall in a dark room. His wings were stretched to either side of him, nails driven through the soft flesh, already looking misshapen and ragged. An angel stood before him, with a hammer. The video began to play.

“Ahhh! Aaaaaaah!” Crowley cried out, over and over again. “What do you want? Just ask me a question, I’ll – AAAAH!” He screamed as the hammer crashed into the delicate bones of his left wing. “Stop! Please, don’t – AAAAH!” Another swing, another snapping noise.

The angel in the video paused in his work, switching to a larger hammer. Crowley collapsed forward, pulling against chain and nails, sobbing. “…Aziraphale…” he moaned.

“Crowley…” He looked up at the Guardian before him, trying to stay calm. “How long…have you had…Crowley?”

“Years.”

With a scream, Aziraphale rushed the other angel, throwing him back, away from the wall, into the street. He felt the pressure of obedience snap in his head, dissipating in an instant, as he threw his fists against the Guardian again and again. “Give him back to me! Give him back! You awful – you monster—”

The Guardian’s wings flashed and in an instant, he was shooting away across the dark sky. “Get back here you coward!”

“…Kasbeel?” A soft voice. Alex still lay on the street, just waking up.

“I’m here, child, I’m here,” choking back his anger, Kasbeel knelt beside godchild, pressing lips to the forehead. His own face was wet. “How are you feeling?”

“Mmmmmh,” Alex moaned. “How long was I asleep? It’s night?”

“No, it should still…” But while he’d been distracted, the town around them had grown dark. Kasbeel looked up. The sun was still overhead, but it had turned black as if covered in sackcloth.

The sun was going out.

(The angel who attempts to take Alex is Ishliah, previously seen in “Miracle” and “Holiday.”

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