Beware of Working Part Time In The Months Before Filing a Disability Claim

By Scott E. Davis, Disability Attorney

For many people who are struggling to work due to an acute unexpected medical condition, they do not have the opportunity to prepare or plan for filing a short and or long term disability claim.  My experience is that most people who eventually file disability claims, have chronic medical conditions which have been ongoing for months and even years.

During this difficult time, people often find themselves engaging in a heroic effort to continue working and they should be commended for it.  People engage in this long battle for many reasons, one is often financial, and the other is simply their own credibility – they like working and work makes them feel productive.  For so many of us, giving up a job or a career is the last thing we want to do.

Unfortunately, people do not understand the amount worked during a workweek determines whether you are actually eligible or covered for disability insurance through your employer.

As the months turn into years and their medical conditions become more debilitating, people often reduce their hours at work and go part time (i.e. 10-30 hours per week) without giving any thought to how it may impact their disability claim.  Unfortunately, people do not understand the amount worked during a workweek determines whether you are actually eligible or covered for disability insurance through your employer.  Reducing your work hours to part time in an effort to continue working is a huge trap and can be a very costly mistake because you may inadvertently lose your disability insurance at the very time you need it most.

This trap for the unexpected worker is best placed under the category of, “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.”

It is critical to understand that almost every employer provided disability policy requires that an employee be working a certain number of “minimum hours” per week in order to be eligible for and covered by disability insurance.  Simply being an “employee” is likely not enough – disability coverage is about hours worked per workweek.There is no typical number of minimum hours it depends entirely on your company’s disability policy; however, anywhere from 25-32 hours of work per week is required in order to stay eligible and covered for disability benefits.

It is critical to understand that almost every employer provided disability policy requires that an employee be working a certain number of “minimum hours” per week in order to be eligible for and covered by disability insurance. Simply being an “employee” is likely not enough – disability coverage is about hours worked per workweek.

Therefore, if you are contemplating reducing your work hours due to your medical condition and you eventually think you may need to file a disability claim with your employer, it is critical for you to go to your Human Resources department to obtain a copy of the short and/or long term disability policy that insures you and look at the section of the policy which is usually titled “Active At Work” requirements.  This section will list the minimum number of hours per week that you need to work to remain covered, if you are unsure about the numbers of hours, ask your HR department.

Now that you know about the “Active at Work” requirement, you will be able to make a much more intelligent decision about how best to reduce your work hours so you can continue to work and be certain that you will not lose your disability coverage at the time you need it most.  If your company will not allow you to work reduced hours to meet the “Active at Work” requirement then you are better off filing your disability claim while you are still working full time so there is no question about whether you were covered on the day you became disabled.

© 2015  Scott E. Davis, Disability Attorney