I'll keep this as short as possible (it's still too long).
I work for a state agency. I also have severe Obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety, and PTSD.
Before the pandemic, I had to work in an office setting, as there were few alternatives. It was rough, and I was always on the edge of quitting (I stayed on only because of that pesky need for a paycheck).
A couple of months before COVID hit, I transferred departments, because the one I had been working at became unbearable. When the pandemic started, we switched to teleworking 5 days a week, and have continued to do so for several years.
This was a great benefit to me. In general, I feel much less stress while teleworking. And although my job sucks overall, not having to deal with the constant presence of other people has made it somewhat bearable.
I should also mention that I work as an analyst. So all of my job duties can be done, in one version or another, remotely.
Last year, there started to be rumblings about returning to the office, at least for occasional meetings. My overall mental health had gotten worse during the pandemic, so I steadfastly refused to come in for any reason. Management wasn't thrilled by this, but they told me I would need to put in a reasonable accommodation request to be excused from mandatory in-office gatherings.
I did, and as part of that process, my doctor indicated I needed zero in-person exposure.
The department did not appreciate this and denied my request. I appealed. It was denied again. I appealed a third time, and that too was denied. I was told (more or less) that my work duty statement included a clause about providing services in person if requested, and that changing this would be unfair to other employees.
Because I had exhausted all appeals, I was referred to HR for reassignment to another position. However, because of the way the department's telework policy is written, there were no alternative jobs available that could be 100% remote.
Yesterday two things happened. First, the head of our division announced that we were being called back into the office for one day a week, starting next week. Then, I received an email from HR. As a final stage in the reasonable accommodation process, and because I couldn't be reassigned, I would be submitted for medical retirement from state service. I was given the choice of applying for retirement myself or having HR do it for me.
So even though I am a good employee who has been able to do my job for over three years in a remote setting, I am being given no other choice but to simply leave. My department is very big on touting the idea of “equity.” We just received mandatory equity training and were told that everyone deserves the tools and accommodations they need to be able to participate equally in work and life.
And yet here I am. I feel very much like I'm being forced out because of my disabilities.
I'm not sure anyone will agree with my assessment of the situation, but that's where it stands.
The retirement process will take at least six months, so in the meantime I will probably have to go out on disability, and my manager will have to hire and train someone new who can come in once a week to sit in a cubicle and stare at a laptop all day.
Extra information: I have actually been searching for alternative remote employment since 2021, but have not been able to find anything, even though I have ten years of analyst experience and two degrees.
Also: Being forced out of my job means I will be taking a pretty drastic hit to my finances.
TL:DR version: I have severe mental health issues. I do much better on telework. My department won't grant telework as a reasonable accommodation. They are also calling us all back into the office part-time. So I'm being forced to take medical retirement because they have no other way to accommodate me.