{"id":113320,"date":"2025-09-02T03:37:22","date_gmt":"2025-09-02T03:37:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/113320\/"},"modified":"2025-09-02T03:37:22","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T03:37:22","slug":"if-anxiety-is-affecting-my-work-can-i-go-on-disability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/113320\/","title":{"rendered":"If anxiety is affecting my work, can I go on disability?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Interested in more careers-related content? Check out our new weekly Work Life newsletter<\/a>. Sent every Monday afternoon.<\/p>\n

THE QUESTION<\/p>\n

I work in the manufacturing industry and am worried about my job. I\u2019ve already been feeling a financial burden from the cost of living, but now I\u2019m also stressed about the impacts of the trade war on my industry. I\u2019m feeling anxious, to the point where it is affecting my ability to perform my duties at work. I have seen a doctor, but I want to know what my options are if my anxiety continues to severely impact my ability to work.<\/p>\n

THE FIRST ANSWER<\/p>\n

Nainesh Kotak, founder, Kotak Personal Injury Law<\/a>, Mississauga<\/p>\n

Recent events involving the trade war and tariffs with the United States have caused disruption within the manufacturing sector as it relates to uncertainty about costs, supply chains and potential market disruptions. These disruptions have, unfortunately, led to increasingly negative consequences for manufacturing workers such as job insecurity, mental health issues and the increased likelihood of workplace accidents. <\/p>\n

It is important to ensure that you have familiarized yourself with the benefits package you have received from your employer. Many of these packages contain policies for both short- and long-term disability benefits. If you do not have disability coverage, you may consider making a claim for employment insurance sickness benefits. <\/p>\n

If you find that, as a result of your anxiety or other mental health issues, you are no longer able to perform the essential functions of your occupation, you should consider making a claim for short-term and potentially long-term disability benefits. You can contact your human resources team to receive the necessary application forms, which typically include a form which you must take to your family doctor. <\/p>\n

In order to qualify and continue to qualify for these benefits, it is required that you are under the care of a physician and that you are actively pursuing treatment for your condition, which commonly takes the form of prescription medication, counselling and referral to a psychiatrist for further treatment.<\/p>\n

If your claim for disability benefits is ever denied, it is imperative to promptly contact a disability lawyer to discuss your options moving forward.<\/p>\n

THE SECOND ANSWER<\/p>\n

Tareq Shahwan, employment lawyer, Randy Ai Law Office<\/a>, Toronto<\/p>\n

The good news is that in Ontario if anxiety is interfering with your ability to work you have solid legal protections. Mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders are recognized as disabilities under the Ontario Human Rights Code. This means your employer must accommodate your condition unless doing so would cause undue hardship \u2013 a high threshold met only if the accommodation would result in excessive cost or serious health and safety concerns.<\/p>\n

Accommodation doesn\u2019t mean your employer must accept any request, but they are required to mutually explore reasonable solutions. These can include, but are not limited to: modified duties, reduced hours, remote work and\/or a medical leave. Further, you need to provide adequate medical documentation showing how your condition affects your ability to work.<\/p>\n

If your employment contract or benefits plan includes a short-term disability (STD) program, you may be eligible for paid leave while off work because of medical reasons. These plans are typically managed by insurers and require medical certification. If your workplace does not offer STD, you may qualify for employment insurance sickness benefits instead.<\/p>\n

If you work in a federally regulated industry (such as banking, telecommunications or interprovincial transportation), similar accommodation principles apply under the Canadian Human Rights Act, which also prohibits discrimination based on disability.<\/p>\n

Finally, employers cannot penalize or dismiss you for having a disability or for requesting accommodation. Doing so could result in legal liability for discrimination, wrongful dismissal and\/or constructive dismissal. <\/p>\n

If your symptoms persist, speak with your doctor, notify your employer in writing and consider consulting an employment lawyer to better understand your rights and options.<\/p>\n

Have a question for our experts? Send an email to NineToFive@globeandmail.com<\/a> with \u2018Nine to Five\u2019 in the subject line. Emails without the correct subject line may not be answered.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Interested in more careers-related content? Check out our new weekly Work Life newsletter. Sent every Monday afternoon. THE…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":113321,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[49,48,84,393,394,2922,4081],"class_list":{"0":"post-113320","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-mental-health","12":"tag-mentalhealth","13":"tag-noastack","14":"tag-ordid20000"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=113320"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113320\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=113320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=113320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=113320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}