Should I tell work about my autism?

I was diagnosed ten years ago. Perhaps things have improved since then, but my experience shows just how bad it can get, and bear in mind I was a lecturer (now retired) - supposed to be a more disability sensitive environment.

I told Human Resources about my diagnosis, and had an interview with the Occupational Therapist to evaluate my needs. She asked if I minded if they told my managers I had an asperger's diagnosis.

Well without exploring it further I said it was OK because that was the point, I needed my managers to know.

So Human Resources scanned a copy of my diagnosis, and sent it round everybody in my chain of management, right up to directorate level as an electronic attachment to an email!

Well if you know what most diagnoses look like - it sets out the evidence, largely responses to questions and gives an evaluation, so it looks a bit like I'd diagnosed myself. So the dean of my faculty thought I was just being silly.

It took months to resolve all the issues resulting from this piece of idiocy by Human Resources (lets face it HR/Personnel Management is one of the weakest aspects of British industry - where while junior staff have to get a qualification, the senior staff running it often don't have any training at all).

Possibly you need to find out first whether Human Resources where you work have much going on between their ears.

I was diagnosed ten years ago. Perhaps things have improved since then, but my experience shows just how bad it can get, and bear in mind I was a lecturer (now retired) - supposed to be a more disability sensitive environment.

I told Human Resources about my diagnosis, and had an interview with the Occupational Therapist to evaluate my needs. She asked if I minded if they told my managers I had an asperger's diagnosis.

Well without exploring it further I said it was OK because that was the point, I needed my managers to know.

So Human Resources scanned a copy of my diagnosis, and sent it round everybody in my chain of management, right up to directorate level as an electronic attachment to an email!

Well if you know what most diagnoses look like - it sets out the evidence, largely responses to questions and gives an evaluation, so it looks a bit like I'd diagnosed myself. So the dean of my faculty thought I was just being silly.

It took months to resolve all the issues resulting from this piece of idiocy by Human Resources (lets face it HR/Personnel Management is one of the weakest aspects of British industry - where while junior staff have to get a qualification, the senior staff running it often don't have any training at all).

Possibly you need to find out first whether Human Resources where you work have much going on between their ears.