CAN YOU WORK...AT SOMETHING?

Some individuals are not able to work at some jobs. But they are able to work at other jobs. As a rule, Social Security will deny disability benefits to individuals who could find work doing a lighter or easier job than the one they're accustomed to. If you could undergo a career change and keep working, Social Security usually will deny benefits, especially if you are under age 50.

Take the case of William. He is 47 years old and has a high school diploma. He worked for a contractor who buried electrical cables for a telephone company. William's work required him to be on his feet 8 hours a day, to frequently bend, crouch, kneel and sometimes to climb. He had to lift 35 pounds frequently and sometimes more than 50 pounds. He frequently operated equipment to dig trenches and he used a shovel manually. His work is classified as "heavy exertion."

William developed a bulging disc in his lumbar spine and moderately severe arthritis in his thoracic spine. He has degenerative joint disease in the right knee that makes prolonged standing painful. He really cannot handle the lifting, bending, kneeling or operating the equipment that is required of his past work. Simply put, William is disabled in terms of being a cable construction worker. He can't do it.

However, Social Security's vocational expert found that there are other jobs that William can perform. They say he can perform light work. Examples of light work include: inspector/tester, garment folder and food/beverage order clerk. Since Social Security has determined that William can perform easier work, he is not legally disabled and not entitled to a disability benefit.

IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT......

The other work pays much less than William's old job;

William would have trouble finding one of the new jobs;

He would have to move to another state to get one of the new jobs;

and it doesn't matter that William does not want to work as an inspector/tester, garment folder or food/beverage order clerk.

If William were age 50 or over, he would have a good chance of winning his claim under a Medical-Vocational Guideline. In that case, he could probably be found disabled just because he could no longer perform his work as a cable construction worker. But his younger age prevents the use of the guideline.

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