"PAST RELEVANT WORK"

If Social Security finds that a claimant can perform any "past relevant work," then he is not eligible for Social Security disability benefits.

The term "past relevant work" may not be what it seems, however.  In order to qualify as past relevant work (prw) - the following 3 things must be true:

  • The work was performed during the past 15 years.
  • The work was performed at the level of substantial gainful activity (simply defined as full-time work).
  • The work was performed long enough for the claimant to learn how to do the work.
If any one of the above requirements are not met, then the work fails the definition of "past relevant work."

For example, I once had a claimant who had worked for 3 years as an electrician's helper.  The vocational expert classified this as semi-skilled past relevant work.  Therefore, if the claimant could still perform the work of an electrician's helper, he would not be disabled.

The problem is that the claimant was not really an electrician's helper.  He was merely given that title.  When he described his work, he said he fetched things from the truck, helped unroll wire and did other unskilled work.  So, he had no past relevant work that was semi-skilled.  That made a huge difference in the outcome of his claim.

A person might get a job in which he is expected to perform highly skilled work.  However, if he doesn't work long enough to learn how to do the work, it doesn't count as PRW.  The same is true if the individual only worked occasionally but not at a substantial gainful level.

At disability hearings, judges are supposed to be careful to clarify such facts.  But often it is up to the claimant or the claimant's legal representative to make sure that such facts are entered into the record correctly.  A favorable decision may hinge on this information.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GETTING MONEY FROM SSDI

SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance .  When you first began working, the Government deducted a percentage of your wages, called a FICA tax.  This continued as long as you worked, in most cases.  This money was matched by your employer and set aside in a government trust fund to help you if you later became disabled and could not work. SSDI is a type of government sponsored insurance program, usually called "Social Security disability insurance."  To get benefits out of SSDI, you must prove  that you have a medical disability so severe that you cannot work any full-time job; that this disability has lasted, or is expected to last, for at least 12 consecutive months. That sounds simple but Social Security has made it rather difficult to prove that you are disabled.  One reason is that their definition of 'disability' is so strict.  You usually must prove that you cannot perform even simple, unskilled work at the sed...
Read more

POST HEARING EVIDENCE

Many people assume that a Social Security disability case is over when the hearing has been held.  This isn't always the case.  Often there is post hearing work that should be done to achieve the best chance of a favorable decision. Everyone at a disability hearing works under pressure.  This includes the claimant, the representative, the vocational expert and even the administrative law judge.  Hearings are generally limited to less than one hour.  The judge will ask questions that place the claimant under stress to answer correctly.  The representative or attorney will be asked to respond to procedural issues or points of law that place him or her under pressure.  The judge must constantly conduct the hearing so that it follows Social Security laws, rules and regulations.  Further, the judge must form accurate hypothetical questions for the vocational expert based on the medical and vocational evidence in the file and upon the claimant's testi...
Read more

CAN YOU GET DISABILITY FOR SLEEP DISORDERS? HOW?

Many of my clients who file for Social Security disability have severe sleep disorders.  The question is, do these sleep problems equate to disability? The answer is, how do the sleep problems restrict the ability to perform full-time work?  What are the symptoms?  How frequent and how severe are the symptoms. Symptoms of insomnia, obstructive sleep apnea, narcolepsy or other sleep disorders often include: excessive daytime sleepiness fatigue loss of memory lack of concentration, persistence and pace irritability - unable to get along with supervisors, co-workers or customers at work If the medical record indicates treatment for these symptoms which has failed, then a finding of disability may be appropriate.  For example, if a person has obstructive sleep apnea which can be corrected by using a CPAP machine, then it is not disabling.  If a CPAP has been tried and failed to fix the problem, then we have valid medical problems that may hel...
Read more