I asked if my disability was a factor. They said the criteria were confidential.

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Anonymous
· Technical Writer · Former employee · 2024 · 19 Aug 2024
I have a progressive condition requiring specific workplace adjustments. Cisco were accommodating when I joined. Documented, agreed, in place. When the restructuring list was drawn up, I was on it. I asked HR whether my disability had been a factor in any way. I was told it had not. I asked for the criteria used to determine which roles were included. The criteria were "confidential and commercially sensitive." Without access to the criteria, I couldn't challenge the decision. Without being able to challenge, I couldn't establish whether my disability was a factor. The opacity is a feature, not a bug. I accepted the severance. I'm still looking for comparable work. Not every environment makes the adjustments Cisco did. I'm not saying they cut me because of my disability. I'm saying I have no way of knowing, and they designed it that way.

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This story has been paraphrased from a publicly shared account on Reddit r/disability / UK employment law commentary — documented opacity pattern. The original words are not reproduced; the account is paraphrased to preserve the experience while protecting the original poster. We do not claim this as a first-person Office Tea submission.

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