It’s pretty common for me to get Social Security questions dealing with how people should fill out their work history report. And that’s really not much of a surprise, because these forms do a terrible job at explaining to you how they should be filled out and what you really need to include.
Unfortunately, this document is incredibly important to your claim, so it’s highly recommended that you talk to an experienced Social Security disability attorney to get help filling it out. A well-prepared work history report can be the difference between getting the benefits you deserve and having your claim denied.
Important Info for Work History Reports
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The best way to ensure that your work history report is complete, accurate, and includes the kind of information that can help you win your claim is to work with a qualified Social Security disability attorney and get your Social Security questions answered. However, there are some general guidelines that you can follow to get a good start on the document.
- Don’t include jobs that are older than 15 years
- Make it clear that any work you did was not performed at substantial gainful activity (SGA) levels
- Remember that both the number of hours and the pay determine whether a job was SGA and should be considered past relevant work
- Note if the job as performed required over 40 hours a week or over 8 hours in a shift
- Extensively list job requirements for all jobs (especially physical requirements)
- Err on the side of including uncommon tasks (like climbing a ladder once a week)
- Include mental tasks as well as physical ones
- Detail which parts of the work you could and couldn’t perform for EVERY job
- Include jobs lasting less than 6 months because they can fall under “unsuccessful work attempt” rules
The most important thing that you can do is to be as detailed as possible when describing the job requirements. Work history reports do a very poor job of asking for this information, so you’ll need to come up with the details yourself.
Talk to a qualified Social Security Disability attorney if you have more Social Security questions about this. You can also visit our home page to find more free resources and information. For even more answers to your Social Security Disability questions, check out our free e-book!
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