STEP 4 DECISIONS: WHY YOUR PAST WORK RULES

Most Social Security disability claims will get at least down to Step 4 of the sequential decision making process.  At Step 4, your claim wins or loses on this question:

Can the claimant perform any of his/her past relevant work?

If Yes, the claim is denied. If the answer is No, the claim may still go on to Step 5, the final step.  

But for claimants age 50 and over, Step 4 is often where the case stops and a decision is made.

So, the big question:  Can you still do any of your past relevant work (PRW).  First, what is past relevant work?  There are 3 criteria for jobs to count as PRW:

• The work was performed during the past 15 years before you applied for disability.
• It is work at which you earned enough money to be considered substantial gainful activity (SGA).  In 2005, for instance, a job would count as PRW if you earned an average of $830 per month. A job you held in 2010 would be PRW if you earned at least $1,000 per month.  So, some part-time jobs may not count.
• It is work you did long enough to learn how to do the job properly.

So, how can you help or hurt your claim when you file your application for disability benefits?  Here are common mistakes we see in application forms--and I use the term "application forms" to include ALL the forms the claimant filled out during the long process.  The particular form that asks questions about your past work is called the "Work History Report."  It is part of the application.  So, here are the 5 top mistakes:

• Failure to give a complete job history that lists all the jobs you have held during the past 15 years, with dates of employment, job titles and wages for each job.  Notice that the form calls for "job title" not employer.  So, you would write "Assistant Cashier," not Midtown Northern Bank of the South.
• Failure to describe each job by telling what you did day in and day out. Job titles often do not describe job duties accurately. For example, if you were an assistant manager for a convenience store, you might say:  I ran the cash register, stocked shelves, cleaned the restrooms daily, helped make out work schedules and set up displays.
• Failure to specify how much lifting was required for each job.  You should clearly state what type of things you had to lift, how far you carried it, and how often you did it. Specify the very heaviest (maximum) weight you lifted, and also specify the weight you frequently or routinely lifted.  These are not usually the same.  For example:  I sometimes lifted up to 75 pounds.  I routinely lifted 25 pounds frequently.
•  Failure to specify how much you had to sit, stand, walk in each job.  Jobs are assigned an exertion class based, in part, on how much sitting and standing the job entailed.  Be very specific.  "I stood about 6 hours per day, walked 1 hour per day, and sat no more than 1 hour each day."
• Failure to estimate your postural requirements.  There is a place on the Work History Report to specify how much you had to bend, crouch, crawl, reach, kneel, handle, etc. on each job.  Most people leave these blank and it causes the past relevant work to be improperly classified.

In short, I recommend that you live with the Work History Report 3 or 4 days and complete it in painful and excruciating detail.  Don't leave a single line blank, dong write NA or "I don't know" on any line.  If you don't have an exact number, estimate, estimate, estimate.

When a state disability examiner looks at your report, she should easily be able to determine:

1. What your main duties were on each job you listed, not just a job title.
2. The dates you held each job (starting and ending dates).
3. Your wages or salary for each job.
4. Whether the job was mainly performed sitting, standing or a combination of the two; if a combination, how many hours per day were standing/walking?  How many sitting?
5. What was the lifting requirements of each job in terms of (a) maximum and (b) frequent or routine lifting (how much you lifted nearly every day).

Even if you explain your past work well, your claim may still be denied.  In that case, you will be headed for a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge.  A properly completed Work History Report will follow you to the hearing (You don't complete a new one) and will serve you well at the hearing.