When you file a claim for Social Security Disability benefits, you will be filling out a lot of forms and submitting a lot of answers to SSA. There is one form among the many that seems very simple and straightforward, but is a landmine to navigate. If you can’t complete this one correctly, it could cost you your benefits.
SSA-3369
The Work History Report, or form SSA-3369, looks easy and uncomplicated. Social Security asks you to list the jobs you’ve had in the last five years and explain what you did, how much you lifted, how long you stood and walked, and give other employment details. What could go wrong?
A lot.
What is the purpose for this form?
Social Security uses this form to decide what kind of work you have done in the past five years and whether or not you can still do that work. If you describe a job incorrectly, Social Security may deny your claim and conclude that it would be possible for you to return to that job, either the way you actually did it or the way that job is usually done.
Proceed With Caution
Even listing your job titles can be misleading. Maybe you were called a Manager, but you spent much of your day stocking shelves and lifting heavy boxes. Maybe you were a Cashier, but you also cleaned bathrooms, unloaded deliveries, and stocked merchandise. If your job title suggests a less physically demanding position than what your job requirements actually were, it becomes much harder to prove that you can’t return to that work.
The questions about lifting, standing, walking, sitting, supervising others, using tools and equipment, and other job duties are important too. Your answers help Social Security decide how physically and mentally demanding your work was.
Consider Everything
People also frequently underestimate the physical demands of their past jobs because they don’t consider all parts of the work. For example, a janitor might say the heaviest thing they lifted was 20 pounds. But what if they regularly filled and carried a five-gallon bucket of water for mopping? Five gallons of water alone weighs more than 40 pounds, not including the bucket. It is important to detail all of the responsibilities included in your job.
Our experts know what questions to ask to help clients think carefully about what their actual day-to-day work duties were. We make sure their answers are accurate and that they are not unintentionally leaving out or underestimating important details that could affect the outcome of their claim.
Some Of Your Past Work May Not Even Count
Which brings us to another problem: not every job you’ve had necessarily needs to be listed. Social Security has rules about which jobs should be considered. If you don’t understand those rules, you may spend time describing a job that does not need to be taken into account, and which may hurt your disability case.
And, once incorrect information becomes part of your Social Security file, fixing it later on can be difficult.
This is one reason we suggest that everyone who is applying for disability benefits should get experienced help before they are denied, not after. At Disability Advocates, we complete the SSA-3369 and other forms with our clients. We know why these questions are being asked, what information Social Security actually needs, and where seemingly simple answers given can create problems later.
The SSA-3369 isn’t just a form about where you used to work. It can help determine whether Social Security believes you can still work. That is something far too important to guess your way through!