UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

I work for a supermarket, which in the past week has gone through a partial refit. One of these things was to move the 10 self scans together which we had in a group of 6 and 4 together.

In order to do this, they rotated the original 6 by 90 degrees and add 4 along side.

The self scans now are right below the lights and due to my KC, the light bounces off the screen at the wrong angles. I find looking at the screens gives me awful headaches. I was on there for 45 mins earlier this week and I didn't get a headache until later, but noticed 2-3 of them I couldn't see well. When I used one to buy food for 30 mins paid break, I had an awful headache.

In the original layout, I had no issues with glare, apart from when the sun hit the 2 self scans nearest the window (max 30 mins) as the lights were perpendicular to them.

I have no issues with the manned tills and the kiosk ones as the screens are perpendicular to the lights and are adjustable, both angle and height. Self scan screens are fixed.

I am going to speak to my line manager and/or team leader with this. As normally I am scheduled to work on the self scans on some days of the week at the end of the trading day, and needs a few other colleagues' hours to be changed to accommodate my problems. I feel really bad for this as I feel I have let the whole department down.

What can you suggest for me or my employer to do? I am refusing to wear sunglasses inside as all I am going to get is 'Why are you wearing sunglasses inside?' from customers and I feel an idiot wearing them inside too.

Hi Helen,
I'm sure you're not the only one with KC who finds that just a small difference in where the light hits a screen makes all the difference. Of course, it's quite possible that some customers who don't have KC are also suffering with the new arrangement, though of course they have the option of going to a manned till instead so may not complain. Does your employer know you have KC? And if so, have you given your line manager the leaflet about KC and work which you can download from our home page? www.keratoconus-group.org.uk/sitev3/publications.html
I don't think you should be feeling you've let anyone down. It sounds to me that the bosses haven't thought about the best layout for the self scanners, not just for you but for lots of people visiting the store. I'm sure we've all come across ATM machines which are impossible to use when the sun is shining directly on to the screen, so it doesn't just happen in supermarkets. But your employer should make any adjustments necessary to enable you to do your job, whether that's reorganising your work rota so that you don't have to work on the self scanners any more, or (probably even better because it would benefit all the customers using the store) making sure that their new equipment is actually fit for purpose and installed in a way that won't make life difficult.
So do talk to your line manager or team leader about this. Although you're suffering more from the change because of your KC, you'll probably be doing everyone a favour! Do let us know how you get on. And if you don't get a sympathetic hearing (though I hope you will) then enlist the help of an employment advisor from the charity Action for Blind People, which I often recommend to people here.
Anne