Around March of this year I started feeling tingling in my left hand. As time went on the tingling went to a constant numbness to three fingers. At first I figured I just hit it on something and the pain/numbness would go away. Finally I had enough and went to my doctor. After talking with me and doing a few simple tests he thought it might be Carpool Tunnel.

I approached work and told them of the preliminary diagnosis. They seemed to take it very seriously and set me to a specialist on the company’s dime. After a number of tests they agreed with the initial diagnosis. They started me on treatments which after a month in a half didn’t help so surgery was brought up. Before surgery, the specialists wanted to be sure it was necessary so I was scheduled for a nerve conduction test, which wasn’t the most pleasant experience. Immediately after the test the doctor was able to determine that surgery was the only option.

Now, I’m not a big fan of being cut open (who is?) but I wanted relief. I met with the surgeon and scheduled a time. Around the same time the specialists came to our Operations Center where I work to evaluate the work space. From the conversation it was easy for them to determine that our Operations Center was most likely the cause.

From that point the company stated that they would reconfigure the area with new furniture etc. They stated that the new furniture would be in by the time I got back from surgery.

The week before surgery I had a scheduled vacation. In that time my hand started feeling better. Not 100%, but better. Good enough that I thought I could hold off on the surgery. I canceled the surgery and informed work. After talking to the specialists about the change they attributed it to the fact that I wasn’t working which again demonstrated that it was work related. The company continued to pursue the furniture project but to this point, many months later, nothing new is in place. Out CIO is notorious for being cheap. After talking to the Health and Safety guy here I got the impression that this proposal was getting bogged down in office politics and the fact that the CIO didn’t want to sign off on the final form.

So, nothing has been accomplished and I’m starting to feel more and more pain in the hand again now that projects are picking up. What I’m looking for here is some advice. What should I do? Is a lawsuit justifiable? I’m not one to usually stir the pot but this is affecting life both in and out of work. I am getting increasingly angry with the fact that they have yet to do what was necessary to alleviate this situation.