Man gets sick benefits for heavy metal addiction
 

Dedicated to all Drome heavy metal fans.

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Man gets sick benefits for heavy metal addiction

Published: 19th June 2007 15:12 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/7650/

A Swedish heavy metal fan has had his musical preferences officially classified as a disability. The results of a psychological analysis enable the metal lover to supplement his income with state benefits.

Roger Tullgren, 42, from Hässleholm in southern Sweden has just started working part time as a dishwasher at a local restaurant.

Because heavy metal dominates so many aspects of his life, the Employment Service has agreed to pay part of Tullgren's salary. His new boss meanwhile has given him a special dispensation to play loud music at work.

"I have been trying for ten years to get this classified as a handicap," Tullgren told The Local.

"I spoke to three psychologists and they finally agreed that I needed this to avoid being discriminated against."

Roger Tullgren first developed an interest in heavy metal when his older brother came home with a Black Sabbath album in 1971.

Since then little else has mattered for the 42-year-old, who has long black hair, a collection of tattoos and wears skull and crossbones jewelry.

The ageing rocker claims to have attended almost three hundred shows last year, often skipping work in the process.

Eventually his last employer tired of his absences and Tullgren was left jobless and reliant on welfare handouts.

But his sessions with the occupational psychologists led to a solution of sorts: Tullgren signed a piece of paper on which his heavy metal lifestyle was classified as a disability, an assessment that entitles him to a wage supplement from the job centre.

"I signed a form saying: 'Roger feels compelled to show his heavy metal style. This puts him in a difficult situation on the labour market. Therefore he needs extra financial help'. So now I can turn up at a job interview dressed in my normal clothes and just hand the interviewers this piece of paper," he said.

The manager at his new workplace allows him to go to concerts as long as he makes up for lost time at a later point. He is also allowed to dress as he likes and listen to heavy metal while washing up.

"But not too loud when there are guests," he said.

The Local spoke to an occupational psychologist in Stockolm, who admitted to being baffled by the decision.

"I think it's extremely strange. Unless there is an underlying diagnosis it is absolutely unbelievable that the job centre would pay pay out.

"If somebody has a gambling addiction, we don't send them down to the racetrack. We try to cure the addiction, not encourage it," he said.

Henrietta Stein, deputy employment director for the Skåne region, is also puzzled by the move; "an interest in music" is not usually sufficient to qualify for wage benefits.

"Certain cases are confidential but in general there is always a medical reason that is well-documented," she said.

Tullgren currently plays bass and guitar in two rock bands and says that he tends to get a lot of positive reactions for daring to be himself.

"Some might say that I should grow up and learn to listen to other types of music but I can't. Heavy metal is my lifestyle," he said.

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Those Swedes and their welfare state.

I respect that country but that's just retarded

nice and I was ill and needed help and they denied me but sh1t like this gets help...this is so f'n retarded.:roll:

Yeah but you live in the US. Illegal immigrants need your health benefits :roll: But real countries like Sweden who aren't stupid have stricter boarders and thus more money to spend on their citizens.

this is true lol:lol:

maybe listening to rap will go as an instant iq test, idiots by default

Hm, maybe if I shift my musical taste from "rock" to "heavy metal", I might have a chance on finishing school one year early... *starts planning a fiendish plot*

Really, when the idiots of the world get wind of this, you can only imagine how many of them will start listening to heavy metal in order to sick benefits. You have to love the logic of the world today, no? :roll:

I don't really think that heavy metal is to blame here. The guy's life has been completely taken over by his hobby which greatly affected his lifestyle, to the point where he's not capable of following the society rules anymore. This addiction could have been provoked by anything: music, video games, anime watching etc.

The point is - the state doesn't really help this guy with subsidizing his illness - and by "illness" I don't mean the sole fact of enjoying heavy metal, just that crazy state where he cannot keep any steady job for longer than a few weeks or months because he treats his hobby more seriously. Attending three hundred shows a year? Gimme a break.

Eh, I don't know...I'm no psychologist, but I have taken one college psych course...it seems to me he's just a moron who cares more about metal than work.

Wow. That's just dumb. I'm glad something like that doesn't happen here in the U.S. God knows that emos will get every last penny of any kind of government help program.

No worse stuff happens here. Like a women gets a website URL tattooed on her forehead so her 4 year old kid can go to college.

Someone actually manages to sell a grilled cheese sandwich on EBay for thousands of dollars.

Look at the news everyday you'll see some report on a moron or morons who live in this country. They do the stupidest crap and end up on the front page of the news paper.

Stupid people live in every country, not just the US. :roll:

Yea, it's pretty sad knowing that morons hit the front page of newspapers or become the main story on a rather regular basis.

Indeed he is a moron. However this man is such a moron that he probably is bordering on impaired.

That's a cheap shot. some of the very smartet people I know listen to rap music.

Anyway......hmm. I want government owned health care so I can make up...um...uhhhhhh......bankitis. Yeah, that's it, bankitis. Because working at the fraking bank is THE most stressful job I have EVER had and I DEMAND compensation in the form of FREE psychiatric help and homeopathic stress relief therapy paid for by my taxes. :roll: :lol:

My beliefs on our health care system in the U.S. are way to political to go into here.....but stuff like this almost makes me appreciate the little privatized system we have here. Bet no HMO's or Insurance companies would have touched this :P

Yes they do. There's stupid people everywhere. But the majority of them are in the US. This country celebrates at times it seems.

Oh and because people are so dense, that's my opinion

If you've done any history research, you'll find this great nation was founded on stupidity and alcohol. If you don't like it, you can get the hell out. I'm pretty happy with my country. We have our problems, but so does everyone else.

Yea... heh, alcohol and stupidity go hand in hand. Especially when those hands belong to men. And before anyone goes crazy on me for man-hating, don't. Almost all of my friends are guys and I'm really uncomfortable in a room full of girls. Besides, I can't think of any country that was founded by women.

And by the way Ai, Goon has a mixi account. He told me to let you know so you can go ahead PM him. :)

Believe me if I could afford it or was allowed to in some cases I would.