It’s that time of year when college and university students are looking for their first full-time leap into the career pool. I have had a few young people recently ask me if and how they should tell a prospective employer they have a chronic illness. Here are some thoughts:
Discrimination?
If you think employers discriminate against those with chronic illness or disabilities you’re right. Over the past few years research teams have done studies by sending identical resumes and cover letters to employers – the only difference in the cover letters was a disclosure of a mental or physical illness or disability. Predictably perhaps, the resumes that did not disclose any illness elicited a better response from prospective employers than those which did.
That being said, human beings tend to be much more understanding once they’ve actually met someone face to face. When your simply dealing with a piece of paper, it’s easy to shuffle it to the side.
Obviously mentioning your illness in your resume or cover letter probably isn’t the answer, but that doesn’t mean you should keep your illness hidden from your employer forever.
Do you disclose your illness to your employer?
When making the decision whether to disclose your illness, the first question to ask yourself is whether your condition will affect your job. For example, if your asthma or arthritis is mild, rarely results in you taking off extra days and likely won’t require accommodations such as specialized equipment then you probably won’t need to bring it up.
However, if it’s a condition that could affect your work at some point, it’s certainly advisable to let your employer know. If your illness is going to affect your employment from day-1 it is important to disclose it right away.
There may also be issues surrounding your work-based medical insurance, particularly if you’re living in the United States. Rosalind Joffe has an excellent article on disclosing illness that deals with medical coverage.
What are the benefits of disclosing your illness early on?
There are a couple of benefits to disclosing your illness. First, you can get a sense of how open and understanding your company is. For instance does your prospective manager or HR person act like this?
Finding out organizational attitudes early on can allow you to make a choice about whether you really want to work with this organization or not. It’s better to find out their attitudes now then wait until illness flares and your choices are limited.
On the flip-side, disclosing your illness will give understanding employers a chance to help you and make possible accommodations in your work schedule or office environment.
Is my illness a disability?
Many chronic illnesses can be considered disabilities for the purpose of employment equity. check out these pages for information on laws in Canada, the United States and The United Kingdom.
When and how do you do it?
You could disclose your illness in the first interview, but unless your illness is obvious and visible this may not be the best time. At this point the company still doesn’t know if your skills are the best fit for the job.
On the other hand, if you wait until after employment letters have been signed, you could come across looking sneaky or untrustworthy.
Perhaps the best time to broach the topic of your illness is in the negotiation phase. At that point you know that the employer feels your skills are right for the job. By disclosing your illness before the paperwork is signed you are showing respect to your prospective employer, as well as demonstrating confidence in yourself and your coping abilities.
Confidence is the key attribute when discussing your illness. You show confidence by explaining your illness in a simple straightforward way. If you need certain accommodations take responsibility where you can and show them that you are a team player. “My illness does require me to take a weekly hospital visit during business hours but I can schedule it so I’m only an hour late for work and will make that time up by staying an hour late that day.”
Don’t forget this is a team game. While your employer may be obligated to provide you with reasonable support, you have to show you are responsible for managing your condition and making sure the job gets done.
