Changing jobs - telling a new employer

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Eptima

Joined
Sep 26, 2015
Messages
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Hello! I'm new to the forums and I'm hoping for some advice.

I'm expecting to change jobs soon, and I'm not sure how to approach telling my new employer about Crohns. I've had many new jobs since I was diagnosed, but I've always been able to reveal my health issues a little way down the road, after they've had a chance to see that my work productivity is good and that I'm worth putting up with! Now, though, I'm on infliximab - and my next infusion is due a week after my first day at the new job, so I have to approach the topic fairly promptly.

Does anyone have suggestions? I was considering just telling them I have a prearranged medical appointment and discussing the topic in more detail after I've settled in a bit more.
 
Hmm. Tough one. I'm also grappling with this issue as I've been applying to new jobs (last job ended right as I started flaring and was still undiagnosed, and I've been out of work for a short period of time). I think your plan of sticking to just saying you have a prescheduled appt is the right one for now. He/She may react well if you told them you had Crohn's, but just in case, I would hold off so your boss gets to know you. I could be wrong of this one, but I tend to be cautious in work situations!! Best of luck to you!
 
Hi, I have just changed jobs a couple of weeks ago, at my 1st interview i said nothing about my crohn's, untill they asked right at the end if i was fit n well, which because of the job i do it is quite important, i told them very briefly that i had crohn's , i had had a very bad time with it 2/3 yrs ago, but i had an op at the begining of last year n one at the begining of this year n have been really really good since the 1st op, and i am raring to go and make a great career for my self now, that i am not a person who takes time off work for a cold or headache, and if i can get out of my bed in a morning im at work. that i would not use the fact i have crohn's as an excuse to be off work willy nilly. they respected my honesty and i was given the job i have wanted to do for the last few yrs at my old place of work. i found that honesty , not focusing on the negative sides of crohn's helped me secure the job. Now im lucky that i have been well for the last 19/20 mths that may have helped my cause there, but just tell them mainly about your best times n that you do have routine appointments that if you can you will schedule for your day/s off if poss,depending on which days you will work each week. I did just that, but said that some appointments i cant reshedule as some clinics are only on certain days, they just said dont worry we will work round that,again im lucky they seem to be very understanding,easy going bosses. I hope yours will be too. I find that when people see how hard n well you work when you are at work , they sometimes think blimey this person does more work than the so called well people that work here.. I have found im a darn sight more productive than most at my new place (and my last place for that matter )who are well, so go figure !!
Go with what you think best for the bosses you have got, but i feel that if you dont make it a big deal ,they probably wont either. Best wishes n let us know how you get on. Take care now x
 
I think mandyk has it right when mentioning the care in scheduling appointments. At least here I am fortunate that I can schedule my remicade for Saturdays - not a working day in school so it hasn't been an issue. Sometimes they have different start times, and if you show you are able to handle remicade you may be able to get the fast infusions instead. Look for that flexibility and make your self valuable enough that they see the benefitts in keeping you around.
 
Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Shamrock, Saturday appointments sound very convenient! My clinic does Friday and Monday sessions for infliximab - I've not made it easy on myself by going to a clinic in another town so it's a half hour drive to get there if the traffic is ok, but as I like my gastroenterologist there I have consistently resisted shifting to a closer hospital. I do alright on the infusions so I have them over the shortest administration time they do (1 hr), but it tends to be complicated by the fact I have difficult veins - so what should be a less than 2hr session can turn into three... Or four... depending on how many attempts they've had to make - hospital protocol is that a nurse can try three times to get a line in, and then they have to get a different nurse to try.

I don't think it'll be a big problem, really, I just feel a bit awkward about how to bring it up.
 
hi i know it can be awkward to bring up , i was worrid myself that it may put them off giving me the job, but i was kinda put on the spot when they asked about my health, but i just went oh hell get it out of the way n pray lol, . like i said keep it brief n focus on the positives that you can bring to them. i said yes iv had a bad time x yrs back n iv been great for 19 mths and am raring to go and show people what i am capable off doing, i have adjusted my lifestyle to keep me as well as possible, so i can work to my fullest potential now, it worked out for me, im sure it will for you too hun. x
p.s if you want help on wording what you want to say,when you want to say anything, please feel free to ask, i'll be happy to help you there if you wish. :hug:
 
Thanks mandyk, I actually kind of wished they had asked me about physical health at interview so I could have raised it then, but there didn't seem to be an appropriate point in the conversation!

It's a step-up job for me that should give me some career progression. I'm a little bit worried that it'll be hard work and could be too much for me, but I figure that I've not let Crohns dictate my life so far so I shouldn't start now - and having a health issue doesn't mean I'm not allowed to also want to do the interesting and challenging work that I'm capable of.
 
A couple things you can try to help out your veins. Firstly, start drinking more water a day in advance of your appointment. Secondly, make sure you keep yourself nice and warm. When you are cold your body will reduce circulation to your extremities making the veins harder to hit. Depending on your health, doing some stairs just before you go in could also help get some circulation going. In any case, best wishes for you and hopefully a happy career!
 
Hi Eptima, yes it perhaps would have been easier if they had mentiontion the health thing at interview stage, but as i recall, i dont think they are allowed to really as it can be classed as discrimination if you then dont get the job. I could have refused to answer that question really, but i didnt. ok so maybe your best bet at this stage would be to say you have a routine app, if they then ask what it's for , that will be your opening to say about the crohn's. If they dont ask you can keep it to your self a little longer so they can get to know you n see how well you work b4 they get to know of the crohn's. good luck with whatever you decide to do . Mine was a step up job too and at the age of 53 thought it could well be my last chance at a career move upwards, like yourself, i dont want crohn's to rule my life, so i went for it too.. :rosette2:
 
Hi and welcome - I too echo the thought of telling the employer you have a pre-standing medical appointment. At my job, I basically told my new boss that I had a standing appointment every 8 weeks, and that my previous supervisor (who had retired) had approved the standing appointment time off.

Here in the US, if I really pushed it I could request time off without pay, but I am lucky enough to have enough time off that I just charge time.

Another thought - depending on the job you have - I sometimes am able to work a little longer a day or two to make up for the time off I take. I make my appointments for @1230pm, so I go into work a little early that day also......

Just an option that would let your employer know that you are a dedicated employee.....
 
mandyk said:
Hi Eptima, yes it perhaps would have been easier if they had mentiontion the health thing at interview stage, but as i recall, i dont think they are allowed to really as it can be classed as discrimination if you then dont get the job. I could have refused to answer that question really, but i didnt.
Click to expand...

Yes it's illegal (in the UK) to ask at interview stage or before offering you a job. Look up the equality act 2010.

My previous job they didn't ask anything at the interview, despite me having to apologise for my gurgling stomach.:mad2: But they had me fill out a health questionnaire once I started which turns out is completely legal (I looked it up). I put down IBS, which was all I could say at the time but I knew it was worse than that and wasn't at all sure that I'd even be able to manage to do the job. But I struggled through and actually only missed a few days, until I had to tell the boss that I needed surgery and would need a few weeks off.

I've been looking for a new job, but I've been lucky in that I've managed to arrange 4 months work at home. Although my symptoms aren't a problem I'm finally getting some treatment and will be starting Aza soon, so I was a bit concerned that taking a new drug would make me too ill to work for a while right when I was starting a new job.

It seems our American friends have this a whole lot worse than we do.
 
hi DEmberton, i think they do to , all ways round, i feel for them with having to pay and or pay for insurance, it must cause much un needed stress. as if we need more of that in our life's ...
 
Yes, they can't ask general questions, but they can ask about something specific if it's important to the job... It's a desk job, though, so the physical requirements are relatively minimal. There's a post-offer health form to fill in, though, so I guess I'll get a chance to raise it then.
 
Actually the employer cannot ask anything health wise in an interview in the U.S. either. It is against the law. I have never heard of having the fill out a health questionnaire after being hired either. That is a new one for me.
 
So the post-offer health questionnaire is quite detailed, including a question about gastrointestinal /bowel disorders. I'm totally OK with the questions being asked, but I'm a little confused about the questions relating to disability and reasonable adjustments. I'm comfortable declaring that I consider myself disabled under the 2010 Equality Act, and I was going to say I don't require reasonable adjustments - but then it occurred to me that perhaps I should state needing to work around appointments as a reasonable adjustment. My current employer is really flexible - the arrangements are more or less up to the manager and my manager is pretty much happy to let me make up time I've taken for appointments,so I've never had to think about formal arrangements before. I think the new place sounds like they'll be OK too... BUT I don't know. If I don't put the need for appointments on the form, they might push back later. And they can't rescind an offer because I need a few hours every two months for a medical appointment, that would be ridiculous. So I think I'll declare the appointments as a reasonable adjustment.
 
Hi Eptima, ye i would,as you say it is not unreasonable, and if your offering to make up the time if you can, then they should'nt be to bothered . some people would need far more adjustments than that hun. good luck n best wishes ..
 
Update - I started the new job two weeks ago and it's all perfectly fine. They don't care about me taking time for appointments and haven't asked any further questions about the information I put down on the health questionnaire. So it was a whole lot of anxiety for no good reason and I'm glad I declared everything on the questionnaire. 😊
 
Eptima said:
Update - I started the new job two weeks ago and it's all perfectly fine. They don't care about me taking time for appointments and haven't asked any further questions about the information I put down on the health questionnaire. So it was a whole lot of anxiety for no good reason and I'm glad I declared everything on the questionnaire. 😊
Click to expand...
That is great.
 
30 years ago a company made me an offer, I resigned my current job and had to take an extensive physical. I disclosed I had Crohns and they withdrew the offer. I had to go to my old job begging for my job back.

Since then I don't disclose it anymore: I may have a doctor appointment every 3 months and an Entyvio infusion every other month.Nobody in these jobs know about the Crohns and except for frequent trips to the bathroom they simply don't know it.

My personal advice: don't disclose it unless you are about to be found out.
 

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