To disclose or not disclose.

Crohn's Disease Forum

Help Support Crohn's Disease Forum:

Jaano711

Jaano711

Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
452
Location
South Australia
I am a bit excited, I have a job interview on Monday. It's for a 20hour per week student support officer at the college where my kids go. It's way less stressful, less hours and no travel as opposed to the job I have now. My concern is do I tell then at the interview that I am recovering Stoma surgery, and I have a few lingering surgical issues? I am pretty sure that they know all this, due to the fact we have kept them informed for the kids sakes.

What would you do, tell them a interview stage or if you got the job tell them when you accept it?

I really want this job, it would make life so much easier.
 
I disclosed I had crohn's in the job I just got (starts Monday!) but I DID NOT disclose that I had a stoma.

I found at the company I just left, it really was NOT good that everyone knew I had a stoma. I didnt tell them, but I had the emergency surgery while I worked for them. After a couple people knew then EVERYONE found out. I was treated differently by them ever after. Not good. :mad2:
 
Tell them. You have nothing to lose. If something happens to you it would be good for the management to at least have an idea that you have a stoma

In my experience, my work was very good to me during the time when I had a stoma. Sure, they found it weird at first and they never really understood why I had to walk around with a bag stuck to my belly - but they appreciated that I sometimes had to take time off for medical appointments and had to head off to the bathroom a few extra times.
 
I'd tell them, as AlexJ said, mostly if something happens, then you can't be accused of keeping anything from them. Besides, I tell everyone I know that I have one, I'm just that guy....lol
 
In my experience, if you tell them and it bothers them, then they are bad employers and you are better off not working for them!

With what you're going through a sympathetic employer is important, so I'd be straight up about it!

Talking about my crohn's at my interview even went in my favour. You just have to put a positive spin on it. "Yes I'm having issues with my health etc but it makes me even more determined to do well at work."
 
Misty-Eyed said:
In my experience, if you tell them and it bothers them, then they are bad employers and you are better off not working for them!

With what you're going through a sympathetic employer is important, so I'd be straight up about it!

Talking about my crohn's at my interview even went in my favour. You just have to put a positive spin on it. "Yes I'm having issues with my health etc but it makes me even more determined to do well at work."
Click to expand...

And yes Michelle...they WERE bad employers, as you know. I disclosed my Crohn's to my NEW employers, therefore they know I have health problems, but the stoma bit....no, not yet. Not after what happened to me at my previous job.
 
I worked as a sessional teacher before my employer offered me a permanent role.
They were totally unperturbed by my frequent surgeries, hospital visits, docs appointments etc. I even had a medical for the job and they still took me!
I think I worked 2 weeks out of my 3 month probation period - and they still passed me.

Some employers are just fantastic.
And some colleagues are just brilliant.
I'm very lucky I have both.
I would never have disclosed at an interview before.
Now - I'd be less afraid to do so.
It has certainly taken the anxiety out of it all for me.

Good luck with your interview Janette - very exciting!!
 
There's really no need for any employer to know about ones stoma surgery. If the "lingering issues" would make it difficult to show up on time, complete your 20 hr/ week work and perform in a competent way, then I don't think you'd be applying for the job in the first place, so no need to disclose anything. Keep it simple, less stress that way. :)
 
Last edited:
AlexJ said:
Tell them. You have nothing to lose. If something happens to you it would be good for the management to at least have an idea that you have a stoma

In my experience, my work was very good to me during the time when I had a stoma. Sure, they found it weird at first and they never really understood why I had to walk around with a bag stuck to my belly - but they appreciated that I sometimes had to take time off for medical appointments and had to head off to the bathroom a few extra times.
Click to expand...


I'm on the other side with this one. I've never felt the need to disclose my stoma to anyone I work with. As a salaried employee it's tough to take a few hours away from work to go to a doctor appointment, but I try to bunch them together and taken the entire day off. As long as you have the time accrued, a manager should be very accomadating. If not, there's always a way to work things out internally- come in a day on the weekend, stay later to finish a project, whatever the business need is. I find it's really best to not get into personal issues too much at work, regardless of how well those relationships are. If a personal issue is an unavoidable topic, that's what a manager is there to help out with, HR department, or somethig similar.
 
If they already know you have crohn's, I don't see a reason not to tell them. I don't think you have to offer the knowledge either. Besides, washroom breaks are a whole lot quicker with a bag, so less time away from the phones or your desk. Use it as a selling point if it becomes an issue.
 
shamrock15 said:
If they already know you have crohn's, I don't see a reason not to tell them. I don't think you have to offer the knowledge either. Besides, washroom breaks are a whole lot quicker with a bag, so less time away from the phones or your desk. Use it as a selling point if it becomes an issue.
Click to expand...

Lol. Think about this for a second. Do you REALLY want to work at someplace where you have to use it as a selling point? People have better things to worry about than how often someone uses the restroom. If not, then that's the least of their problems.
 
Terriernut said:
And yes Michelle...they WERE bad employers, as you know. I disclosed my Crohn's to my NEW employers, therefore they know I have health problems, but the stoma bit....no, not yet. Not after what happened to me at my previous job.
Click to expand...

Well I'm not surprised :( That was just awful. But what is your new job?!?!?!!?!? And congrats!!
 
I used to work in HR and I would advise never, ever to disclose a health issue in a job interview. Why give people a reason to discriminate against you? You have no idea if those interviewing are part of the gossip mill and would tell others about your condition. Or they could use it as a reason to not give you the job (you are giving the impression that you may not be able to fullfill your job requirements, whether you mean to or not)
 
Riley said:
I used to work in HR and I would advise never, ever to disclose a health issue in a job interview. Why give people a reason to discriminate against you? You have no idea if those interviewing are part of the gossip mill and would tell others about your condition. Or they could use it as a reason to not give you the job (you are giving the impression that you may not be able to fullfill your job requirements, whether you mean to or not)
Click to expand...

Well here it's illegal to discriminate on health conditions and disabilities. So they can't actually give that as a reason.

But like I said before, I don't want to work for anyone that would discriminate against me for that anyway so it's an easy way to find out. Plus if I show that I'm upfront and honest about it, then it shows that I'll be upfront and honest about anything. I still think its all about how you portray it.
 
dont disclose it.

dont say a word and if your ever off work ill then tell them you just got diagnosed. They may not give u the job if you have a medical condition. but if they think you got it whilst working with them... they cant get rid of you.

dont say a word
 
Misty-Eyed said:
Well here it's illegal to discriminate on health conditions and disabilities. So they can't actually give that as a reason.

But like I said before, I don't want to work for anyone that would discriminate against me for that anyway so it's an easy way to find out. Plus if I show that I'm upfront and honest about it, then it shows that I'll be upfront and honest about anything. I still think its all about how you portray it.
Click to expand...


Yes of course it's illegal but that doesn't meant it doesn't happen. They'll just say that someone else is a better fit.

Your health is no one else's business. Not disclosing it is not being dishonest or withholding pertinent information unless you believe at this moment in time you cannot meet the requirements of the role (and if that's the case don't apply, concentrate on your health)

Unfortunately it's not just about how you portray it....the hiring managers/HR's perception of the situation could be totally different from reality no matter how hard you try to convince them otherwise. Perhaps they had a prior bad experience with a chronically ill co-worker and they'll use that situation to reject you.

And most importantly disclosing it in an interview doesn't mean they will be more sympathetic to your situation going forward. In the business world, no matter how much they may like you, no matter how badly they may feel for you, things come down to a business case. If X employee is off sick too often then X employee needs to go.

I've spent 10 years in HR, trust me guys, no one needs to know your health situation and certainly not in an interview situation. This advice is particularly important for Americans as there are generally not as many protections for workers as there are in Canada and Europe.
 
I am in the process of looking for work, and I'm definitely not disclosing that I have a stoma. At present, I feel amazing, so I figure if people aren't disclosing that they had things like bypass surgery, or their gallbladder removed, I don't need to tell them that I had my colon on the chopping block. At this point, I'm not sure how my Crohn's or ileostomy is relevant to my job.

I'm with Riley---even with the various protections for workers, a company can refuse to hire you and come up with many good reasons why they didn't hire you.

Kismet
 
Once we clear the job intetview we have a medical test here ( in most of the companies) in order to get into IT.

In my case what if they find out in the abdominal scan that most of my colon is out..
 
shalinico said:
Once we clear the job intetview we have a medical test here ( in most of the companies) in order to get into IT.

In my case what if they find out in the abdominal scan that most of my colon is out..
Click to expand...


Are you sure they give you those kinds of tests?
 
I'd always go with the policy of honesty being the best policy really.

In my last interview I didn't get as far as telling them I had a stoma but they certainly got told that I'd recently had health problems and stuff. I didn't get the job. Most probably because I'd worried myself about what to say when health came up that I hadn't prepared for anything else.

I have a job interview next week. But it's in the call centre where I was working before I ended up having my operations and stuff so they know the score with me more or less and I'm pretty sure they'll be more than understanding and it shouldn't hold me back.
 
Riley said:
Yes of course it's illegal but that doesn't meant it doesn't happen. They'll just say that someone else is a better fit.

Your health is no one else's business. Not disclosing it is not being dishonest or withholding pertinent information unless you believe at this moment in time you cannot meet the requirements of the role (and if that's the case don't apply, concentrate on your health)

Unfortunately it's not just about how you portray it....the hiring managers/HR's perception of the situation could be totally different from reality no matter how hard you try to convince them otherwise. Perhaps they had a prior bad experience with a chronically ill co-worker and they'll use that situation to reject you.

And most importantly disclosing it in an interview doesn't mean they will be more sympathetic to your situation going forward. In the business world, no matter how much they may like you, no matter how badly they may feel for you, things come down to a business case. If X employee is off sick too often then X employee needs to go.

I've spent 10 years in HR, trust me guys, no one needs to know your health situation and certainly not in an interview situation. This advice is particularly important for Americans as there are generally not as many protections for workers as there are in Canada and Europe.
Click to expand...

I get what you're saying, but in my opinion a job interview isn't just for the employer to find out more about the candidate, it's also about the candidate finding out more about the job.

I would rather be comfortable with the fact that they were fine knowing about my crohn's before offering me a job because then I would hope they were supportive if issues came up. For instance I recently found out that I'm probably going to have to take another month off next year for another operation. Last year I took 6 weeks off for my procolectomy. I told my boss in private what the situation was. Her reply was 'Michelle, we knew all about your Crohn's before offering you the job. For all we could have known, you could of been ill a lot more than you have been. You more than make up for the time you have off the rest of the year, so as long as it helps you, then it's fine and don't worry."

I appreciate that I am extremely fortunate that I have such an understanding boss that lets me work from home when I need to and doesn't care about how many hospital appointments I have. But she knows that when I do work, I work hard and to the best of my ability. I also understand that the situation isn't quite the same in America.

On the other hand if I hadn't of been upfront in my interview and then been hired by someone that would have discriminated me if I had, then are they really going to be so understanding when I do need to take time off of work for hospital appointments for surgeries etc? No, probably not!
 
I have worked in three IT companies so far, and in two of them I had medical tests....in one of them they did all the tests under the sun...that time my health was fine so didn't have any problem....

...To my knowledge, only IT company is IBM who recruits employees without medical tests,
 
Misty-Eyed said:
I get what you're saying, but in my opinion a job interview isn't just for the employer to find out more about the candidate, it's also about the candidate finding out more about the job.

I would rather be comfortable with the fact that they were fine knowing about my crohn's before offering me a job because then I would hope they were supportive if issues came up. For instance I recently found out that I'm probably going to have to take another month off next year for another operation. Last year I took 6 weeks off for my procolectomy. I told my boss in private what the situation was. Her reply was 'Michelle, we knew all about your Crohn's before offering you the job. For all we could have known, you could of been ill a lot more than you have been. You more than make up for the time you have off the rest of the year, so as long as it helps you, then it's fine and don't worry."

I appreciate that I am extremely fortunate that I have such an understanding boss that lets me work from home when I need to and doesn't care about how many hospital appointments I have. But she knows that when I do work, I work hard and to the best of my ability. I also understand that the situation isn't quite the same in America.

On the other hand if I hadn't of been upfront in my interview and then been hired by someone that would have discriminated me if I had, then are they really going to be so understanding when I do need to take time off of work for hospital appointments for surgeries etc? No, probably not!
Click to expand...

Again, whether it is your intention or not, you are giving a company the impression you might not be able to meet the requirements of the role. At the end of the day, even the most understanding person might not want to move forward and that's a legitimate argument.

We have a disease and it's not our fault. Lots of people struggle with conditions of all kinds, should everyone disclose their medical history? Sure, someone with Crohn's could need extra time off and it's also possible their disease will go into remission for the next 15 years the day after they start. We never know what the future will be, so why set yourself up to be penalized because of it??

If, and this is aimed at anyone reading this, you want to disclose in a job interview, go ahead but after 10 years in HR, working with thousands of hiring mangers and having filled thousands of jobs I cannot recommend strongly enough that you keep your medical history to yourself.
 
Thanks for all the great advice. I went to the interview today, had a great professional discussion. They asked me why with all my quals I was interested in their job. I stated I was ready to take some time back at the roots level as both adults in a family being stressed, and away a lot was not the basis of a good family unit, so I had decided to follow my passion and work with youth. So fingers crossed as I will hear tomorrow if i have been successful.

I just don't want to go back to old stressful job in February. Would much rather lose the stress and travel, and take a pay cut if it means I am healthier and have more energy for my children.
 
i agree with not disclosing. don't give someone a reason not to hire you. you can tell them after they hire you. it's nice to think that everyone judges on qualifications, but unfortunately, that is frequently not the case. if you don't have to disclose anything, don't. that includes age, marital status and whether or not you have kids.
i once was in 2nd place for a job and didn't get it because the dr (it was a dr's office) didn't like hiring "younger" people because they aren't as reliable. i was 28 at the time, but look quite a bit younger. i didn't state my age, but got discriminated against anyway. then when the older person they hired quit after 2 weeks, i got the job.
don't give people any more ammo than they already have.
 
having read all the advise on here i'm now in a quandry. I have not been working for two years now and I have decied to wait till i have my panproctocolectomy before i go back to work as i do not believe that any company would employ me with such surgery set for the new year and then with me having to have at least 6 weeks away.

I know that i do want to go back to work as it it driving me mad not having something else to think about other than my disease. I am now starting to think about what i would like to do as i used to work in customer service and i'm not sure thats what i want to do when i return to work and then there is the issue of any interview. I'm worried that when it comes to why have i been out of work for so long that i will have to disclose that i have had health issues and that it will effect my chances of even being considered for any position i aply for.
 
Well apparently I'm over qualified for the position I was interviewed for but they would contact me in the new year as there is a position becoming vacant that. Would be perfect for. Oh well if nothing else it was a great test of my mental recovery and my readiness to get back out there.
 
I started my job two years ago, full-time in the legal profession. 8 months atfer I started I was diagnosed with UC and subsequently hospitalised 6 times in that year. My employer was wonderful. They visited me in hospital, gave me allowance to leave early if I needed to, let me work from home etc... Now, I am waiting for surgery so I have taken 10 months off work for that and they have allowed me to retain some part-time hours working from home, and even surprised me this week by taking me out to a christmas lunch. Some employers are fabulous, but I still don't think in my next job interviews when I get a new position one day that I would disclose my illness.
 

Similar threads

Papantoine
Neglect?
Replies
2
Views
573
Bufford
Bufford
C
GI says he is 99% sure I have chron’s
Replies
23
Views
3K
Bespectacledberries
B
Anna's Bandit
Hospital
Replies
5
Views
764
Crohn2357
Crohn2357
T
Amateur observations: Non-surgical ways to prevent/cure fistulas.
Replies
0
Views
2K
tim73
T
C
Atypical Crohns
Replies
2
Views
1K
Chrissie47
C

Latest posts

Back
Top