CF and Job interviews

C

cdale613

New member
I thought this topic deserved its own thread, so for Lauren and everyone else dealing with this issue:

CF should NEVER be mentioned in an interview situation. Ever. It may seem like no big deal, but by doing so you open yourself up for discrimination based on your having a medical condition. This is against the law, but if you let them know you have a medical condition, they may try to find other excuses not to hire you. This is illegal, but incredibly hard to prove in a court situation. It is illegal for employers to make hiring decisions based disability or medical condition, regardless of whether or not you may need to take off time for your CF, may prove to be an expensive person to provide medical insurance to, may become disabled, etc.

Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which took effect July 26, 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment.

Inaddition, HIPAA protects the privacy of your health records from employer access.

You may think that you are demonstrating your ability to handle your CF, and school, job, etc., but all they are hearing is "this person may be unreliable, and will increase my company's insurance premium." This is not OK.

If you feel you have to be upfront with your employer about your CF, that is fine, but by all means, wait until you are hired first. Technically, even after you are hired you are under no obligation whatsoever to discuss your CF with your employer, and they cannot compel you to do so .

A job interview is not the appropriate time to educate the masses. You will serve your future employer and yourself much better by waiting until the hiring decision has been made and you have the chance to show them everyday how successful a CFer can be.

Best of luck with the job search.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
C

cdale613

New member
I thought this topic deserved its own thread, so for Lauren and everyone else dealing with this issue:

CF should NEVER be mentioned in an interview situation. Ever. It may seem like no big deal, but by doing so you open yourself up for discrimination based on your having a medical condition. This is against the law, but if you let them know you have a medical condition, they may try to find other excuses not to hire you. This is illegal, but incredibly hard to prove in a court situation. It is illegal for employers to make hiring decisions based disability or medical condition, regardless of whether or not you may need to take off time for your CF, may prove to be an expensive person to provide medical insurance to, may become disabled, etc.

Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which took effect July 26, 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment.

Inaddition, HIPAA protects the privacy of your health records from employer access.

You may think that you are demonstrating your ability to handle your CF, and school, job, etc., but all they are hearing is "this person may be unreliable, and will increase my company's insurance premium." This is not OK.

If you feel you have to be upfront with your employer about your CF, that is fine, but by all means, wait until you are hired first. Technically, even after you are hired you are under no obligation whatsoever to discuss your CF with your employer, and they cannot compel you to do so .

A job interview is not the appropriate time to educate the masses. You will serve your future employer and yourself much better by waiting until the hiring decision has been made and you have the chance to show them everyday how successful a CFer can be.

Best of luck with the job search.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
C

cdale613

New member
I thought this topic deserved its own thread, so for Lauren and everyone else dealing with this issue:

CF should NEVER be mentioned in an interview situation. Ever. It may seem like no big deal, but by doing so you open yourself up for discrimination based on your having a medical condition. This is against the law, but if you let them know you have a medical condition, they may try to find other excuses not to hire you. This is illegal, but incredibly hard to prove in a court situation. It is illegal for employers to make hiring decisions based disability or medical condition, regardless of whether or not you may need to take off time for your CF, may prove to be an expensive person to provide medical insurance to, may become disabled, etc.

Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which took effect July 26, 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment.

Inaddition, HIPAA protects the privacy of your health records from employer access.

You may think that you are demonstrating your ability to handle your CF, and school, job, etc., but all they are hearing is "this person may be unreliable, and will increase my company's insurance premium." This is not OK.

If you feel you have to be upfront with your employer about your CF, that is fine, but by all means, wait until you are hired first. Technically, even after you are hired you are under no obligation whatsoever to discuss your CF with your employer, and they cannot compel you to do so .

A job interview is not the appropriate time to educate the masses. You will serve your future employer and yourself much better by waiting until the hiring decision has been made and you have the chance to show them everyday how successful a CFer can be.

Best of luck with the job search.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
A

Allisa35

Member
I hear what you are saying. Even though it is illegal, some employers might find other things to use against you in the hiring process. Sad but true. However, with that being said, I personally have always mentioned my CF in my interviews (with the exception of a few jobs). I find it to be easier to deal with right from the get go than to have problems with it later. It has never been a hinderance to me getting a job, but I'm sure that isn't the case for everybody. Me personally, I prefer to just get it out in the open. But, like you said, some employers might hold it against you even though it is illegal.
 
A

Allisa35

Member
I hear what you are saying. Even though it is illegal, some employers might find other things to use against you in the hiring process. Sad but true. However, with that being said, I personally have always mentioned my CF in my interviews (with the exception of a few jobs). I find it to be easier to deal with right from the get go than to have problems with it later. It has never been a hinderance to me getting a job, but I'm sure that isn't the case for everybody. Me personally, I prefer to just get it out in the open. But, like you said, some employers might hold it against you even though it is illegal.
 
A

Allisa35

Member
I hear what you are saying. Even though it is illegal, some employers might find other things to use against you in the hiring process. Sad but true. However, with that being said, I personally have always mentioned my CF in my interviews (with the exception of a few jobs). I find it to be easier to deal with right from the get go than to have problems with it later. It has never been a hinderance to me getting a job, but I'm sure that isn't the case for everybody. Me personally, I prefer to just get it out in the open. But, like you said, some employers might hold it against you even though it is illegal.
 
M

mum2kj

New member
I was gonna ask whether to tell or not,

My daughter wants a part time job when she is 15 and we wanted to know should we tell or not,
I will have to find out the Australian laws for that.

If they have a form where you have to list any illness, do you write down c/f or not, because if you sign it knowing you have an illness and you didn't write it down, can they sack you for not disclosing it?
 
M

mum2kj

New member
I was gonna ask whether to tell or not,

My daughter wants a part time job when she is 15 and we wanted to know should we tell or not,
I will have to find out the Australian laws for that.

If they have a form where you have to list any illness, do you write down c/f or not, because if you sign it knowing you have an illness and you didn't write it down, can they sack you for not disclosing it?
 
M

mum2kj

New member
I was gonna ask whether to tell or not,

My daughter wants a part time job when she is 15 and we wanted to know should we tell or not,
I will have to find out the Australian laws for that.

If they have a form where you have to list any illness, do you write down c/f or not, because if you sign it knowing you have an illness and you didn't write it down, can they sack you for not disclosing it?
 
J

JazzysMom

New member
OK I have a slight twist to this & would like your thoughts. My first job out of high school was at a Law Firm. I had a letter of character reference from my high school principal. Well it turns out that he was good friends with the lady (SUE) who interviewed me so when she contacted him about me, he revealed that I had CF. Not I personally didnt mind it for a few reasons. I never hid my CF and back then my CF NEVER had an influence on my work. This is what I told her. That yes I had CF, but it would not influence my job performance at all. My point is that since she found out already....how should I have handled it?


BTW I did get the job which I held for 2 years & got 2 raises in that time period.......this job is what the rest of my job opportunities were based on. I learned so much from this position!
 
J

JazzysMom

New member
OK I have a slight twist to this & would like your thoughts. My first job out of high school was at a Law Firm. I had a letter of character reference from my high school principal. Well it turns out that he was good friends with the lady (SUE) who interviewed me so when she contacted him about me, he revealed that I had CF. Not I personally didnt mind it for a few reasons. I never hid my CF and back then my CF NEVER had an influence on my work. This is what I told her. That yes I had CF, but it would not influence my job performance at all. My point is that since she found out already....how should I have handled it?


BTW I did get the job which I held for 2 years & got 2 raises in that time period.......this job is what the rest of my job opportunities were based on. I learned so much from this position!
 
J

JazzysMom

New member
OK I have a slight twist to this & would like your thoughts. My first job out of high school was at a Law Firm. I had a letter of character reference from my high school principal. Well it turns out that he was good friends with the lady (SUE) who interviewed me so when she contacted him about me, he revealed that I had CF. Not I personally didnt mind it for a few reasons. I never hid my CF and back then my CF NEVER had an influence on my work. This is what I told her. That yes I had CF, but it would not influence my job performance at all. My point is that since she found out already....how should I have handled it?


BTW I did get the job which I held for 2 years & got 2 raises in that time period.......this job is what the rest of my job opportunities were based on. I learned so much from this position!
 
C

cdale613

New member
Hi Melissa,

It sounds like you handled it very well, and obviously you got the job. However, I would have been upset if my references mentioned my CF to a potential employee because of the risks of being discriminated against. I think there are other ways references can subtley hint at all of your good qualities that they may know about your ability to handle CF, etc., without explicitly saying you have CF. Also, your first reference happened 20 years ago... I think that with the passage of HIPAA there has been an increased awareness about the sensitivity of personal health information (I hope). Under HIPAA, your references should not be discussing your health.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
C

cdale613

New member
Hi Melissa,

It sounds like you handled it very well, and obviously you got the job. However, I would have been upset if my references mentioned my CF to a potential employee because of the risks of being discriminated against. I think there are other ways references can subtley hint at all of your good qualities that they may know about your ability to handle CF, etc., without explicitly saying you have CF. Also, your first reference happened 20 years ago... I think that with the passage of HIPAA there has been an increased awareness about the sensitivity of personal health information (I hope). Under HIPAA, your references should not be discussing your health.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
C

cdale613

New member
Hi Melissa,

It sounds like you handled it very well, and obviously you got the job. However, I would have been upset if my references mentioned my CF to a potential employee because of the risks of being discriminated against. I think there are other ways references can subtley hint at all of your good qualities that they may know about your ability to handle CF, etc., without explicitly saying you have CF. Also, your first reference happened 20 years ago... I think that with the passage of HIPAA there has been an increased awareness about the sensitivity of personal health information (I hope). Under HIPAA, your references should not be discussing your health.

Chris

26m w/CF
 
M

Mockingbird

New member
I used to believe the same, that we should never bring up CF during a job interview. However, I have a friend who believes in always telling the truth no matter what, and letting God take care of the rest (not trying to start a religious debate; if you don't believe in God, then just ignore it).

Point is, mentioning CF in a job interview is kind of like our own screening process for the job that's right for us. Many people here have had complaints about their job not being respectful of their CF. If, for example, I apply to a company that is going to discriminate about my CF, then chances are it is going to be a company that is going to give me problems later on. However, if I am open about my CF, I can be sure I am finding the right job when I am accepted.

Of course, this philosophy does require a lot of faith, so anyone who does not believe in God will likely be against it. Having faith in God, however, I have become convicted that it is a good idea to be open about CF, if only to be sure I will end up where God wants me to be (which may or may not be a job that is accomodating, depending on why I am placed there).

Anyway, just a thought for those of us who have faith.
 
M

Mockingbird

New member
I used to believe the same, that we should never bring up CF during a job interview. However, I have a friend who believes in always telling the truth no matter what, and letting God take care of the rest (not trying to start a religious debate; if you don't believe in God, then just ignore it).

Point is, mentioning CF in a job interview is kind of like our own screening process for the job that's right for us. Many people here have had complaints about their job not being respectful of their CF. If, for example, I apply to a company that is going to discriminate about my CF, then chances are it is going to be a company that is going to give me problems later on. However, if I am open about my CF, I can be sure I am finding the right job when I am accepted.

Of course, this philosophy does require a lot of faith, so anyone who does not believe in God will likely be against it. Having faith in God, however, I have become convicted that it is a good idea to be open about CF, if only to be sure I will end up where God wants me to be (which may or may not be a job that is accomodating, depending on why I am placed there).

Anyway, just a thought for those of us who have faith.
 
M

Mockingbird

New member
I used to believe the same, that we should never bring up CF during a job interview. However, I have a friend who believes in always telling the truth no matter what, and letting God take care of the rest (not trying to start a religious debate; if you don't believe in God, then just ignore it).

Point is, mentioning CF in a job interview is kind of like our own screening process for the job that's right for us. Many people here have had complaints about their job not being respectful of their CF. If, for example, I apply to a company that is going to discriminate about my CF, then chances are it is going to be a company that is going to give me problems later on. However, if I am open about my CF, I can be sure I am finding the right job when I am accepted.

Of course, this philosophy does require a lot of faith, so anyone who does not believe in God will likely be against it. Having faith in God, however, I have become convicted that it is a good idea to be open about CF, if only to be sure I will end up where God wants me to be (which may or may not be a job that is accomodating, depending on why I am placed there).

Anyway, just a thought for those of us who have faith.
 
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