Job Interviews & Diabetes

Alright…so last week I talked about highlighting people with diabetes…but I was sitting in a lecture for class this week about interviewing and employment laws. This really made me think about my life with diabetes and how I’m going to find a job that works with me.  I strongly believe that diabetes shouldn’t stop me (or anyone for that matter) from doing whatever I want to do.  Being well educated, thinking things through and having a backup plan is the key to succeeding at just about anything. So if I know I can make anything work, why am I a bit anxious about mentioning the ‘D’ in an interview??? My guess is I’m not alone in these thoughts, so this week I’m going to highlight issues about getting a job with diabetes and provide some answers I’ve found.

1.       Things that are protected by law from discrimination, firing and harassment: Age, race, color, sex, religion, veterans status, national origin, citizenship, disability (physical or mental), genetic identity, sexual orientation (in some states, not federally) and marital status (by state). 

a.       Employers are not allowed to ask about these things in an interview.  If you bring up the topic, they can only ask about it as to if it will affect your ability to perform essential job skills.

b.      These characteristics are protected under separate laws, each is a little different, but the majority apply to companies that employ more than 6-15 employees.

2.       The Americans with Disability Act of 1990:

a.       Disability = “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of major life activities, or has a rcord of such impairment or is regarded as having such an impairment.

b.      The million dollar question: Does diabetes apply?? I don’t have a copy of the actual law, but the summary handout I have lists applicable diagnoses as: blind, deaf, cancer, ADIS, DIABETES, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, downs syndrome etc. things that don’t apply: hair color, sexual orientation, lefthandedness, current use of illegal drugs, gambling, temporary impairments.

c.        so yes… it does apply to me, even though I don’t consider myself disabled, there are some things in the workplace that I need to perform as well as everyone else (like a lunch break) (don’t laugh, I was on a 10 week clinical without one. Totally illegal).  

d.      So what does this mean?? Employers are responsible for providing reasonable
accommodation for a person with a disability unless this imposes undue hardship on the employer.  This could be scheduled lunch break, a 15 minute break for a walk or a snack, permission to eat on a job that doesn’t allow eating, etc. Apparently it is very difficult for an employer to claim hardship. An employer may request a note from your doctor prior to providing an accommodation.

e.      An employer is not allowed to ask questions about possible disabilities and may not require pre-employment medical exams or medical histories. They are allowed to ask if you can perform essential job tasks. (for example: this job requires lifting 20 lb boxes, can you do this?)

f.        An employer may ask disability related questions or require medical examinations of all employees equally after the job has been offered.

3.       So what if this comes up in an interview? We are coached to defer questions that are of an illegal nature.  Either with “I’m uncomfortable answering that but I can tell you____(insert positive comment about yourself here” or “it’s my understanding that that question is not allowed” or just answering vaguely. Ultimately, and employer should know what is legal. I would say definitely don’t lie though. If they see your pump for example, you can say yes I have diabetes but I am able to carry out all necessary tasks this job requires. (you can also talk about how it makes you more organized/obsessive compulsive/flexible/empathetic/whatever sympathy card you do or don’t feel like playing)

4.       Do you bring up the D card yourself?? Personally I’m going with no.  I feel like there’s no reason to bring up something that might subconsciously be a check against you.  The fact of the matter most people are unfamiliar with diabetes, or only think about their great grandpa that has a whole bunch of medical conditions besides diabetes.  So my stance is don’t bring it up.  In the workplace after you’re hired it’s probably a good idea to mention it to someone so that they can help if you ever need…and remember, it’s illegal for them to harass you or discriminate against you because of it.

5.       Random thought: My future profession is very active and physically taxing. I had a bit of trouble predicting effort and controlling sugars on clinical. My endo suggested lowering basal and increasing bolus to cover food in order to keep sugars more constant in light of constant moderate activity. I’m excited to try it.

6.       This is all based on fact with reference to the American Disability Act, but obviously it’s full of my opinions and thoughts as well as the lecturers, so take it with a grain of salt.  Any thoughts/comments/questions are totally welcome!!!

So this weekend I went out to buy a suit jacket ($40 on sale for $14, I think its lucky already), I have a super professional looking resume, I have a list of why I’m a qualified candidate and what I want in a job, and now a list of things I should or shouldn’t talk about.  All I need to do now is pull out my lucky underwear (we all have a pair of those right??) and get on the plane and rock some interviews.  Good luck to anyone else out there doing the same thing!!