Job Interviews

[tychrisbrown]

I think I screwed up in a job interview. I was asked an apparently illegal interview question, it went something like this... "I dont know how to put this but...do you require any extra breaks or anything like that?" I went for full disclosure saying I was a type one diabetic and describing the accommodations I would need. I now realize that that question might have meant smoking, but it felt like she was asking about any disabilities. She said it was not a big deal, but I have not gotten a call back as she promised in the morning. I have two questions. One how should I have answered the question? The other is was the question illegal?

[foxl]

I would never have asked that in an interview!

It might indeed be illegal. Was this person a fairly experienced or sophisticated interviewer, otherwise? To me it might be a red flag of the workplace's issues.

I think you answered candidly, I probably would too.

[tychrisbrown]

She said she had not done an interview in a while. It was at Walgreens of all places. I am getting yelled at by relatives for disclosing it, as I did on an aplication that was asking about disabilites. That was probably illegal too.

[shiftzor]

I wouldn't disclose it up front at if it doesn't affect your ability to do the job too much. If on the other hand it was the army for example then you would have to disclose it. Use common sense. If they turn you down because you are diabetic then you probably wouldn't want to work for someone like that anyway.

[morrisma]

Unless you do require more breaks than the average employee, I would have answered 'No'.

I can change my pump site faster than our resident smoker can walk to the loading dock and get back. And I only do this every 3 days or so. I can check my sugar in 30 seconds. A few seconds more to bolus or snack depending on the results.

I also think that asking about health issues is illegal but by asking about break requirements, they may have skirted the letter (but not the spirit) of the law. You needn't have given any more than a Yes/No to the question - no elaboration.

Either way, I'd send a letter to corporate describing the situation, objecting to the question and maybe explaining that having a diabetic employee in a drug store has a number of advantages.
Mike

[ant hill]

This sends a red flag strait up a pole as they look at how serious that you care for your diabetes as this can go in two ways.

1. Time spent to pay attention to "D".
2. Complications.

There are many employers who know that you have not enough money to fight in a court and they will use discrimination how they see fit. So it's all about selling yourself to the prospecting employer. Diabetes are not very attractive. :(

[Subby]

Life is not always straightforward, there is not always some perfect answer. You did nothing wrong, you made a call on the spur of the moment, we all get those situations, and have to make a punt. It may or may not have had an influence on things. It may or may not have been the right thing for that particular moment.

It can be a real tightrope of working out what is right and wrong to share about a pain in the backside condition, that you like to keep private, but may also feel a responsibility to keep people in the loop.

I really think you did nothing wrong, nothing worth being berated for by your rellies. Disclosure is not always going to be the wrong tact to take, even in a job interview. The only lesson here is that you have gained experience on a gray area, and can reflect on what you will do in the future.

[Mindstorm]

Yeah, relax, you did nothing wrong. Legally, of course, they can't discriminate based on your health conditions and any disabilities you report are reported voluntarily.

Your relatives are giving you a hard time for nothing. The times right now are the worst we've had in a very long time as far as finding employment goes, so don't think your admission of a what is considered a disability (diabetes) affected whether or not they would hire you. Any HR rep or manager worth their salt knows they have to stay away from using information like that in making hiring decisions.

I've always gone the route of full disclosure and it hasn't done me wrong yet. I simply explain that I may need to test or eat a snack but that it won't ever take more than a minute and that I have good control and that it won't affect whether or not I get to work (of course it can affect that, but with OK control and an insulin pump I can manage). I'm also very relaxed and comfortable with doing interviews at this point, and I've never had an interview that didn't lead to a job offer (assuming what I was doing was actually an interview). How you present yourself and how you talk when you decide to mention the diabetes to them will affect whether or not they think you're a good candidate simply because you may come off as overly nervous or as if you're trying to hide something (like the severity of your instance of diabetes or how much it damages your quality of life/ability to work efficiently). At that point they may have decided that (because you've suddenly gotten nervous and changed your tone in an interview) that maybe you don't have the best people skills for the position and that they should consider hiring someone else.

In that regard, your relatives may be right about telling you not to disclose that you have diabetes if you're not completely comfortable talking about it. One thing I think people tend to overlook is that the hiring managers are always watching how you interact with them socially and deal with different questions. The person who interviewed you was walking the line with that "do you need extra breaks" question (kind of a sleazy way to bait somebody), but could easily say that they didn't ask anything illegal and that your response was unexpected (should you say it was a discriminatory decision based on your diabetes). I'll just say that if you're not comfortable (completely comfortable) talking at length and going into detail about how Type I diabetes might affect your work performance, then wait until you're hired before you mention it at all.

[tychrisbrown]

Thanks all for the varied and detailed answers. Is a big help. I will probably find out tomorrow if I got the job or not. If not then there is a dishwasher job opening I am going to look into.

I have a Master of Science in Library Science and have not had any luck getting a job there so trying for a smaller job until the fall in which I am going for a teaching degree, so eventually I will be a school media librarian.

Again, thanks for your detailed replies.

[Mindstorm]

Good luck! Hope you get the job you actually want.

I lucked out recently and finally get to start a great new chapter of my life, so don't give up hope. There's jobs out there as long as you're driven enough (and lucky enough!) to land one.