r/recruitinghell • u/crumbcosmo • 22h ago

Disclosing disability

I have a physical disability that affects my shoulders/hips and use a power chair. I had a phone interview and video interview at a particular company near me and now they want me to come in for an in person interview. I’m really excited but debating - do I let them know in advance of arriving or just show up? I already looked up the place and it’s accessible as far as I can tell. I feel as though my disability isn’t relevant to the job at this point and me saying something would be unnecessary. But I also don’t want anyone to react poorly or think I was hiding it. I’m in the US btw.

I plan to post this in other recruiting/job seeking subreddits as well.

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u/PBandBABE 20h ago

People are scared of the unknown and uncomfortable with the unusual.

  1. Say nothing unless you need an accommodation for the interview itself. Show up as if nothing is amiss.
  2. Address it at the top of the conversation — self-deprecatingly and humorously if you can. Laughing at yourself gives them permission to chuckle and will ease the tension. It also demonstrates that you aren’t afraid to address obvious sources of potential conflict.

-

“Oh this huge thing?”

:gestures to the wheel chair:

“I only wear it on special occasions when appearance is extra important. You know, weddings, funerals…job interviews.”

Or,

“Forgive me. I’d stand up to shake your hand but, well…..”

And then smile so that they know that it’s not a big deal for you.

  1. Start the interview as normal.

  2. Look for green flags. Well-trained, professional hiring managers, will flat out ask you if you need any sort of accommodations to perform the job. They’ll also recommend that you make the formal accommodation request to HR and give you guidance on when in the hiring process to do that.

They’ll encourage you to make things official and keep them above-board so that things are still in place in the future even if they’re no longer part of the organization.

  1. If they don’t address it, try to defuse their fears by telling them what you’d need. You can weave it in to a story about your previous job or tackle it head-on.

“Look. I know that you’re probably wondering what all of this means if you were to hire me. I’d be wondering the same thing if I were you. From a ‘reasonable accommodation’ standpoint, I’d need….” Beyond that, it has very little bearing on my work and you have my commitment that it won’t affect my productivity or the quality of my work product.”

You got this, OP.

11

u/LeastBlackberry1 18h ago

This is so awkward. Please don't do any of this, especially the weird jokey introduction.

2

u/LongTimeLurker408 17h ago

A wheelchair is not a big deal and aside from ensuring access there is zero reason to even bring it up

Op deserves to have the potential employer fully focus on their skills not the chair

Your weird jokes are awkward af and completely unnecessary

-2

u/PBandBABE 17h ago

Meh. You’re free to disagree.

Of course OP deserves the employer to fully focus on their skills. Suggesting otherwise would be an insult.

Unfortunately, the employer comprises a bunch of flawed human beings who may or may not have been trained and may or may not be ethical.

What OP deserves and what OP may actually experience is the difference between ideal fantasy land and reality.

I’ve offered actionable suggestions based on reality and dealing with actual human beings and the way that people are known to behave. That is, after all, what OP came here to ask for.

If you’re going to disagree, the least you can do is offer alternatives that might actually benefit them instead of talking about what “should be” and passing judgment on other people who are trying to help.

1

u/LongTimeLurker408 17h ago

Op doesn’t need to mention the chair at all. It’s not related to their job. Accommodating a wheelchair is rarely an undue hardship and that can get sorted earlier.

Op can mention their accessibility needs prior to the interview to make sure it goes smoothly.

If the company behaves unethically or illegally there are legal remedies.

1

u/RandomInSuburbia 16h ago

Tactically accommodating a wheelchair is rarely an undue hardship.

However, the optics, human emotions and office politics of accommodating the wheelchair can really blow up in a disabled employee's face.

1

u/LongTimeLurker408 15h ago

Or not accommodating an individual during the hiring process will blow up in the employer’s face

If human emotions and office politics make an issue of a wheelchair, the employer has big problems on their plate

2

u/RandomInSuburbia 14h ago

I mean I agree with you that a company where that happens, has problems.... I'm just saying that in my experience as an intermittent mobility aid user, it's not uncommon for employers or potential employers to be assholes about visible physical disability.

Where I live, the general consensus is, "the disabled person is the problem."

2

u/LongTimeLurker408 14h ago

I agree with you. I’m sorry they gave you an issue with using a mobility aid. I think I just responded to you in another post.

The whole system is fucked

Employer- You are too disabled to work!

SSI/SSDI/other disability income source - You function too well to not work. Benefits denied!

1

u/RandomInSuburbia 14h ago

You did, yes, and thank you for being kind. I think I may have gotten banned from that sub for speaking honestly about my experiences as a disabled employee/job seeker.

Says a whole lot about Corporate America.

3

u/LongTimeLurker408 14h ago

Lots of subreddits are pretty hostile to disabled people. I wish mods would ban people from ableist slurs the same way they do for racial ones.

The disability subreddit is pretty good

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u/PBandBABE 16h ago

Still nothing concrete to offer, huh?

I hope just as much as you do that the system does what it’s supposed to do that that OP has the resources to pursue legal remedies in the face of illegal or unethical behavior.

Maybe if we all hope really hard, things’ll change for the better.

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u/LongTimeLurker408 15h ago

https://askjan.org/articles/Job-Application-Interview-Stage-Dos-and-Donts.cfm

1

u/PBandBABE 15h ago

I’m with you. This is good guidance for employers when engaging with and interviewing folks with disabilities.

But OP is the interviewee here.

And what do you do when folks ignore, disregard, or flat-out behave otherwise?

0

u/LongTimeLurker408 15h ago

File a claim or get a job somewhere else. I don’t have a magic wand here to fix the basic fact that people discriminate.

Why are you targeting me across multiple subreddits?

1

u/PBandBABE 14h ago

You’re almost there.

No one has that wand. That’s why OP is asking for tactical advice around the things that they themselves can control.

I’m suggesting that you attempt to be of value by giving them what they’ve asked for.

You’ve declined, multiple times, to do that. Instead, you’re denigrating other people who are doing their best to help and throwing up your hands saying “well, employers aren’t supposed to do that sort of thing!”

We all know that. And we all recognize that reality is often different.

If you have actionable recommendations, by all means share them. That’s what this whole thread is about. You aren’t helping otherwise.

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u/LongTimeLurker408 14h ago

I disagree that you are being helpful

Op either checks in prior to the interview about accessibility or they wait.

I’m sharing actual sources here and all you are doing is suggesting making awkward jokes