[shortandcute]

I've heard of people not being able to find jobs because they got a certain diagnosis from a psychologist or psychiatrist, but do the employers have a way to find out if you don't tell them?

[Stoda]

Originally Posted by shortandcute

I've heard of people not being able to find jobs because they got a certain diagnosis from a psychologist or psychiatrist, but do the employers have a way to find out if you don't tell them?

I work in Human Resources and have a degree in Human Resources. An employer can not find out about your medical diagnosis unless you tell them. Maybe those people you've heard from are actually blaming their mental illness, rather than accepting they weren't the most qualified? Unless the Mental Illness is specifically mentioned or obvious, I have a hard time believing it caused someone to not get a job. Just my humble opinion.

[shortandcute]

thanx--and i love that quote by marilyn monroe!

No they shouldn't be able to find out, you have to sign a waver about criminal records etc but if you aren't functioning so well or take a lot of time off then their probably going to want an explanation at some point anyway. To be perfectly honest i wouldn't go back to work unless i had been well for a considerable amount of time and had the right balance of meds/good support system etc - of course not everyone has the option of staying off of work. If anything i wish there was more understanding of illness in the workplace whether it be mental or physical - just gotta keep pushing on i suppose...

[amandalouise]

Originally Posted by shortandcute

I've heard of people not being able to find jobs because they got a certain diagnosis from a psychologist or psychiatrist, but do the employers have a way to find out if you don't tell them?

if you are here in the United States of America no your mental disorders cant get you, hired or fired or it held against you in any way because here in america we have laws like the american disabilities act, HIPPA, HIPAA and other laws too that state peoples race, religion, political party, physical disability, mental disorder, gender, sexual preference cannot prevent them from being treated equal to any other american where jobs/careers are concerned.. we even have a black president for the first time in america's history, and here in my state and others like it we have same sex marriages...

I love America, we have a ways to go on some issues but we have come a long way in the equal rights department for jobs and other issues.

[Oxidopamine]

For most jobs, the employer is not legally allowed to ask whether you have any medical diagnosis, psychiatric or not. Instead, they are allowed to ask whether you have any medical diagnoses that you believe will hamper your ability to perform your job duties to maximal success. In other words, you are not required to disclose any such information unless you want to.

There are a set of other jobs that will involve a psychiatric examination, such as police. I'm not sure if these would also want clearance to your medical records or if they would just perform their own evaluation. For jobs where this doesn't apply, I'm inclined to side with Stoda in that people may blame their medical conditions as the primary cause for not landing the job.

[sleeping prophet]

Employers may be able to discover records for treatment if a person is treated in a public institution. I would never tell any employer. Remember, the person you are inteviewing with or coworkers may also have problems. Just keep your problems to yourself at work. Some people can have empathy, but someone may tell the boss!