Help and Advice
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I have been applying for jobs recently that have standing for long periods of time as one of the main job functions. This is difficult for me as I have an artificial leg and after more than an hour or two my residual limb starts to hurt and gets steadily worse thought the day. My leg is completely covered by long pants, which I always wear for an interview, so my employer wouldn't know unless I tell them. I don't really know when to tell them or even if I should since standing is a part of the job function, and the jobs for which I'm applying can't really be done sitting down. I am speaking of like cashier, food service, retail jobs, which is all I am qualified for at this point. In the past I have just suffered in silence, but I'm wondering if anyone had a suggestion?
Hi Daniel,
The question you ask has caused many people with disabilities to have many sleepless nights.
One consideration is whether you believe you need a reasonable accommodation to do the job. It seems to me that the job involves food preparation, or checking people out through a check-out line, and that neither of these activities necessarily requires a person to be standing. Perhaps there's a tall stool that you could use to help support your weight and give your legs a rest, for example.
If you will need an accommodation, then you'll have to tell any potential employer about your disability. If you can approach the discussion by already having a possible accommodation in mind, that will be the best way to bring up your disability and your need for a reasonable accommodation.
A good place to learn about job accommodations is the Job Accommodation Network. A link to the Job Accommodation Network, a government agency located in the Office of Disability Employment Policy at the U. S. Department of Labor, where there is all kinds of information for job seekers with disabilities, including accommodations you may not have even known about before, is here:
http://www.jan.wvu.edu/indiv/index.htm#job
You can contact JAN and request consultation or information services here, http://www.jan.wvu.edu/links/contact.htm
A new blog at Gettinghired's Penny for Your Thoughts concerns the topic of disclosure, and whether or not one should disclose a disability to a potential employer. Here's a link to the blog:
http://community.gettinghired.com/blogs/pennyforyourthoughts/archive/2009/04/08/should-you-tell-or-not-how-and-when-and-what-if-you-don-t-then-what.aspx
Good luck with your job search. Please keep us posted about what potential accommodations you discover, and your progress in finding work that you can certainly do and you enjoy.
Sincerely,
BusyBee
Also, google Richard Pimental "The Art of Disclosing Your Disability".
When the interviewer asks, "Are you able - with or without accommodations - to perform the functions of the job?" the answer is "Yes." The employer cannot, by law, ask you about your disability status.When you have been offered the job is the time to tell them that you will need accommodations. A tall stool is certainly reasonable, and an employer who refuses that accommodation is running a serious risk of being in non-compliance with the ADA.