Office Etiquette: Should I Disclose My Health Problems at Work?

August 4, 2011 by Anna Runyan ·

Dear Classy Career Girl,

I’ve been at my job for a little over a year now. I was in the hospital last year, and I’ve been going through some medical problems ever since. Recently, it’s gotten even worse. My question is, how do I balance my health with my job? I’m going through a lot of medical tests right now, which include plenty of doctor’s appointments and missed days of work, and I very well may be receiving a chronic prognosis. Who do I speak with at my work to let them know of my personal issues, and how much do I tell them? Are there any laws or regulations protecting my job in case I do fall seriously ill? Thank you, Worried Worker

Dear Worried Worker,
I am so sorry to hear about your health problems. When I got your email, I immediately wanted to help you so I reached out to Lisa Rosendahl to provide you with the important information you need right now. Lisa writes a blog at Simply Lisa and she is an HR Leader with more than 18 years of professional human resources experience. She was named one of the top 25 digital influencers in 2009 and 2010. Here is Lisa’s response (Thank you Lisa!):

“Being in a new job is challenging in and of itself and adding medical issues to that can be quite stressful. First off, keep 2 things in mind. You were hired for the job because they wanted you and there’s no balancing health with your job – your health comes first. With that in mind, keeping your employer aware of what’s on the horizon for you will help you both plan for your absences be it a few hours or a few days permit them to support you and reduce the additional stress all around.

Who do I speak with at my work?

The first best place to start is with your immediate supervisor – notifying your supervisor in advance of your planned absences, doing what you can to schedule your absences at less busy or higher coverage times of the day, discussing alternate work arrangements (if available) such as working from home or having the tools to stay connected to the office when you are away.

The next stop should be Human Resources. Your HR staff can address medical benefits, sick leave, medical absences and your job protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

Are there any laws that protect my job?

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained during the leave. FMLA is designed to help employees balance their work and family responsibilities by allowing them to take reasonable unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. It also seeks to accommodate the legitimate interests of employers and promote equal employment opportunity for men and women.

FMLA applies to all public agencies, all public and private elementary and secondary schools, and companies with 50 or more employees. These employers must provide an eligible employee with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for any of the following reasons:

• for the birth and care of the newborn child of an employee;

• for placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care;

• to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition; or

• to take medical leave when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.

(Here is a link to a fact sheet about FMLA:
http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs28.htm)

How much should I tell my employer?
Your medical conditions are your own so an employer is not entitled to, nor should they ask you for, the details. For FMLA however, you will be required to provide sufficient information for your employer to determine your eligibility for FMLA and that may be certification of a serious health condition by your provider, that you are incapacitated due to pregnancy, have been hospitalized overnight, are unable to perform the functions of the job etc.

You have a lot on your mind right now so look to your friends and family to support you too. You are asking the right questions and I hope that this information was helpful to you. Please let me know you have other questions.”

We hope that you are feeling much better soon!

Classy Career Girl and Lisa Rosendahl

Readers – What do you think? Should Worried Worker inform her employer about her health problems?

(photo by nlewis039)

Comments

Carol Fleisher says:

August 4, 2011 at 7:50 am

Worried Worker thank you so much for having the courage to post this. I am having health issues too and just received a chronic diagnosis. I have not told my employer yet but thanks to you I have the courage too now. Also thanks to classy career girl for posting this question.

Joelle says:

August 4, 2011 at 9:11 am

Thank you so much for answering! This information really does help a lot!

- Joelle

Classy Career Girl says:

August 4, 2011 at 9:11 am

Carol- I am so glad that this helped you and so sorry to hear about your health problems too. Please feel free to let us know if we can help you in any other way! It's good to know that other people are having similar issues and to be prepared because any of us could be in a similar situation in a heartbeat!

Anonymous says:

August 5, 2011 at 12:12 pm

Omg, I stumbled across this blog & this post thru another blog at exactly the right time! I've been at my company 10 years & am going thru a very similar dilemma — whether or not to tell my boss or HR about a chronic health problem I've been diagnosed with.

Classy Career Girl says:

August 5, 2011 at 8:21 pm

So glad this helped you out also! Good luck with your situation! Timing is everything!:)

Anonymous says:

August 6, 2011 at 5:51 am

I know that this is a blog for people starting out in their careers, but I stumbled across it. My advice to you is keep your illness in the closet as much and as long as you can. They won't fire you for the illness, but it WILL be a factor in at least your boss' mind. The best thing you can do is work on becoming indispensable.

I am sorry, my HR friends, but I would have to say that in my experience, and in the experience of others I know, HR is kind of a last resort. You do not want this in your permanent record. You can get info about FMLA on the internet. You can get info about insurance coverage from the insurance company.

Again, work on making yourself indispensable, give your boss as much notice as you can about appointments, find a doc, if you possibly can, that will give you the last appointment of the day (because almost all of them run late), and ask if you can come in early on those days. Sometimes you can get lab tests on Saturdays. If you're in a smaller town, that's not always possible, I know, but you might look around for lab work in the nearest city that could accommodate you.

Look around you and see if there are others in your organization who seem to be having something like this going on. Discreetly show a little of your hand to them, and see if they share anything about how they are coping.

I was diagnosed with a couple of chronic illnesses 25 years ago, when our daughter was a baby. One got better, but pops up from time to time; one has become consistently worse. My career, as a result, has been a patchwork of "real" jobs, running a "real" business, freelancing, and temping as an admin.

When I say, "Keep it in the closet," I will tell you that in every full-time job I have had, ever, I have managed mid-day fatigue by finding an underused closet and taking a mid-day nap. This only backfired on me once, when the closet I chose was one in a seldom-used auditorium. One day my nap/meditation was interrupted by the sounds of chairs being arranged for a meeting. I prayed that everyone would leave for a minute, but the number of people only got larger, and so I came out of the closet on that one.