n EVIL HR LADY
DILEMMA OF THE MONTH
Asking About Health
by Suzanne Lucas
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN CHASE
I
interviewed a job candidate who was severely
overweight and had trouble walking. While
the job is mostly a desk job (administrative
assistant), our office is spread out across the entire
floor of an office building. The admins are expected
to run things back and forth when needed, collect
the mail and greet guests at reception. Could I
have asked her about her health? I didn't. I didn't
offer her the job, either, and now I'm feeling guilty.
I don't think she could have done the job. What
should I have done?
A
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comstocksmag.com | January 201 8
YOU WERE WISE NOT TO ASK ABOUT
HER HEALTH. Asking that is a viola-
tion of the Americans with Disabili-
ties Act. But, not hiring her because
you thought she couldn’t physically do
the job is also a violation of the ADA. If
you have 15 or more employees, you’re
subject to ADA.
This sounds like it puts a hiring man-
ager between a rock and a hard place.
You can’t ask. You can’t assume. What’s
a manager to do when a candidate looks
like she will be physically unable to do
the actual job? First, let’s start by defin-
ing some terms.
DISABILITY
“An individual with a disability is de-
fined by the ADA as a person who has
a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major
life activities, a person who has a his-