The Question of Disclosure: If, When, and How

This page is an excerpt from our book, Sailing Farther Than the Eye Can See.

The question of when, if, and how to disclose your disability is a very personal one and can present a challenge. Our intention here is to outline possibilities for disclosure, to offer some suggestions for how to handle this complex issue, and to provide some outside sources for you to do your own research.

Legally, you are not obliged to disclose your disability before or during the interview itself. However, it does make sense to disclose at some stage in the hiring process because an employer is not required to provide accommodations unless they are aware of your disability and that may impact your ability to do your job.

Disclosing your disability before the interview (in your cover letter or on your resume)

PRO’s

  • You may feel that you are being entirely transparent with a prospective employer with the result that you will save time and trouble for everyone. Do remember, though, that you are not obliged to put yourself in a disadvantageous position if this does not feel right to you.
  • You will not be questioned about your motives: “Why didn’t you tell us this sooner?”

CON’s

  • An employer may screen you and reject you preemptively on the basis of your disability.
  • You may miss the chance to shine in the interview and to make your case that you are prepared to do this work with excellence.

Suggestions

If you do decide to disclose your disability in the cover letter or resume, you could follow Kane Brolin’s suggestion (see his profile on page X) and proactively write an additional note to your prospective employer to reassure them of your competency in handling work and everyday tasks. You might also let them know that you are a member of one or more blindness organizations, which give you access to tools, community, and information about how to adapt and flourish at work.

Disclosing your disability in the interview

PRO’s

Disclosing in person, face to face, may feel liberating and powerful. You may feel that you are claiming an important part of your identity: “I’m not only a statistic on a piece of paper; I’m a human being and I have potential and talent.”

  • Being this transparent, you cannot be accused later of hiding anything or deceiving your potential employer.
  • Through the disclosure itself, you can demonstrate your skill in handling delicate matters and advocating for yourself.

CON’s

  • It could feel awkward for you and overwhelming for the employer who may feel afraid about how to provide accommodations for you and the cost that may be involved.
  • You may encounter prejudice and discrimination. You may be questioned or in the worst-case scenario, you may even be harassed.

Suggestions

If you choose to disclose during the interview, remember that your disability is only one aspect of yourself and that you can and should focus much more on your previous work experience, your achievements, and your ability to do this job.

Light-heartedness and humor may help you with your disclosure. If the interview is in person, very likely your interviewer will notice your blindness or visual impairment and you will only have to quip, “Perhaps you’ve noticed that I’m blind.” Smile and move on.

Disclosing your disability after the interview when you have been offered the job

PRO’s

  • You know for certain that your qualifications have won you the job.
  • You have not put yourself in a position to be the victim of prejudice or discrimination.
  • You can request reasonable accommodations at this stage and your employer is legally required to provide them.

CON’s

  • You may worry that your employer will feel you should have spoken up sooner.
  • Your employer may give you a hard time, asking why you didn’t disclose this important information before.
  • Suggestions: It can be beneficial to wait until you have been offered the job to ask for reasonable accommodations. Do give your reason for any requests you make and show how this piece of equipment or accommodation will help you successfully perform your job.

Additional resources

Here are some resources to help you as you decide if, how, and when to disclose:

Scripts

Here are some questions and statements you may run into at a job interview or even in the first days and weeks of a new job. We offer some ideas for answers, but you can of course come up with your own responses. The way we respond will necessarily be shaped by the tone and perceived intentions of the questioner and by whether or not we would like to develop a working relationship with this person. A good-hearted but clueless question will receive a mild reply designed to gently educate, while a rude or harsh tone will be met with a more direct refutation which makes it clear that the questioner has crossed a line.

We agree that it is important to offer some response in each case in order to protect and promote your own dignity and self-respect.

1. Just what can you see?

  • (a blind person): I’m totally blind.
  • (a visually impaired person): Why are you asking?

2. Can you do this job?

  • Why are you asking?
  • Yes (a clear, simple answer).
  • Yes. Why do you think I can’t?

3. Well, I guess you’re going need a lot of help.

  • I’ll need help the first day but after that I won’t need any help.
  • I have adapted well to being visually impaired and I have my own ways of doing things that help me navigate without vision.

4. Will I have to spend a lot of money for your accommodations?

  • This depends on the job.
  • To do the work required on a computer, as long as your internal systems and documents are accessible – no. If the job requires physical hardware, it shouldn’t cost a great deal of money.
  • You pay the light bill to employ your sighted employees to see while they work, so this is the equivalent. We all need certain things in order to our jobs.

5. How do you do X if you can’t see?

  • I have the adaptive equipment to do the job with no problems.

6. How do you get around the building if you can’t see?

  • If I know the layout, I’m fine.
  • If I have an app on my smartphone, I can navigate the building with no problem.

7. Will I need to hire a third person to look after you?

  • No. I am fully independent and can look after myself. For the visual tasks required for the job, we can talk about the costs of hiring a virtual assistant trained in non-visual job access.

8. So you’re going to walk around my office blind? What if you fall down? What if you can’t find the bathroom?

  • With all due respect, there’s nothing wrong with my legs. I can navigate independently just fine. I will learn the lay of the land and if you don’t randomly move furniture during my shift, we won’t have any issues.

9. How will you cope with handwritten documents or notes?

  • I’ll need someone to read those for me or we could use a service like AIRA.

10. It’s so good that we employ people like you.

  • I’d like to unpack your statement. What do you mean: “people like you?” I’m exactly like you.