[lit-ideas] Re: amazing employment application questions
- From: JimKandJulieB@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 5 Jun 2006 21:38:11 EDT
I tend to be a great employee until I lose my cool, shoot myself in the
foot, w/ re. to references for future employment opportunities.
I of course answered "yes". But the "w/ or w/out reasonable accommodations"
has so many variables, is so nebulous, as to be astonishing. What are
"reasonable accomodations"? Bathroom breaks? Typewriters that work? Chairs?
Julie Krueger
========Original Message======== Subj: [lit-ideas] Re: amazing
employment application questions Date: 6/5/06 8:30:53 P.M. Central Daylight
Time
From: _carolkir@xxxxxxxxx (mailto:carolkir@xxxxxxxx) To:
_lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx) Sent on:
Julie wrote:
>The question (and I wrote it down verbatim so I would not forget the exact
wording) was as follows:
"Will you be able to perform the essential job functions for the position
you are applying for with or without reasonable >accommodations?"
ck: I think you jumped the gun in anticipation of nefarious questioning.
There's nothing wrong with this question! It just asks whether this is a job
that suits your abilities. It does *not* ask a person to self-identify as
having
a disability, and it does *not* ask if a person needs any accommodations. It
looks so innocuous, I wonder why they bother with it. Maybe just to show
they're in compliance with ADA...
The other one, asking whether you're willing to work overtime, is odd to see
on an application, but it's not as bad as the requirement that one put one's
SSN right on the app. (That's common in public employment here.) Suggested
response: Give them what they want on the app. Then ask other employees about
these things quietly, once you have an offer. As you indicate, the world of
employment is far from fair. But I don't think it's illegal to ask about
willingness to go overtime, without pay. Might be interesting, as a
researcher, to
see whether anyone who writes "no" has been hired. I'm sure you can hear the
employer countering with "reasonable demands in business" and all. This
request, though, strikes me as possibly a violation of ADA, since many
disabilities affect stamina--and, on another track, some people must use
public
transportation (stops at a certain time) or rely on a carpool. Admin assts.,
though, are expected to be on call more flexibly than MDs these days.
Which is better: Not getting the job because of grumpy app behavior but
making your point; getting the job but hating some occasional requirements;
getting the job and being such a fabulous employee that they gladly make
exceptions for you. Of course, you can always get the job, resent the hell
out of
the extra hours, and be such a lousy employee that you shoot yourself in the
foot when it comes to references for the next job.
(Ask me about the last one, my personal specialty.)
Carol
----- Original Message -----
From: _JimKandJulieB@xxxxxxxx (mailto:JimKandJulieB@xxxxxxx)
To: _lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx (mailto:lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Sent: Monday, June 05, 2006 6:05 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] amazing employment application questions
I filled out an application for employment today -- the position was for
Administrative Assistant.
On the application was a yes/no question which I have never in my 25 years
of employment and employment seeking experience encountered. It was the last
in a series of yes/no questions along the lines of "would you be willing to
work overtime?", etc.
The question (and I wrote it down verbatim so I would not forget the exact
wording) was as follows:
"Will you be able to perform the essential job functions for the position
you are applying for with or without reasonable accommodations?"
Julie Krueger
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