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One of the benefits of RA increasingly being an invisible illness is that you have a choice about whether you want your employer and colleagues to know about it. Sometimes, it’s necessary, though. In my new post for HealthCentral, I take a look at the issues around disclosure:

“You’ve just gotten a diagnosis of a chronic illness. You know you want to tell close family members and friends about it. But should you disclose at work?

Let’s look more closely at the issue of being open about chronic illness in the workplace.

The legal side

Human rights and anti-discrimination laws exist in the United States and in other countries, due to a long history of discrimination against people in the workplace because they’re “different.” Those differences can revolve around race, disability, gender, sexual orientation — the list goes on.

In the U.S., the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with chronic illness and disability. It prohibits employers from firing or not hiring individuals with such conditions solely for the reason of their chronic illness or disability.” 

Read the rest of my post about disclosing your chronic illness at work.