Invisible Disabilities

An invisible disability is classified as disabilities that are not immediately apparent. They may include visual or auditory disabilities, chronic illnesses, autism, as well as cancer. Even though they cannot be noticed to the human eye they are still as important to be aware of in a workplace

Included in this paper on invisible disabilities is the importance of the duty to accommodate in a workplace along with cases to back up the research, followed by confidentiality in the work place, including professional confidentiality, employer confidentiality, and personal confidentiality, and the proper procedures to take while handling a situation involving invisible disabilities.

An employer is responsible to take every step necessary in assuring proper accommodations for an employee suffering from an invisible disability. In order to ensure proper guidelines are being met, the employee must first disclose his/her invisible disability before the employer is able to take further steps. Once the information is presented to the employer they must immediately start accommodating their employee to the best of their ability.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3

OBJECTIVE 4

SCOPE 6

WRITE UP 7

DUTY TO ACCOMMODATE 7

ACCOMMODATING DISABILITIES 7

WHEN TO ACCOMMODATE 8

INTRANSIGENT EMPLOYEES 9

DUTY TO ACCOMMODATE CLAIMS 11

CONFIDENTIALITY 14

PERSONAL CONFIDENTIALITY 14

EMPLOYER CONFIDENTIALITY 15

PROFESSIONAL CONFIDENTIALITY 17

ANALYSIS 18

CONCLUSION 19

RECOMMENDATIONS 20

APPENDIX 22

A. Interview with Jennifer Joyal 22

B. Investigating an Invisible Disability 24

C. Additional Recommendations - Duty to Accommodate 24

BIBLIOGRAPHY 25

OBJECTIVE

The topic selected was chosen as it seemed to be a great interest to all group members. Although invisible disabilities are not immediately apparent, they can be very serious and must be treated appropriately. Invisible disabilities can range from being hearing impaired to either type of diabetes and to the extreme of cancer. Invisible disabilities cannot be ignored, they must be treated instantly and the individual with the disability has the right to be treated fairly and has the right to be accommodated in any organization.

This topic was very heavy and a challenge for all group members. We as a group felt that our interest to the topic would provide us with the motivation and dedication to complete the paper in both depth and accuracy. Our resources were also a great help and once conversing with them, we felt that this paper would be a success and helped assure us with the chosen topic. The main resource is an Occupational Health and Safety Nurse from the Chapleau General Hospital. Aside from the main resource, the group felt both the internet and textbook would have plenty of assets to help our research findings.

The strategy to complete this paper was to interview the main resource with straightforward questions based on invisible disabilities then splitting up the "write up". The group chose three different main topics that were the most significant then each tackling them with research. Upon completing the individual parts, the remaining portions of the paper were completed together. Planning the approach was necessary for the group and truly helped all group members with having more confidence with the heavy topic and giving all members the assurance that it can be done and done well.

SCOPE

The scope of the research ranges from the definition of invisible disabilities to how an employee should share their disabilities with their employers and that employers responsibility to accommodate them. The main topics include an employer's responsibility for the duty to accommodate the employee and their disability including what constitutes a disability and when the duty to accommodate is triggered. The other main topics are confidentiality/privacy of how much an employee must share with their employer and how much an employer can actually share with the rest of the employees, unions, etc. There are also some examples of WSIB claims of individuals fighting for compensation due to invisible workplace disabilities and not being accommodated.

Although the topic of invisible disabilities is enormous, actual invisible disabilities and the different types will only briefly be touched on. The paper does not go into considerable detail on the disabilities themselves but more about the rights of employees with disabilities and the responsibilities and duties of the employers.

The research will range from useful websites and articles online as well as a Health and Safety professional. The interview with the Health and Safety Nurse can be found in Appendix A. This information was not used primarily in the paper but used for a base of online research and assisted with the groups understanding of the topic.

WRITE UP

DUTY TO ACCOMMODATE

As stated on the Human Rights Commission website,

"The Ontario Human Rights Code (the "code") provides for equal rights and opportunities, and freedom from discrimination. The Code recognizes the dignity and worth of every person in Ontario and applies to the areas of employment, housing, facilities/services, contracts and membership in unions, trade or professional association. In the workplace, employees with disabilities are entitled to the same opportunities and benefits as people without disabilities. In some circumstances, employees with disabilities may require special arrangements or accommodations to enable them to fulfill their job duties". (Ontario G. o., 2006).

ACCOMMODATING DISABILITIES

Similar to permanent disabilities, temporary disabilities are required to be