Disclosing illness and disability in the workplace

Abstract Purpose – This paper seeks to explore what disclosing illness and disability in the workplace means to workers with chronic illness and disabilities. It aims to argue that beginning analysis from the meanings of these workers contributes to a nuanced understanding of their situations; gaining this view requires knowing how individuals define their health as well as their meanings, risks, and dilemmas of disclosing illness and disability; understanding the employee's perspective and actions helps employers to make useful accommodations for illness and disability; and this analysis can offer researchers and managers in international business a starting‐point for making comparisons with worksites across the globe. Design/methodology/approach – The analysis derives from qualitative data in which issues concerning disclosure emerged as a recurring theme, and on studies reported in literatures that illuminate ill and disabled workers' views and experience. The paper draws on material from 185 qualitative interviews with North Americans who have chronic illnesses and disabilities and on interview data reported in the research literature that illuminate ill and disabled workers' views and experience. Findings – In all these data, issues concerning disclosure emerged as a recurring theme. Beginning analysis from the meanings of the workers contributes to a nuanced understanding of their situations that involves learning how individuals define their health as well as their meanings of the risks and dilemmas of disclosing illness and disability. Practical implications – The practical implications of this analysis include: aiding employers to understand the employee's perspective and actions, providing considerations for making useful accommodations for illness and disability, and offering researchers and managers in international business a starting‐point for making comparisons with worksites across the globe. Originality/value – The paper examines how workers with chronic illness and disabilities feel about disclosing their conditions, with a view, inter alia, to helping employers to compare their situation with other worksites worldwide.