Appropriate interview question

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it is reasonable. I recently received a rather generous offer (30% raise) to a number I never thought I would earn.

I turned it down because of these issues. The problem for me is I have medical issues which require flexibility (I never know when I will be out for a few weeks or longer....disability coverage is a must, either they pay or I pay)

I don't think it is a reasonable way to phrase a question. So would it be ok for them to ask if you had any medical issues they should be aware of? Because that sounds a bunch like "do you have kids" question.

And if you require flexibility (or conversely, rigid structure) from your employer because you have an illness, children, great grandma to take care of, night classes, or a love for watching Doctor Oz At 5:15pm, then that's your problem and life choice. You DONT want to work for someone who will require you to work outside the box, so the question should immediately make you wonder if this will be a good fit for YOUR needs.

Businesses are there to MAKE MONEY. They are not there to give you 15 days off sick leave to care for Larlo every year, when you refuse to work 15 minutes extra at inventory time. Unfortunately, this is how many people act in their jobs.

Actually, companies do not have the right to ask about my illness, which is considered a disability (cancer). They do have the right to ask me if I can be flexible...can I work as needed. Can I be flexible about my work hours? etc; My answer is most of the time, yes, but there are times when I can not be flexible (oncologist appointments are hard to get).

Yes, they can ask about your illness as part of the ADA iterative process. If you ask for flexibility they can ask why you need it. If you disclose its for an illness they can use the iterative process under the ADA to determine your exact flexibility needed. Part of the process is your disclosure of your exact illness.

If you state you just need flexibility with no justification they do not have to grant it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it is reasonable. I recently received a rather generous offer (30% raise) to a number I never thought I would earn.

I turned it down because of these issues. The problem for me is I have medical issues which require flexibility (I never know when I will be out for a few weeks or longer....disability coverage is a must, either they pay or I pay)

I don't think it is a reasonable way to phrase a question. So would it be ok for them to ask if you had any medical issues they should be aware of? Because that sounds a bunch like "do you have kids" question.

And if you require flexibility (or conversely, rigid structure) from your employer because you have an illness, children, great grandma to take care of, night classes, or a love for watching Doctor Oz At 5:15pm, then that's your problem and life choice. You DONT want to work for someone who will require you to work outside the box, so the question should immediately make you wonder if this will be a good fit for YOUR needs.

Businesses are there to MAKE MONEY. They are not there to give you 15 days off sick leave to care for Larlo every year, when you refuse to work 15 minutes extra at inventory time. Unfortunately, this is how many people act in their jobs.

Of course business are there to make money, but employees aren't slaves or indentured servants. There's an agreement, "they get paid X amount for Y amount of work." It's completely reasonable for a potential employee to want to know what the parameters of that arrangement are going to be. Am I getting paid X amount of money to work 40 hours a week or to work 60 hours a week? Because just like businesses are there to make money, employees work TO MAKE MONEY. Before accepting a job, they have a right to know exactly the nature of their compensation and what they are expected to do in return so they can consider whether it is something they are willing to agree to.

The whole notion that it's okay for an employer to say, "you make 50k a year, but I can change up how many hours a week I want you to work and sometimes make you work 60 hours when you took the job based on the notion it was for 40."

If an employer expects larlo to work an extra 15 minutes at inventory time, then that should be made clear upfront. Just like the number of sick days or vacation time.

I just don't think high paying salary positions pay like this. Hourly and low salary jobs, yes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like they want someone to work 60 hrs a week but pay for 40. I'd pass. A well-run workplace ought to be able to describe their work schedule so that you can decide if it fits; not ambiguously put it back on you to figure out what they mean by "flexibility."

I posted earlier, and this makes sense.

They shouldn't be asking if there's any limitation to your flexibility. They should be telling you what their specific needs are and asking if that is a problem for you.

So if they need frequent late nights, they should say "this job often requires staying past 5pm. is that a problem?"

Leaving it so open-ended is kind of ridiculous. I mean, I would imagine EVERY person has some limit on flexibility. Most people don't want a job where they have to be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

OP here. This is exactly what I was thinking.