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Mental illness a roadblock to jobs

SINGAPORE — During Ms Yee Yung Jen’s job interview last year, for the position of service crew at a fast-food restaurant, the first thing that her potential employers questioned her on was her declaration in the application form that she had “depression” .

SINGAPORE — During Ms Yee Yung Jen’s job interview last year, for the position of service crew at a fast-food restaurant, the first thing that her potential employers questioned her on was her declaration in the application form that she had “depression” .

And after she explained that she was taking maintenance medication and was undergoing therapy, she was promptly shown the door.

“They said they wanted physically and mentally fit people,” she said.

Ms Yee, 34, was diagnosed with depression in 2008. She has been unemployed for almost two years now. Her last job was as a systems administrator in a statutory board. She had worked there for about 15 years but left in 2011, after her relationship with her colleagues became icy due to her frequent medical appointments.

Another woman, Genevieve (not her real name), hid her mental condition and landed a job in sales about 18 months ago. Genevieve, who is in her early 30s, told TODAY that her employers are still in the dark and she had not sought medical treatment for her “extreme mood swings” in the past out of fear that her bosses would somehow learn of her condition.

The Singapore Mental Health Study, published in 2011, flagged a concern that only 31.8 per cent of respondents with mental issues are seeking professional help and it took an average of four years for someone suffering from depression, for instance, to seek help.

Going by the experience of those with mental conditions whom TODAY spoke to, it was not difficult to see why some would choose to keep silent.

Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob, a former unionist and a vocal champion of workers’ issues, said: “Those suffering from mental illness continue to face discrimination in employment. They are often in a fix when applying for jobs. If they are honest and mention about their illness in the application form, they will not get the job, but if they don’t declare and are subsequently found out, they can be terminated.”

According to Mr Josh Goh, the Assistant Director of Corporate Services at recruitment agency The GMP Group, more than half of the employers that the agency deals with ask for mental health declarations from job applicants. “You can see it with both the multinationals and the local firms,” he added.

Dr Adrian Wang, a Consultant Psychiatrist at Gleneagles Medical Centre, said that his patients “struggle with the decision of whether they should or shouldn’t declare” their condition to their employers.

While there are no laws on workplace discrimination here, the Tripartite Alliance on Fair Employment Practices (TAFEP) uses a “promotional and educational approach” to tackle the issue as a “more effective way to encourage employers to adopt progressive and enlightened employment practices”, it said on its website.

Responding to TODAY’s queries, a TAFEP spokesperson said it does not have specific guidelines “addressing discrimination by employers against employees based on their medical or mental health or possible issues with their medical or mental health”.

She added: “However, employers should select job applicants on the basis of their skills, experience and ability to perform the job. In cases where a job applicant is deemed suitable for the job but require regular ... treatment due to illnesses, the employer is encouraged to be flexible and to work out arrangements with the applicant to accommodate the needs of both parties.”

TAFEP has received only a few complaints related to mental illness, the spokesperson said. She cited a case where a fresh graduate had his job offer withdrawn after his prospective employer discovered that he had a previous mental health condition. Following TAFEP’s intervention, the employer was “able to better understand” that the mental condition was under control and would not affect the graduate’s ability to perform the job. “The employer reconsidered and offered him the position,” the spokesperson said.

In the United States and United Kingdom, for instance, laws forbid employers to ask about a person’s mental or physical health condition before an offer is made. In Hong Kong, the Disability Discrimination Ordinance prohibits employers from discriminating against people with mental illness.

Nevertheless, in all three places, employers are allowed to ask for medical info when the illness limits the applicant’s ability to perform the job or when special accommodation needs to be provided.

In response to TODAY’s queries, the relevant ministries reiterated that the Government “encourages employers to assess and hire individuals based on their merits in relation to the job, and only ask for information which is applicable to the assessment”.

Mdm Halimah felt that if employers are asking for the declaration because of job requirements, such as having to operate moving machinery or the work requires “high degree of concentration” which those on medication may not be able to perform, they should instead make known these requirements on the job advertisements or in the application forms.

Adding that more employer education is necessary, Mdm Halimah said that employers may not understand enough about the various mental health conditions.

“What is considered as mental illness covers a whole broad spectrum from the mild to the severe. With medication, many can continue to lead meaningful and productive lives. They should have no problem working,” she said.

Such educational efforts are already under way. For example, Silver Ribbon — a Government-funded organisation that works to fight mental illness stigma — along with the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) and the Singapore Association of Mental Health, holds trainings for companies to increase awareness. Last November, it launched a handbook to combat mental health stigma at the workplace.

The IMH has also set up a “job club”, among other initiatives, to help people with mental illness find employment.

Fast-food chain Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, for example, hired 10 crew members through the job club. Its Operations Manager, Mr Tan Chiah Liang, said: “They have recovered and are no different from any one of us.” The company is even thinking of promoting them to crew trainers, he said.

Any employee or job seeker who has encountered workplace related discrimination is welcome to contact TAFEP for advice or assistance at 6838 0969 or email query [at] tafep.sg.

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