Disclosure Protections and Responsibilities

Remember, talking about your disability is called disclosure. When it comes to talking about your disability, you have both rights or protections and responsibilities.

Your responsibilities and protections are different in school versus after high school when you continue your education or get a job.

Find Out the Differences:

At School

After High School

Many things are different when you leave school and go out into the world to get a job. When you apply for or get a job, the IDEA no longer protects you. Instead, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act protects you from disability-related discrimination and requirements for meaningful access.

The law states qualified job seekers and employees with disabilities be provided with reasonable accommodations*. To benefit from the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act, you must disclose your disability. An employer is only required to provide work-related accommodations if you disclose your disability to the appropriate individuals.

*Reasonable Accommodations: A reasonable accommodation is assistance or changes to a job or workplace that helps an employee to do their job despite having a disability. Under the ADA, employers are required to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities, unless doing so would pose an undue hardship.

Practice: Talking about Your Disability

To be comfortable talking about your disability, first, you have to know about it. Next you have to practice. To help you find out or gather information about your disability, complete the activities below.

1. Learning About Your Disability Interview Guide

Download this Interview Guide to gather information about your disability.

2. Complete Your Disability Guide

Download this Guide to My Disability to write down what you know about your disability. Use this to practice sharing information with others.

When to Disclose

How, when, and if you disclose your disability is up to you.

There are advantages and disadvantages to disclosing your disability. Here are just a few of each to think about. Be sure to talk with your school or rehabilitation counselor about what talking about your disability with schools, employers, and in your community means to you!

Advantages

Why you might want to disclose your disability?

You get reasonable accommodations
It protects you from discrimination under the ADA
You don’t have to keep a secret!
Not sure? Talk with your counselor!

Disadvantages

Why you might NOT want to disclose your disability?

Talking about disability can be difficult.
It may not be the right time to talk about your disability.
You may not want to talk about it.
Talk with your counselor if unsure!

More Information

Check out this resource for more information on how, when, and if you disclose your disability. “Youth, Disclosure, and the Workplace Why, When, What, and How”