Are employers prohibited from asking job applicants questions about their disabilities or medical history?

Yes, employers in Washington are prohibited from asking job applicants questions about their disabilities or medical history. In Washington, the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD) protects job applicants and employees from discrimination based on a disability. According to the WLAD, employers may not ask job applicants questions about their disabilities or medical history before offering employment. This means employers cannot ask questions such as, “Do you have any disabilities?” or “How many days have you been in the hospital in the past year?”. Asking these types of questions before offering employment may violate the WLAD and be considered discrimination. However, an employer may ask about a job applicant’s ability to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodations. An employer may also ask a job applicant to describe or demonstrate how they would perform the job, as long as this request is made of all job applicants for the same position. If an employer does offer a job to a job applicant, Washington law allows the employer to make inquiries into the job applicant’s medical history or ask questions about their disability, as long as the employer does not do so in a manner that discriminates against the job applicant. Employers must ensure that the questions they are asking are job-related and necessary for the position. An employer must also handle medical information confidentially and keep it separate from personnel files.

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Are employers prohibited from asking job applicants questions about their disabilities or medical history?

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