Most people don’t declare medical conditions at work unless they absolutely have to.

You’ve explained that so much better than I. Thanks.

Like I said check with ACAS or an employment solicitor if you think you need to

You posted as I was typing - you are talking about two different sets of obligations in law though. Nobody is obliged to disclose their health conditions. Full stop. But they are required to comply with Health & Safety at work, and that may mean that they are legally not able to do certain jobs because of their condition. In which case, if they then covered up their condition they can not only be dismissed fairly, but they could also be prosecuted for Health & Safety violations, or, in the worst case secenario, potentially sued for damages arising from their actions.

It’s a bit more complicated than that.

If you are dismissed for not disclosing medical information then you will have a case for unfair dismissal for a protected characteristic.

do check with ACAS or an employment solicitor if still unclear 👍

That said there are laws which would be applicable if you failed to disclose something that directly impacted on your employment - e.g the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. That Act imposes an equal duty of employees to protect their health and safety and that of others. So if you failed to declare something that could or would make you unfit for work, it could very easily be a dismissable offence. I suspect, although I don't know the case in question, that that sort of scenario applied to the nurse who was fairly dismissed for failing to declare.

What do you think the law says exactly? There is no law requiring you to reveal medical information, but if you are asked to do so by your employer and refuse, or lie, then they are going to dismiss you if, for example, you are a crane operator and omitted to reveal your epilepsy diagnosis.

That Is not what the law says though.

whilst it can be helpful to share medical information there is no legal obligation to do so and employers can ask but not require.

just check ACAS or ask any employment solicitor.

You certainly are for jobs that are safety critical and where your condition might impact the safety of others or yourself.

I actually think it would have been fine if they’d just declared it but they were worried it would be a barrier :-(

Fine so far, as my attendance is high, only one day off. But ask me again this time next year.

you are under no obligation to share any medical info with your employer

however if you require any support or reasonable adjustments of protection from discrimination then they need to be told.

Gosh, I haven't had to declare conditions myself but this thread is so worrying to me. I have two teens with autism and both have associated anxiety issues. One has OCD. They are both academically capable and should get decent qualifications but may need some adjustments in future workplaces to function well - I don't know this but based on in their experiences of school this would be a possibility. I had already thought that it would be inadvisable to declare anything when applying but hoped it would be ok to declare after starting a job. So depressing to hear that illness or disability is still such a stigma.

It wasn't used against me but I disclosed PND on a health form and the school I was starting a new job at (but already knew me) made me go to Occupational Health (DC was five by then!)

I have recently disclosed a physical ailment as I may need time off when my treatment appointment comes up.

I am sure they are already aware of my health being shot right now (perimenopause) but I am never going to admit the extent of my mental health issues. They cannot make reasonable adjustments and it will be another nail in my coffin.

I'm don't declare because it's my private business, I'm not asking for adaptations and I'm not expecting to need time off, they are the sort of "one of those things" conditions, lifelong but no relevance to my work.

I travel for work so for insurance purposes have had to tell them about some recent physical health issues- and also because I’ll need leave for surgery. But otherwise I wouldn’t routinely, I don’t think, no.

It’s not the same thing, but I remember going on a geography A Level field trip overseas, and because I was having counseling for anxiety, the school needed to know (for the insurance) and my geography teacher (who was loathsome generally) made me feel like a) a massive inconvenience and b) a lunatic. So I learned my lesson early about that. Luckily as I’ve got older my MH has been pretty secure, except postpartum (and I was freelance then) so it’s never yet come up- but I think if it did, I’d be reluctant to disclose, and completely understand why people dont.

I agree with this.

Unfortunately society likes to persecute those who are deemed to be different, more vulnerable or weaker.

For me it would be people looking at me in a certain way and expecting me to behave in a certain way based on stereotypes relating to my condition. So i don't tell anyone irl

Yes, I’m not denying that they want to succeed, but if they are struggling then by definition it will impact their ability to perform, through no fault of their own.

Edit to add that is was in response to @ohyesido