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Health Questionnaire

LauraAKLauraAK 4 Posts
in HR & Employment Law Vote Up0Vote Down
Is including a health questionnaire in a new-hire packet wise these days? Once completed, they would be kept seperately from the personnel files and supervisors would not have access to them.
Our Workers' Comp carrier sent a standard health questionnaire and recommended we start requesting this info from all new hires. I don't know if employers are still using them and more so, are we as the employer putting ourselves at risk seeking to obtain from employees the information on a health questionnaire?
Thanks for your time :o)
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  • 3 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • SystemSystem 5,885 Posts
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    In most areas of my life, I try to practice strategic ignorance -- the less you know, the harder it is for them to accuse you of discriminating or not accommodating or invading their privacy, etc. But I guess it really depends on the questions and your workplace -- whether the questions seem job-related, and the reason your insurer gave for asking them.

    James Sokolowski
    Senior Editor
    M. Lee Smith Publishers
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  • LauraAKLauraAK 4 Posts
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    Thanks for your input & I agree, less is best sometimes. We don't want to give employees anymore ammunition to use if a discrimination lawsuit were to come about. I would think in the case of a workers' comp claim, the insurer would request a release of medical records from the employee's physician to obtain the information they need to process the claim. I don't know why they want to look to the employer for an employee's health history.
    I think we would be uncomfortable enclosing health questionnaires in our new-hire packets.
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  • Theresa Gegen TXTheresa Gegen TX 814 Posts
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    If you need to ask questions about health, the questions should be focused on "here are the essential functions of this job" (ie lifting 60lbs frequently, etc). "Can you do the essential functions of this job?" "If you would need an accomodation to do the essential functions of this job, please describe what accomodation you would need?"

    The company really has no valid reason to know more about the applicant's medical condition than whether the applicant can do the job.

    Good Luck!
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