How to Disclose Your Pregnancy in a Job Search

How to Disclose Your Pregnancy in a Job SearchHow to Disclose Your Pregnancy in a Job Search5Pregnancy can be one of the most exciting times in a womans life. Except, that is, when youre job searching. Fearing rejection from potential employers, many women hide their pregnancies during their job hunt- but they really dont have to. We thought writer Liz Ryan did an excellent job of tackling the tough issue of when to disclose your pregnancy in the Forbes.com story, Lucy Is Job-Hunting- Should She Mention Shes Pregnant? Fortunately, you can celebrate your preggo status- and snag the job- with these tips on how to disclose your pregnancy during your job search.How to Disclose Your Pregnancy in a Job SearchHere are some of our favorite points from Ryans article, along with additional tips and information to handle this tricky situation.Dont be too social.Upon learning that theyre pregnant, some women wait until theyre a few months along (and safely into the second trimester) before letti ng friends and family know. Others shout it from the rooftops- or make their ultrasound pic as their profile photo on Facebook. But you need to be careful about promoting your pregnancy online, especially during your job search. Hiring managers will often do an Internet search of prospective job candidates, checking your LinkedIn profile and other social media profiles as well. If a potential boss discovers that youre pregnant- and you didnt announce it during your job interview- you could run the risk of being eliminated from the competition.Determine the time. If you have to do an in-person job interview, youll need to decide when to tell a potential boss that youre pregnant. Obviously, if youre showing, youll need to say something, but wait until your boss-to-be asks you about it you dont have to bring it up first. If youre doing Skype or phone interviews, you dont have to make mention of your condition.Know the laws.Legally, an employer cant base his decision to hire you (or not ) based on your pregnancy. However, this does happen. After all, an employer might view your pregnancy as a liability- maybe youll be out sick a lot or on frequent doctors appointments. Hell also need to have a worker cover you during your maternity leave, too. That said, you are not legally bound to reveal your pregnancy (whether youre 6 weeks or 6 months along) until youre ready to.Plan it right.At some point, you will have to make mention that youre expecting. If youre still job searching while pregnant, you should let your potential employer know during or after the second interview. Theres really no point in disclosing the information during the first round of interviews. For starters, you may not even be sure that you want the job (perhaps the company culture doesnt vibe with the type of environment youd like to work in), and your potential boss might not feel that youre a qualified candidate, anyway.During the second interview, towards the end, you should bring up your pregna ncy. You can say something like, Id like to let you know that Im pregnant. You should deliver this statement with confidence, not trepidation You can mention how far along you are, so that you and your boss can figure out how long youll be working before you go on maternity leave and how youll be able to perform the duties of the position, should you be offered the job.Be professional. Sure, youre super excited about your pregnancy, but chances are, your boss wont be. So you dont want to start gushing about how stoked you are, how your parents (who are going to be first-time grands are super thrilled, too), and what color youre going to paint the nursery. Its of utmost importance to keep this part of the interview as professional as possible and answer the questions that are asked of you.Offer options.Any prospective boss will want to know what your plans are for after the babys birth. Thats why its important to have a game plan in place before speaking with your boss. You can menti on that youre planning to take off a certain amount of time, and that after that, you have a babysitter or daycare chosen to take care of your little one. You can offer to help train a temp for the time period that youre going to be out, too. This information can help assuage a nervous boss mind, since it shows that youve thought through your maternity leave plan. You might even take this opportunity to find out about flexible work plans within the company and binnensee if you can possibly turn the office job into a part-time work-from-home job as you transition back to working at the office.Job searching while pregnant is definitely tricky, but certainly not impossible. Knowing your rights and how to handle yourself can help you find a job, no matter how far along you are and when you choose to disclose your pregnancy in a job search.Readers, are you pregnant and job searching? What obstacles have you faced? Let us know in the comments