How much will it hurt my career progression to take ~1 month of medical leave 3 months into a new job? [closed]

Question

I just accepted a job offer as a software engineer at a medium-size company which is known for being very selective with hiring (more difficult to get into than the average FAANG company) and having very high standards for their engineers. I'm a bit stressed, because I have a surgery scheduled in 4 months, which will require me to take about a month off of work.

It's not a life-saving surgery, but will dramatically improve my quality of life. I could potentially reschedule it, but that would cost me a lot of money, and the next available date is too far into the future for me to be comfortable with.

My main concern is that this will cause me to start off on the wrong foot with the company, and jeopardize my position there since I would be taking the time off before establishing myself there.

Is there anything I should do about this? Would it make sense to ask for input from HR or my new manager on how much trouble this would cause? What should I be taking into account when assessing the potential career impact of this decision? The surgery is important to me, but I'd rather postpone the surgery than potentially get fired.

Answer 1

My main concern is that this will cause me to start off on the wrong foot with the company, and jeopardize my position there since I would be taking the time off before establishing myself there.

It makes sense to be concerned about taking that much time off so early in your job tenure. In some companies you would still be in "onboarding mode". Being out that long is likely something that needs to be planned and mitigated.

Is there anything I should do about this?

You should discuss this with your boss now. They may want to alter training and/or project plans to account for your absence. The sooner they can do this, the less the impact. Bosses don't like surprises.

Would it make sense to ask for input from HR or my new manager on how much trouble this would cause?

Yes. Input from your manager might alleviate your concern or help you make whatever decisions you need to make.

If you need input regarding your insurance coverage or your rights regarding time off, talk with HR.

What should I be taking into account when assessing the potential career impact of this decision?

As with all decisions, get all the information you can before deciding.

Most likely, taking this time off will be fine - certainly in the long term, and likely even in the short term. Still, your manager will appreciate knowing about it as soon as possible so that they can alter their plans as needed.

Talk to them now. Don't wait.

Answer 2

Unless you were hired right now specifically because there's a deadline they needed your help to meet, it may be frustrating but shouldn't be a long-term problem.

However: How much of that time needs to be spent not working? Given that everyone understands remote work better than a few years ago, and given your profession, you might be telecommuting from your sick room in a much shorter time than that. Heck, I'd be begging to be allowed to do that; being pinned in place not being allowed to do anything would drive me batty(er) and I'd welcome the distraction! .

Answer 3

Taking care of your health has much more significance for your future career prospects than having a month-long break in my opinion.

Communicate this to your manager as soon as possible so they can factor in your leave into their plans. Also, look for the ways to minimize the impact of your leave on your workplace. Working from home is a good option to start earlier.

Answer 4

The size and stability of the company is likely to influence attitudes. A large company that plans it's workforce ahead won't miss you for a month, and won't miss the cost of your salary.

A small company that's desperately needed a new member of staff for some time, would probably be in uproar.

The importance of the surgery, and the long-term implications for your health at work, will also probably influence attitudes. Employers are probably more sympathetic to a new employee going off for knee surgery, than they are to either a cosmetic hair transplant, or cancer.

There's one obvious question, which is why you changed jobs so near to such an event? Or was it compulsory due to circumstances?

It's unclear overall how urgent or important you consider the surgery to be.

There may be local laws that protect you from being fired in these circumstances. I can't imagine it affecting career progression, from the year mark onwards. A month's leave for legitimate surgery would likely have been forgotten by then, even if it was inconvenient at the time.

The best thing to do is to ensure you have a conversation as soon as possible about booking the time off. 3 months' notice is generally ample, and it's not soon as to disrupt usual induction arrangements in a new job, or so soon that it would have made sense to delay the start date until afterwards.

If you've genuinely mentioned the need for time off earlier in the recruitment process, then it's reasonable to approach your manager (or HR) in the tone of merely formalising in the calendar what you've already notified.

It's reasonable to take this approach even if you know the information wasn't, in fact, relayed from the person you informed. An absence of significant concern and internal fuss about such medical leave may be a sign of a responsible employer.

However it may be a harder conversation to have if you didn't mention it earlier at an appropriate time (such as on a form asking whether you had any fixtures in your own calendar like holidays). In this situation, it might be better to open the conversation in the tone of asking permission to take time off, and justify it on the basis that you've tried to rearrange the surgery for the future but have found that it would be unreasonably delayed. They may have no real grounds to refuse, but it avoids presenting the need for imminent leave as an accomplished fact, and it avoids suggesting that it was already a fixture since it can in theory be rearranged.