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In past session of looking at the web, I stumbled upon a posting, from some corporation--I don't recall what type of business--claiming that ADA legal cases involving mentally ill plaintiffs were among the most easily defeated. 

I believe it is nearly impossible to stop an employer's bigotry from hindering a person's chances of being hired. This is so whether you are a minority, or whether you have a disability which is physical, mental or otherwise. If someone doesn't want to hire you, it is problematic to attempt to force them to do so. And if you did force a bigoted employer to hire you, via litigation or other procedures involving government, at an educated guess, your chances of success in your job are substantially damaged, from the very start. 

For some, it is bread and butter to employ government mechanisms to force employers to comply with laws. However, if you are disabled, it is probably a bit more challenging. 

It is already difficult enough to show up for work every day and function up to a level that might or might not be competitive. If you add the red tape and the numerous other procedures involving bureaucracy, you don't have any oomph left to do your job. Furthermore, you are probably creating a hostile work environment. And, lastly, the employer will find some other way to get rid of you. 

People with mental illness are often subject to discrimination in a job that involves responsibility and/or intelligence. And this is unfair. 

A mentally ill person's profile could have gaps in employment, and other items that could be a red flag for employers. The evidence of this is readily available in today's information age. 

A few decades ago, a prospective employee could put just about anything on her or his application and resume. Yet, now, it is far more feasible for employers to do background checks, essentially with no expense and only a few minutes spent, or via a "robot." Because of utilizing software to prescreen applications, mentally disabled person's application might never reach human eyes. 

Someone who has been mentally ill since early adulthood or late adolescence is less likely than a non-afflicted person to have a college degree. Without a degree, one's chances of being hired for anything good are not promising. 

Thus, mentally ill people are locked out of most of the job market. It doesn't matter so much whether someone at human resources perceives people with mental illness as acceptable human beings; corporate policies are crafted to eliminate anything that doesn't seem profitable. 

I'm not saying that readers should just give up. However, work that is not conventional-type employment is probably our best option. This could be some type of web-based business, such as selling through eBay or Amazon. Or, use your imagination concerning what sort of self-employment situation you want to create. 

{Scams and investing thousands of dollars are to be avoided. Vanity presses (in which a "book company" charges you money to publish your book) are scams. So are companies that advertise to patent and market your invention for you. These are just a couple of examples. Other examples include what is called "multi-level marketing." This is where you go door to door selling a product on behalf of a superior in the chain from whom you've bought merchandise. The person one rung up in turn has his or her superior. The person at the top of the pyramid is the only one who makes any significant money.} 

Discrimination in hiring exists. How we are to get companies to hire mentally ill people--I am at loss to answer. Thus, many of us, if capable of it, may find better results in non-conventional employment, to get a few bucks and to stay out of trouble. 

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Jack Bragen's books are available on Amazon.