I am currently in the process of pre employment to be an safety communications technician (dispatcher) for the city I live in. I currently work as a paramedic. 

Yesterday I went in for my pre employment polygraph test. I got there in the morning and filled out some paperwork, I signed the consent to do the test. The polygrapher began my interview and things were going well. We took a break before the part of me being hooked up to the machine. 

We began the actual part with me hooked up and agai. Things were going fine. He asked about my history with drugs and past discipline with previous employers. I told him the few things I could think of (smoking weed in high school and a write up for an argument with my boss) that section of the test came to an end and we moved on to the second set of questions. 

The second round of question were about sexual crimes and serious crimes. He showed me a chart about sexual crimes and we ended up on the topic of the sexual abuse I went through when I was younger. Before I knew it I was crying. I don’t talk about that. The only person I have ever felt comfortable discussing it with is my significant other. After I disclosed what happened to me in minor detail, he asked more questions about it. This caused me to become ever more upset. He waited a couple minutes and then asked if we could continue. I could feel myself starting to sweat a little and my heart rate go up. Thinking about that stuff messes with my head. L He started the second portion of the test and asked the questions. I was trying to stay calm and every time he asked about the sexual stuff I just felt sick having to think about my past. 

We finished the test and we sat there for what seemed like forever while he scored my test. He told me I passed the first round of questions, however I had failed the second part. He said I seemed to have more of a reaction to the sexual questions and I didn’t have one to the serious crimes questions. He said he would make a note in his report that he felt it was due to me being a victim of sexual abuse and I may have been withholding info related to that. He also said he couldn’t tell though if it was due to me feeling stressed or if I actually committed a sex crime. by having to relive that trauma in my head while strapped to a chair it caused me to feel sick and anxious. I have never committed a sex crime in my life! I thought I was honest and outright when I disclosed the info up front but I guess all that did was hurt me. I left there feeling awful. I work so hard to forget about what happened to me and not let it have any hold over my life. I have worked hard to be a paramedic and I wanted to get a better job now that I have that certification and some experience. I feel like if I get disqualified from this job I am still having to endure the pain that I faced 10 years ago. It sucks knowing that something I had no control over may be the very reason I can’t move forward in my life the way I want to.

We started with the control question or I guess it is called the sim test. He had me write the number 3. Then told me to answer no to each number 1-5. Of course I lied when I said no to 3. After that he  went over a chart on drugs. The first set of questions were “are you now withholding any information about drug crimes” I don’t remember the exact words he used. The second question in this part was “are you now withholding any information about previous displine by an employer.”  The control questions were have I ever violated a traffic law” and have I ever talked about someone behind their back” I passed that section. 

The second chart is the one I failed. He showed me a chart about sexual crimes and asks me some general questions that made me think of the stuff that happened when I was younger I felt like if I didn’t tell him up front it would seem as though I was lying about something. I told him as much as I felt comfortable disclosing. He asked who it was, why I didn’t go to the police, how long did it go on...I began to feel extremely uncomfortable and didn’t want to talk about it anymore.  We moved on to the second chart or actual questions for the test. He asked am I now withholding any info pertaining to sexual crimes” he then asked if I was now withholding an info pertaining to serious crime” the two control questions he had me purposely lie to were “have I ever said anything I regret” and have I ever lost my temper in my whole life” he also asked me known truth questions such as “are the lights on in the room” “do I sometimes drink water” “is the door closed” “am I sitting down” these were mixed in at random along with the questions he asked me to purposely lie to. He said I had a reaction to the sexual crimes questions. 

I’m not a troll. I went into this test feeling fine and came out needing to do some research because the results bothered me. I wasn’t lying, I’ve never committed a sexual crime. Do you need anymore proof?

It is okay, I would be skeptical of the experience too if it didn’t actually happen to me. I wish I would have done more research prior to the test but the few people I spoke to who had went through a pre employment polygraph made me feel like it wasn’t going to be a big deal. 

I already do a job where everyday someone’s life is in my hands. I didn’t have to go through this test for that job. It is just amazing to me that they can just dismiss you based on a test that is unreliable. 

The examiner even said he felt the reaction was due to me being upset and thinking about all of it and not because I had actually done something. He said he would mention it in his report but I doubt that will make a difference. 

Thank you for your response.

Update: 

I had my background interview for the job and the officer who conducted that interview is going to recommend that they hire me. 

Thankfully the polygraph results didn’t ruin my chances of moving forward in the employment process.