Don't Answer That Question!
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Tiger
Sep 17, 2009, 8:57:50 AM9/17/09
to Wheatland Transition Network
Interesting read from The Ladders:
He was in his early 50s, and he looked every bit of it.
The questions on the job application went right to his age.
After stewing over the form and discarding his first draft, he filled
out a second copy. Then, he sat and waited for his interview. As he
waited, an attractive, young woman entered the room for a job
interview.
She was called in before him. She wound up getting the job.
He didn’t. He did, however, receive $50,000 after filing age-
discrimination claims with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC).
The above encounter happened to a friend of Matt Rosen, who shared the
story with TheLadders but asked not to identify his friend.
Rosen has seen employment discrimination from almost every angle. He
has been a certified labor and employment attorney since 1981, has
worked in human resources since 1995, and recently found himself
looking for a new job. He’s been on both sides of the interview table
and witnessed many inappropriate questions that can lead to
discrimination.
“Every place, it’s mind-boggling,” said Rosen, who recently began HR
and legal work for Franklin Street Financial in Florida. “You are
always asked for birth dates, for EEOC (-related information such as
race and disability status). ... Places, in my viewpoint, just ask for
too much.”
The reason interviewers ask inappropriate questions varies. Sometimes
they discriminate, as they did in the scenario above. Sometimes they
need the information for internal statistics, he said.
And then sometimes interviewers are simply trying to make
conversation, according to Ellen B. Vance, senior consultant and
advisory services practice leader for Titan Group, a Richmond, Va.,
human-resources consulting firm. “Many inexperienced hiring managers
use questions about family as an icebreaker for interviews, not
realizing that what seem to them as innocent inquiries about spouse,
children, etc., are unlawful.”
Most job seekers don’t want to sue over these practices. They just
want to know how to deal with them diplomatically. Job seekers want to
avoid appearing combative and thus jeopardizing their chances of being
hired and want to avoid handing over information that can be used
against them in discriminatory situations. Knowing what questions to
shy away from is the starting point, and knowing how to skirt them is
the next step.
Answer the questions they should have asked
Vance typically advises job seekers to redirect inappropriate
questions back to the interviewer. For example, if asked whether you
have children, you can respond by saying, “It sounds like family is
important to you — tell me about yours.”
“By redirecting, the applicant is not placed in the situation of being
perceived as adversarial,” Vance said. If an interviewer presses, she
suggests that another response option is, “I am perplexed by your
question because I cannot determine why my age/my marital status/my
nationality is critical to performing this job. Would you shed some
light on why you are asking this question?”
“If that doesn’t cause the interviewer to catch their mistake, then
the applicant is left only with the option of saying, ‘I would prefer
not to respond to that question,’” Vance said.
Don’t answer these questions
Here are more questions that can and can’t be asked, according to HR
professionals and the EEOC. In all circumstances, try to find out why
an interviewer is asking a particular off-limits question, and then
steer the conversation into addressing particular, relevant concerns,
in the following ways:
Nationality: It’s illegal to ask a job seeker about their
nationality, their citizen status, their native language, or how long
they’ve lived here. If asked, instead explain that you’re legally able
to work in the United States.
Religion: It’s not permissible to ask what religion job seekers
practice, what religious holidays they observe, or their religious
affiliations. If an interviewer probes these verboten areas, try to
find out what the interviewer is concerned about and to address these
concerns: working certain days of the week, for example, could be a
legitimate concern.
Age: Do not answer questions about age beyond stating that you are
over the age of 18. Interviewers shouldn’t ask how close you are to
retirement but can ask what your long-term career goals are.
Marital and family status: While it’s permissible for interviewers
to ask whether you have ever used another name in work or academic
situations, it’s not permissible for them to ask questions about your
maiden name or marital status. Don’t answer questions about whether
you have children or what your child-bearing plans are, but do explain
whether you’re available to work overtime or whether you can travel,
particularly on short notice.
Gender: If gender comes up, steer the conversation into what
traits and abilities you can bring to the job.
Career Advice from TheLadders
* Help Them Say Yes in Your Next Interview
* A New Deciding Factor in Interviews
* Tough Interview Questions
* Interviewing Authentically
Health and physical abilities: It’s inappropriate to ask job
seekers if they smoke, drink or take drugs. Your height, weight, use
of sick days, presence of disabilities or past operations/sicknesses
are similarly off limits. Interviewers do have the right to ask if
you’ve violated company policies regarding alcohol or tobacco, whether
you use illegal drugs (as opposed to simply “drugs”), whether you’re
able to lift a given weight or reach items on shelves that are at a
particular height, how many workdays you missed in the past year,
whether you’re physically capable of executing the position’s specific
duties, and whether you can perform the job with or without reasonable
accommodations.
Residence: It is inappropriate to ask how far away a job seeker
lives, but it’s permissible to ask if the candidate can start work at
a given hour or if he is willing to relocate.
Criminal record: It’s inappropriate to ask if a job seeker has
ever been arrested, but it is permissible to ask if she has ever been
convicted of a specific type of crime that relates to the job.
Military service: It is illegal for an employer to discriminate
against a member of the National Guard or Reserves, but it is legal to
ask if the job seeker anticipates requiring extended time away from
work.
If worse comes to worst
If you feel that your employment rights have been violated, you may
file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC. Here’s the EEOC’s
information page on how to do so. The EEOC also provides an in-depth
look at what constitutes discriminatory employment practice under
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act
(ADEA).
He was in his early 50s, and he looked every bit of it.
The questions on the job application went right to his age.
After stewing over the form and discarding his first draft, he filled
out a second copy. Then, he sat and waited for his interview. As he
waited, an attractive, young woman entered the room for a job
interview.
She was called in before him. She wound up getting the job.
He didn’t. He did, however, receive $50,000 after filing age-
discrimination claims with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC).
The above encounter happened to a friend of Matt Rosen, who shared the
story with TheLadders but asked not to identify his friend.
Rosen has seen employment discrimination from almost every angle. He
has been a certified labor and employment attorney since 1981, has
worked in human resources since 1995, and recently found himself
looking for a new job. He’s been on both sides of the interview table
and witnessed many inappropriate questions that can lead to
discrimination.
“Every place, it’s mind-boggling,” said Rosen, who recently began HR
and legal work for Franklin Street Financial in Florida. “You are
always asked for birth dates, for EEOC (-related information such as
race and disability status). ... Places, in my viewpoint, just ask for
too much.”
The reason interviewers ask inappropriate questions varies. Sometimes
they discriminate, as they did in the scenario above. Sometimes they
need the information for internal statistics, he said.
And then sometimes interviewers are simply trying to make
conversation, according to Ellen B. Vance, senior consultant and
advisory services practice leader for Titan Group, a Richmond, Va.,
human-resources consulting firm. “Many inexperienced hiring managers
use questions about family as an icebreaker for interviews, not
realizing that what seem to them as innocent inquiries about spouse,
children, etc., are unlawful.”
Most job seekers don’t want to sue over these practices. They just
want to know how to deal with them diplomatically. Job seekers want to
avoid appearing combative and thus jeopardizing their chances of being
hired and want to avoid handing over information that can be used
against them in discriminatory situations. Knowing what questions to
shy away from is the starting point, and knowing how to skirt them is
the next step.
Answer the questions they should have asked
Vance typically advises job seekers to redirect inappropriate
questions back to the interviewer. For example, if asked whether you
have children, you can respond by saying, “It sounds like family is
important to you — tell me about yours.”
“By redirecting, the applicant is not placed in the situation of being
perceived as adversarial,” Vance said. If an interviewer presses, she
suggests that another response option is, “I am perplexed by your
question because I cannot determine why my age/my marital status/my
nationality is critical to performing this job. Would you shed some
light on why you are asking this question?”
“If that doesn’t cause the interviewer to catch their mistake, then
the applicant is left only with the option of saying, ‘I would prefer
not to respond to that question,’” Vance said.
Don’t answer these questions
Here are more questions that can and can’t be asked, according to HR
professionals and the EEOC. In all circumstances, try to find out why
an interviewer is asking a particular off-limits question, and then
steer the conversation into addressing particular, relevant concerns,
in the following ways:
Nationality: It’s illegal to ask a job seeker about their
nationality, their citizen status, their native language, or how long
they’ve lived here. If asked, instead explain that you’re legally able
to work in the United States.
Religion: It’s not permissible to ask what religion job seekers
practice, what religious holidays they observe, or their religious
affiliations. If an interviewer probes these verboten areas, try to
find out what the interviewer is concerned about and to address these
concerns: working certain days of the week, for example, could be a
legitimate concern.
Age: Do not answer questions about age beyond stating that you are
over the age of 18. Interviewers shouldn’t ask how close you are to
retirement but can ask what your long-term career goals are.
Marital and family status: While it’s permissible for interviewers
to ask whether you have ever used another name in work or academic
situations, it’s not permissible for them to ask questions about your
maiden name or marital status. Don’t answer questions about whether
you have children or what your child-bearing plans are, but do explain
whether you’re available to work overtime or whether you can travel,
particularly on short notice.
Gender: If gender comes up, steer the conversation into what
traits and abilities you can bring to the job.
Career Advice from TheLadders
* Help Them Say Yes in Your Next Interview
* A New Deciding Factor in Interviews
* Tough Interview Questions
* Interviewing Authentically
Health and physical abilities: It’s inappropriate to ask job
seekers if they smoke, drink or take drugs. Your height, weight, use
of sick days, presence of disabilities or past operations/sicknesses
are similarly off limits. Interviewers do have the right to ask if
you’ve violated company policies regarding alcohol or tobacco, whether
you use illegal drugs (as opposed to simply “drugs”), whether you’re
able to lift a given weight or reach items on shelves that are at a
particular height, how many workdays you missed in the past year,
whether you’re physically capable of executing the position’s specific
duties, and whether you can perform the job with or without reasonable
accommodations.
Residence: It is inappropriate to ask how far away a job seeker
lives, but it’s permissible to ask if the candidate can start work at
a given hour or if he is willing to relocate.
Criminal record: It’s inappropriate to ask if a job seeker has
ever been arrested, but it is permissible to ask if she has ever been
convicted of a specific type of crime that relates to the job.
Military service: It is illegal for an employer to discriminate
against a member of the National Guard or Reserves, but it is legal to
ask if the job seeker anticipates requiring extended time away from
work.
If worse comes to worst
If you feel that your employment rights have been violated, you may
file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC. Here’s the EEOC’s
information page on how to do so. The EEOC also provides an in-depth
look at what constitutes discriminatory employment practice under
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act
(ADEA).
Mark Lyon
Sep 17, 2009, 9:25:16 AM9/17/09
to wheatland-tran...@googlegroups.com
Interesting... thanks
Mark
--
Mark Lyon
Office: 630-904-5135
Cell: 919-600-1454
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