Employers fail to identify discrimination in interviews

14 October 2008

Many employers are at risk of discriminating in interviews by asking seemingly harmless questions to candidates, according to a survey by leading recruitment company Kelly Services.

The survey found that 77% of participants could not identify two examples of discrimination when given a choice of five possible interview topics. It follows a previous Kelly Services survey that found that 48% of participants couldn’t accurately recognise discriminatory language in job ads.

The latest survey shows that many employers have a lack of knowledge when it comes to discrimination laws and how they apply to the recruitment process.

Kelly Services Managing Director, James Bowmer said that it is easy to fall into the trap of asking inappropriate questions that could be deemed discriminatory.

“Anyone engaged in the recruitment process needs to be aware of the type of language and questions that could be deemed discriminatory.

“It is easy to make a mistake through simply engaging in casual conversation, so it is important that the interviewer concentrates on the topics raised in the interview.

“Those conducting interviews should try to focus on questions that relate directly to the work that the candidate will be doing, their work history and their knowledge of the work environment”, he said.

Kelly Services asked 200 participants to identify which examples of interview topics could be deemed discriminatory out of five possibilities.

The topics were as follows:

• the types of co-workers they like best and why
• how the job fits in with their overall career plan
• where they were born
• the number of days they missed during the last year and the reasons
• whether or not they are married

A total of 77% failed to identify both discriminatory lines of questioning, ‘where they were born’ and ‘whether or not they are married’.

Mr Bowmer said, “The number of people that answered incorrectly suggests that there needs to be better education for those involved in hiring about discrimination laws and how they relate to employment.

“The costs of not doing this could be substantial to a business, especially if mistakes lead to legal matters”.

The survey is part of the ‘Know your staffing stuff’ initiative where managers can test their knowledge around the complexities of selecting, hiring and managing staff. ‘Know your staffing stuff’ can be accessed at www.smartmanager.com.au.