- Do you have any medical/physical conditions that would prohibit you from doing the job description?
- How many sick days did you take last year?
- What is your nationality?
- What religious holidays do you observe?
- How old are you?
- How long do you think you will be working?
Eliza Ibarra – Taboo Interview
Imagine yourself in the interviewers shoes. Imagine youre tasked with finding the best person to fill the position — what traits are you going to look for? Youre not only seeking someone with the right set of skills and relevant experience. In fact, in Avalos experience, hiring managers are more worried about making a bad hiring decision than they are confident in making a solid one, so take the mystery out of why youre great for that company and get that across.
“Dedicate yourself to learning about the company youre interviewing with and the person or people interviewing you,” he recommends.
For the 411 on the ins and outs of interviewing including insights, tips and techniques, search our extensive resources on LiveCareer.com.
“Take charge of the process,” says Rik Avalos, a long-time recruiter and HR professional who has found talent for Tesla, Google and Cisco Webex, among others.
“With that knowledge under your belt youre much less likely to say something you dont intend, and when they ask you why you want to join their team you really know why. You can substitute the worry about what not to say with the confidence of knowing exactly what you want to get across.”
Since the object of checking references is to determine if the candidate being considered for employment is right for the job, the types of questions asked should be limited to only those which relate to some aspect of job performance – all the way from asking what the candidate’s responsibilities were on the job, to why the candidate left his or her last job. Put another way, what prospective employers should not ask a candidate’s references is anything unrelated to some aspect of job performance. Non-job-related questions include anything about the candidate’s personal life or any questions that are forbidden by EEOC regulations – things like age, race, sex, religion, marital status, national origin, or any disability issues covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. That seems to leave a fairly large gray area where no clear answer exists about whether a particular question should be asked or not! Take the employer who wants to make sure that a candidate’s personality will be compatible with the company’s “corporate culture.” Can the prospective employer ask about this or not? Or course, it can be asked; and here’s how it can be done. Simply say, “How would your describe so-and-so’s personality on the job?” As with nearly any inquiry that could have a bearing on how well the candidate will fit the requirements of the job, questions that address that fit are perfectly fine to ask. There is a certain logic to prohibiting questions that have nothing to do with job performance. For example, why would an employer ever ask a candidate’s references about his or her religion? What possible impact could a candidate’s religion have to do with his or her ability to do the job? On the other hand, asking about the candidate’s ability to work with others in a job setting is a perfectly legitimate question to ask. Broadly speaking, questions employers should ask should include past job responsibilities, strengths, weaknesses, personality on the job, management style, career development needs, ability to work with others on the job, reasons for leaving, and eligibility for re-hire. There are all sorts of ways to get at the legitimate issues an employer needs to know about a candidate for employment in an unbiased way. For instance, employers should avoid leading questions – like, “Would you say so-and-so was a hands-on manager?” A better way to ask that question would be to say, “Could you describe so-and-so’s management style.” By asking the question in that manner, there’s no way that a reference can second guess the answer the employer is hoping to hear.
To summarize as succinctly as possible, if a question is about some aspect of job performance, it’s perfectly fine to ask. If it isn’t, don’t ask it!
Only Ask Job-Related Questions Problems can arise from questions asked before the interview even begins! Innocent conversation on topics used to break the ice and make the candidate more comfortable can cause problems if the candidate is rejected. Go ahead and talk about the news, sports or weather, but stay away from personal topics such as children and spouses. A candidate can naively reveal personal information that you did not ask for. Politely steer the conversation back to job-related questions that you have (hopefully) prepared in advance of the interview!
There you have it. A range of advice covering all the major areas of danger. Bottom Line – If in doubt, don’t!
When was the last time you reviewed the employment discrimination laws before conducting an interview? Most hiring managers have every intention of complying with employment discrimination laws but find that the time needed to keep abreast of the nuances of employment discrimination in areas such as race, gender, religion, national origin, age, marital status, medical history, physical disability or criminal records hard to find.
For example, if we cannot ask a person’s age, how do we find out if the candidate is above the minimum age requirement? What if it is important to check criminal or credit history due to the type of work involved? What if you want to make sure the candidate is able to work overtime due to the demands of the job? How do you determine a candidate’s citizenship?
Don’t ask if the candidate is married or if he or she has children. It is not relevant to the job. Sometimes an interviewer will want to find out if the candidate can handle the work schedule that the job requires. It is okay to ask the candidate if he or she is willing to work overtime, travel or relocate. You can also ask if there are any days or times that the candidate will be unable to work. It is not okay to ask if working on a particular religious holiday will be a problem. Don’t ask the candidate if he or she has any children or how childcare will be handled.
The above questions are outright no-go territories, which could lead you to legal trouble. But there are some questions that are apparently ambiguous but should not be asked. These include:
Another aspect that HR or interviewers should keep in mind is that the questions should be the same for all the candidates as far as general queries are concerned. Questions should be centered on the knowledge, skills and abilities required to be successful in the role the person is being interviewed for.
Employers should also be aware of the grey area questions that one should not stray into. Age and intrusive questions about family life are examples.
Job interviews are no longer run-of-the-mill question-answer sessions where you ask about a person’s qualifications, skillsets and generally gauge their suitability to fit into the proposed position. Interviewing has become more of a skillset in itself. And some certain dos and don’ts rule it.
“Taboo topics are not blatant violations of any law, but they may have the tendency to lead the conversation into illegal territory or may place the employer in a bad public relations light,” says Charles Vethan of Houston-based Vethan Law Firm.
FAQ
What are some inappropriate interview questions?
- How many basketballs can fit on a bus?
- What two things, aside from food and water, would you want on a deserted island?
- How many pizzas are ordered every night in the United States?
- What would you do if you won the lottery?
- Blue or green?
What are unethical interview questions?
- Your age.
- Your race, ethnicity, or place of birth.
- Your marital status.
- Whether or not you have children.
- Whether or not you’re planning on having children.
- Your religion.
- Your health.
- Your gender or sexual orientation.
