Hiring Fairly

Our legal expert Julian Sampson offers his tips on interviewing potential staff
– and what you must NOT to ask!

To ensure you are well positioned to hire properly, not only do you have to ensure you get the right people for the right job but in doing so you have to come across as fair and considerate in how and what you do when you make these decisions.

Claims by prospective employees don't judge if your decision was an excellent business decision or not – but simply that you were seen to be taking the decision in the way the law (not YOU!) considers appropriate!

If you take one tip from these it must be that you should document everything you do because that way there is often little room for variable interpretations of what you did or said which could leave you liable for a claim.

You will already know the position you want to fill and the technical or social factors you will need in your new employee to do that job properly. What you need to do is filter out the inappropriate, dangerous and irrelevant questions or considerations.

BEFORE THE INTERVIEW:
1) Develop a wish list but ensure that this doesn't unjustifiably exclude workers because of their gender, race, religion or sexual orientation or because of a disability. Be wary of including criteria that you cannot justify such as length of service, full-time working vs. job share or having a driving licence
2) Be careful about where adverts are placed. Advertising for a receptionist in magazines read mainly by women (although this is unlikely to apply to hair magazines of course!) is likely to discriminate against men.
3) Watch out for the style of your adverts – pictures used should not suggest that disabled candidates or a particular gender or race would not be welcome
4) When you are interviewing avoid asking for personal information – this could send the message that you intend to discriminate based on that information; you should also avoid being influenced by any irrelevant factors on a CV, such as marital status or nationality.

QUESTIONS TO AVOID AT INTERVIEW”

• – Do you have children?
• – Do you plan to get married?
• – How do you think you'll manage in an all-male/female team?
• – What's the matter with your leg/arm/eye/etc?
• – What religion are you?
• – Have you ever sued an employer?

In truth, they all seem like reasonable questions and if you knew the answers then they may well have an impact on your decisions. Unfortunately the discriminatory laws do not allow you take these matters into account. The view is that a person is right for the job if they satisfy your technical requirements – what are they like with colour/ styles/ hair extensions/ clients – and their physical, social, religious or sexual leanings should be an irrelevance.

Share this article: