71 / 108
MANAGEMENT
ROM A LEGAL COMPLIANCE STANDPOINT,
inter-
viewing and screening applicants opens a window of high
risk for your company. Most employers know that it is illegal
to discriminate against a candidate in the hiring process based on
nationality, religion, age, marital or family status, gender, health and
physical ability, military status and, in some locations, sexual identity
and criminal background. What they
don’t
realize is that many seem-
ingly benign questions, either on the employment application or in
the interview, can lead a candidate (or court of law) to conclude that
you are doing just that—discriminating against a protected class.
32 QUESTIONS NEVER TO ASK A PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE,
PLUS SAFE ALTERNATIVES
BY CLAUDIA ST. JOHN, SPHR
WHAT
NOT
TO ASK
The Employment Application
We recommend that you require candi-
dates to fill out a formal, written employ-
ment application because you can use it to
have the applicant attest that all information
he or she provides is correct. Simply collect-
F
JUNE 2015 •
PPB
• 69
THINK
Q&A
WITH
CLAUDIA
ST. JOHN
Send your human resources-
related questions for Claudia
St. John to
ppb@ppai.org.Select questions will be
answered in future issues.
Q.
Is there a limit to the num-
ber of days an exempt employ-
ee can work? For example, can
I have an exempt employee
work 10 days in a row?
Continued On Next Page