Since I've been looking for a job here I've had a few interviews, one of which was about 10 days ago. In general I'd say interviews aren't that much different here than they are in the US, though Europeans aren't much into asking those classic "behavioral" types of questions - you know the ones - "Tell me about a time when...". I'm glad for that too, because I never cared for those types of questions anyway!
There is however, definitely one BIG difference, and my recent interview highlights it perfectly. Here was how the interview started:
Question 1: "So we have your date of birth as XX/XX/XXXX - is that correct?"
Question 2: "Are you married?"
Question 3: "Any children?"
So while my American readers pick their jaws up off the floor, let me explain to any European readers that all three of those questions are simply not allowed to be asked at any stage of the interview process in the US - it's meant to protect job seekers from discrimination. Right now, as a married but childless woman in my early-mid 30's I'm not likely to face much discrimination, but what if I had three young children and was going through a divorce? If an employer knew that because they were allowed to ask it in an interview, isn't it possible that they might think twice about hiring me out of concern that I might be unstable or unreliable? From my understanding they're not supposed to consider things like that (out of concern for discrimination), but let's face it, in reality I think there's a good chance that they might, regardless of what they're supposed to do.
I'd love to hear the insight of one of my non-American readers on this topic. Do you think I and my fellow Americans are being overly concerned about nothing, or do you agree that asking these questions in an interview is unnecessary at best, and potentially discriminatory at worst?
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7 comments:
good thing you didn't ask any American female single-parents for their opinion ;)
(KIDDING)
If you want it-I'll leave it-but I think you'd be surprised what I'd have to say...
Speaking of being surprised-have you seen my site? It's just a shell right now..but there's a little "bling" action going no-feel free to comment
Hey why not, let's hear it! Dissenting opinions are ALWAYS welcome, otherwise this would get pretty boring!
Hey Jen, interesting observation! I can only speak from a German background but maybe this is not too far apart from a Belgian one.
Let's start with the 3 questions you mentioned in your blog. This surprised me as well. Question 1 is unneccessary in my view because every European/German would include his/her date of birth in the cv. Question 2 and 3 are quite blunt in my eyes and very tacky.
Maybe I should start with the legal situation in Europe. To my knowledge there are the same laws in place that protect job-seekers and employees from discrimination against sex, age etc. The only difference is (and employers know this) that prospective employees are not very likely to sue a company if one of these questions comes up in an interview. The US is often perceived as a "litigation culture" in Europe (... please object if you think this is a cliché) and people most often see no sense in goint to court for every "little" bit..
Personal attributes like male/female and age will be obvious when it comes to an interview, so I see no sense in omitting them in a cv.
Having said this, I should also mention that it is not allwowed (at least in Germany) to ask if someone is married or not, if he/she plans to have children etc. But a lot of employers do it anyway because they can be pretty sure that the applicant won't sue them (See above). It is my experience that people would rather lie or try to circumvent the question than to say "Hey this question is not allowed and you know it!". I know some people who lied about their family planning and instead said something like "No, maybe in 5 years but definetely not now...". If this person gets the job and has a baby 6 months later there is nothing the employer can do...
So which system do I think is better? Difficult to answer. I don't think that I am better protected against discrimination if I leave out the date of birth or the gender (they see the name anyway). In my opinion, discrimination is most often much more subtle than these obvious attributes. But maybe this is a male perspective... maybe women see this completely different. So please object!!!
By the way, Jen, I love these controversial questions!!!!
Awesome response Volker, thanks so much for your perspective! I suspected that questions 2 and 3 are not really supposed to be asked ("frowned upon" is a good way to put it), but I wasn't sure of the legality aspect.
Speaking of legalities, the perception of the US as a litigation culture is pretty accurate in my opinion, and I think most Americans would agree with me in saying that it's gone a little too far...but that's a whole other topic!
I do definitely think that the marital status/kids question should not be asked in a job interview - there's just too much potential for unfair assumptions to be made about someone's dedication, reliability, etc.
I'm glad the response to these somewhat more controversial topics is good so far...it's new territory for me, and while I don't intend to make this a full-time debate platform, it does give me more to write about! :-)
Having been through a couple of interviews here in Europe, I guess I don't see the harm in asking, but it doesn't always have to be answered.
My European version of my CV shows my DOB and my Nationality. Again, things you would not find on an American CV. Although I do not include a picture, I've heard several people state that they have one on theirs!
True, the US is "sue happy" in that there are plenty of lawsuits...mostly frivolous if you ask me. Too many uptight people trying to make a quick buck.
And honestly? No matter what you ask in an interview, have or don't have on your CV/Résumé, there are plenty of other things that can be thought of as discrimination...
Alright *cracking knuckles* here's my (p-ting!!!) 2 cents.
I have never been on a European interview, but I think I've interviewed...at least 20-30 times before in my life. Many of you know I change jobs as often as some people shave off their beards...so...
Americans are WAY too uptight with asking personal questions due to "the law", age, marital status, children, etc. But that's because corporate American SUCKS...and always has and always will. What isn't mentioned, however, is that many employers will mandate running a credit report-and that will pretty much let everything out of the hat about who you were married to, how good you are about your debs, but maybe not say if you have kids. And if you go for special clearance status? OMG! Talk about INVASIVE: I'll never forget the day I had to ask my mother in law 2 questions: do you have a middle name AND what year were you born? NEVER-EVER AGAIN... EVERYTHING is let loose once you try to get secret clearance.
Anyway-I don't know if I've answered the question-but as a single mom with children-this information almost ALWAYS comes out in my interview (corporate or military contract employer) because...I'm usually the one who lets it out! It becomes a casual conversation for me at some point during the interview process. Besides-I wouldn't want to work for anyone that didn't understand where I was coming from...heck they might even appreciate me more as a person. The only interviews where I didn't get the job? Came from foreign born national MALES that may or may not be smarter than me with a thick Indian accent. :O I'm sorry-was that outloud??
If you're qualified-you'll get the job. I truly still believe this.
Well this turned out to be a great topic, with some good points made by all! Thanks Bree, Carl and Volker for your input!
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