What Are the Questions You Cannot Ask in an Interview?
Job interviews range greatly in the questions an employer may ask a prospective employee. However, in all cases, there are a number of questions an employer is expressly forbidden from asking a potential hire. Although most employment laws are made at the state level, federal law prohibits a number of different questions from being asked by a person interviewing a person for a new job or for a promotion at his current workplace.
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Pregnancy
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One of the most commonly overlooked questions that an interviewer is not allowed to ask relates to pregnancy. A federal law prohibits employers from discriminating against pregnant women. Therefore, asking a woman whether she is pregnant may open up an employer to charges of discrimination. However, if the woman has an obviously bulging stomach and mentions her pregnancy, it might be polite to inquire when the child is due.
Discrimation Questions
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There are a number of categories under which an employer cannot discriminate against an employee or choose to not hire someone. The protected categories under federal law are race, religious belief, sex, disability, color, national origin, age and marital status. However, exceptions may be made if knowledge of an employee's status in these categories is absolutely critical to his success in fulfilling the position for which he is being hired.
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Medical Questions
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An employer cannot ask about a person's medical condition, including whether he suffers from a disability or whether he has been sick recently. This is because an employer is not allowed to use knowledge of a person's medical history as a basis for discriminating against the person. An employer is not allowed to refrain from hiring someone because the person has a preexisting condition that may cause the employer's health insurance premiums to rise.
Criminal Background
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Sometimes, an employer is allowed to ask about about an employee's criminal history, but other times she is not. In some regions, an employer is not allowed to ask whether a person has committed a crime, while in others the employer is legally allowed to ask, but cannot use the information to make a hiring decision. However, many employers are free to inquire about the nature of a person's criminal history -- some jobs even require it.
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Comments
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I HAD COMPANY ASK ME F IAM MARRIED AND DO I HAVE KIDS AND HE ASKED ME THIER AGES, IT WAS THE DIST MGR OF SCHAWANS FROZEN FOODS.IS THAT ILLEGAL0R LEALE.
