Risks and Best Practices
When Hiring Seasonal Employees
By Jessica Aytoun, former OGSA Director and Superintendent, Sutton Creek Golf Club, and, lawyer with Sherrard Kuzz LLP.
G
iven the nature of the industry, golf courses and facilities hire numerous seasonal employees. One might even say seasonal employment is par for the course. However, with seasonal employment comes heightened risks every organization should consider and prepare for to protect the business. Here are a few common risks and best practices.
RISK
BEST PRACTICE Watch the language you use in your job posting. Ensure the job description does not directly or indirectly discriminate on the basis of a characteristic protected under the Code. For example, an advertisement that seeks a “young and energetic worker” may be found as discriminatory against older candidates on the basis of age. Similarly, an advertisement seeking “a strong man capable of lifting 100 plus pounds” may be found to discriminate against a female candidate on the basis of sex or a disabled candidate on the basis of a disability. The examples are endless.
Violating the Ontario Human Rights Code (the “Code”) in the hiring process, including the job posting and interview.
During an interview, avoid asking questions that would solicit information about a Code protected ground.
Human rights legislation prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of several grounds, including race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, age, record of offences, marital status, family status, gender identity, gender expression or disability (referred to as “protected grounds”). The exception is if a job requirement is a bona fide occupational requirement (e.g., you need to be at least 18 years old to serve liquor in a restaurant). Even inadvertent or accidental discrimination is considered discrimination, so you need to stay alert to these issues and proactively avoid them.
Even if a decision to not hire a candidate is made entirely unrelated to one of these protected grounds, the fact the employer gathered this information by asking a question may expose it to a claim. The most effective way to mitigate the risk of a discrimination claim at the hiring stage is to use an interview questionnaire with standardized questions and/or criteria against which all candidates are evaluated.
16
For example, while you may be genuinely interested, avoid questions like, “where’s your accent from”, “in your spare time, what do you like to do with your family”, or even more direct, “are you married” or “do you have kids?”
