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H R BULLETIN VOLUME 102
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
HR BULLETIN
STOP! Illegal questions you should NEVER ask in a job interview Beware: what employers might think are harmless personal questions during the candidate interview might already be grounds for a discrimination complaint. Find out which questions are barred from the interview process. So you’re trying to build rapport with a prospective candidate. You start with the basics: ask them their name and location, and let them talk about their career goals for the next five years. Do you think it’s enough to get to know the candidate deeper or convince the candidate that you are offering the best opportunity in the market? The job interview is a crucial part of the recruitment process because it allows you to get to know the candidates, ask them important questions relevant to the company, check candidates’ credentials, and determine if the prospective candidate is suitable for the position. It also provides candidates a chance to learn more about the role and the company and evaluate their interest in the position. The company and the prospective employee will want to find out if they are the “right fit” for each other. For recruiters, preparing the right interview questions is essential.
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
Since the employer is largely in control of the interview process, there is a high chance that the recruiter could offend the candidate or even miss out on the best person for the job. That said, you should know the right question to ask to maximise the interview. On the flip side, you should also know the questions you want to avoid because not all questions are legally allowed. In Australia, recruiters were allowed to ask anything under the sun until laws were changed in 1975. The Commonwealth Racial Discrimination Act of 1975, passed by the Whitlam Government, declared it illegal for employers to discriminate against candidates based on their race, color, or national origin. More and more Commonwealth and state/territory acts were passed in Australia to ensure equal opportunity for everyone. What NOT to ask when interviewing a job candidate What are the illegal questions you should never ask candidates? Here is a list of what not to ask candidates during an interview: How old are you? When a candidate is treated unfavourably because they are deemed “too young” or “too old” for a job, it may amount to age discrimination under the Age Discrimination Act of 2004. There are different scenarios that would be exempted from this rule. For instance, if a candidate is 17 and wants to work in a bar, he will not be accepted because the required age to handle alcohol is 18 years old. Are you planning to start a family? / Are you pregnant? There is a complete section on the illegality of discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy or potential pregnancy under the Sex Discrimination Act of 1984. Asking candidates about their marital status is unlawful and irrelevant to the candidate’s ability to perform the job requirements. Who do you vote for? A candidate’s political opinions or persuasion about particular issues cannot be used against the candidate during recruitment. Most employers will instead be interested in candidates’ values, and it’s legal to ask candidates about what values are important to them. What’s your ethnic background? Questions around race, national origin, and ethnicity can often be uncomfortable. Typically, a person’s race or ethnicity should not impact whether he or she can complete the job requirements. It is illegal then to base your decision of hiring a candidate due to his or her race under the Racial Discrimination Act of 1975. Similarly, asking a candidate if they follow a religious belief is illegal. Do you have a mental or physical disability? Under the Disability Discrimination Act of 1992, it is illegal to discriminate against a candidate based on their disability. This includes individuals who have both temporary and permanent mental and/or physical disabilities, medical conditions, physical disfigurement, and work-related injuries. The law protects people with disabilities who may need assistance from an interpreter, aide, reader, or assistance animal and those who use aids and equipment. Are you a member of a union? Some workplaces are highly unionised, while others only have a few union members. It’s unlawful for recruiters to consider union membership (or lack of it) when interviewing a candidate. What you can ask job candidates instead…
Read more at: https://www.peoplematters.in/article/talent-acquisition/stopillegal-questions-you-should-never-ask-in-a-job-interview-34319
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
Reality Check: 75% employees say racialequity policies aren't genuine Employees are savvy enough to recognise when company policies are merely performative—and when they reach that conclusion, there are consequences for organisations, including less engagement and intent to stay. In 2020, as employers were grappling with the pandemic and renewed calls for racial justice, many responded with new policies and pronouncements. However, recent research shows it's not enough for organisations to merely announce policies or issue statements, and they must follow through for meaningful action. More than two out of three employees (68%) believe their organisation's coronavirus-related policies for the care and safety of their workers were not genuine and in white-majority countries, three-quarters (75%) of employees reported that their organisation's racial-equity policies were not genuine, reveals a survey conducted by Catalyst, a global non-profit supported by many of the world's most powerful CEOs and leading companies to help build workplaces that work for women. Employees from marginalised racial and ethnic groups were less likely to view these policies as genuine (23%) than White employees (29%). The report, 'Words Aren't Enough: The Risks of Performative Policies', surveyed nearly 7,000 employees in 14 countries around the world and found that employees are savvy and recognise when company policies are merely performative -- and when that is the conclusion they reach, there are consequences for organisations, including less engagement and intent to stay among them. Employees from marginalised racial and ethnic groups were less likely to view these policies as genuine (23%) than White employees (29%). The report, 'Words Aren't Enough: The Risks of Performative Policies', surveyed nearly 7,000 employees in 14 countries around the world and found that employees are savvy and recognise when company policies are merely performative -- and when that is the conclusion they reach, there are consequences for organisations, including less engagement and intent to stay among them…
Read more at: https://www.peoplematters.in/news/employeeengagement/reality-check-75-employees-say-racial-equity-policies-arentgenuine-34369
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
How Cryptic! Jobs in crypto, blockchain, NFT rise 9-fold in India since pandemic The top job role across the field is application developer followed by data engineer and full stack developer, reveals research by global jobs portal Indeed. Even as the crypto market continues to tumble globally, job postings for cryptocurrency, blockchain and NFTs have grown 804% in India between April 2020 to April 2022, reveals research released today by global jobs portal Indeed. The data also reveals an acceleration in the market's demand. In 2022, the increase was 315%. Job postings in April 2022 were 15 times more than in 2019, highlighting the role of the pandemic in this sustained growth. The COVID-19 pandemic has fast tracked the adoption of technology across functions in India, hence technology professionals are more in demand than ever before, especially with expertise in newer areas like cryptocurrency, NFTs and blockchain. The top job role across this field is application developer. This is followed by data engineer and full stack developer. Indeed data also shows that crypto roles appear to be one of the biggest share of hires in overall technology job roles, increasing from 41.22% in 2019 - 2020 to 67.48% in 2021 -2022. “Being a technology first economy, Indian firms are rapidly investing in technologies that will put the country at the forefront of this new digital era. Technology hubs like Bengaluru and Hyderabad continue to lead with hiring in the sector while the national capital region is also seeing a fair share of interest in the sector,” said Sashi Kumar, Head of Sales for Indeed India. The top job role across this field is application developer. This is followed by data engineer and full stack developer. Indeed data also shows that crypto roles appear to be one of the biggest share of hires in overall technology job roles, increasing from 41.22% in 2019 - 2020 to 67.48% in 2021 -2022…
Read more at: https://www.peoplematters.in/news/technology/how-crypticjobs-in-crypto-blockchain-nft-rise-9-fold-in-india-since-pandemic-34334
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
Six in 10 employees in India would prefer flexibility over a 4-day work week A shortened work week prompts concerns about longer hours, customer frustrations, and company performance. As the idea of a four-day work week continues to gain traction across India, new Qualtrics research reveals almost two-thirds of full-time employees in the country (62%) would prefer the flexibility to work whenever they want over one-fewer days at work (38%) as a shortened work week prompts concerns about longer hours, customer frustrations, and company performance. Flexibility is also a bigger driver of retention (60%) than a four-day work week (51%). For a third of employees (35%), flexibility means having control of the hours they want to work. One-in-five respondents say flexibility is choosing what days to work (22%), while others define it as having the ability to work from any location (20%), or being measured by performance instead of hours (14%). Employees open to a 4-day work week, but concerns remain While the majority of employees have a preference for flexibility if given the choice, 91% of respondents are open to supporting their employer implementing a four-day work week - predominantly citing improvements to their health and wellbeing as the reasons for doing so. The majority of respondents believe a four-day work week could improve work-life balance (86%) and mental wellbeing (84%), make them feel more loyal to their employer (85%), and be more productive (84%)…
Read more at: https://www.peoplematters.in/news/employeeengagement/would-you-prefer-flexibility-or-a-4-day-work-week-34339
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H U M A N E - R | V O L U M E 102
Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman on noise and bias in decision making In the science of decision making, ‘noise’ takes place when people can’t agree on a decision. In this exclusive interview with People Matters, Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman explains how that can be a source of errors in the workplace. Business leaders have the power to craft policies and guidelines that govern the lives of people at work – from the way they are hired, to the way they are promoted. But just how much of these decisions are tainted – not only by the leaders' own biases – but also by the variability of their judgments? In other words, their lack of consensus with other stakeholders on what the results of the hiring or promotion process should be. In this exclusive interview, Nobel Prize winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman explains how decision making in the workplace is a process prone to error and subjected to what he calls "noise". It's a topic that the best-selling author of Thinking, Fast and Slow will be discussing at the People Matters TechHR Singapore Conference 2022. We caught up with Daniel to uncover why he believes organisations should borrow the metaphor of a factory – one that follows strict procedures and quality control measures – as they structure their collective decision making process, and how noise and bias affect how companies formulate policies and programs for their people How do noise and bias influence decisions on people policies? There are different decisions made by HR professionals. Each of these decisions is susceptible to bias…
Read more at: https://www.peoplematters.in/article/leadership/nobel-laureate-danielkahneman-on-noise-and-bias-in-hr-34328
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