The Triad Tipster - Winter 2003

Information for you and your career...

Did you Know?

We all know that there are questions that interviewers are not permitted to ask of candidates during an interview.  The government has enacted legislation to prohibit discrimination during the hiring process, and therefore most employers avoid probing into areas that are not directly related to the job for which they are interviewing.

Some topics are tricky, as there are legal and illegal ways for an interviewer to ask questions.  Here are some examples of what can and cannot be asked: 

·      Age:  An interviewer cannot ask a candidate’s age or the year he/she graduated from high school.  However, it is permissible to ask a candidate whether he/she is over the age of 18.  

·      Disability:  An interviewer can ask questions to determine whether a candidate can perform specific job-related tasks, but can not ask directly about his/her physical condition, medical history or disabilities. Also, an interviewer may not ask whether a candidate has ever filed a workers’ compensation claim.

·      Nationality:  An interviewer is permitted to ask if a candidate is legally authorized to work in the U.S.  Unless citizenship is a bonafide job requirement, no questions related to nationality or citizenship are allowed.  Also, interviewers may not ask a candidate’s native language or where he/she was born.

 Many employers have HR departments that have trained interviewers on questions that may and may not be asked  However, if you are uncomfortable with a question, ask yourself: “How does this question relate to my performing the job.” If you can’t figure it out, ask your interviewer nicely.  That should be enough to redirect the questioning back to job-related topics!

Have you looked at your resume lately? (Part 7)

Is tailoring your resume a good idea?

  A previous article in the Tipster discussed what happens to your resume when sending it to an agency.  Most will scan the resume into a database that has a search capability based on the words in your resume.  Most of these databases allow for only one active resume per candidate.  If you already have a relationship with the agency, then the new resume will be scanned over the last one... this is why you have to be careful.  If you are tailoring the resume for a specific job, you may be cutting out information that could be helpful to the recruiter on another job opening.   Sending a resume to an agency isn’t like sending a resume to an HR department for a specific advertised job.  The agency will use your resume to screen you for many different job openings.

  Your best bet is to rely on the recruiter’s ability to sell you into a position.  Make a comprehensive resume using some of the techniques we have discussed previously (E.g.  the skill section).  Talk to your recruiter about any position for which you think you are qualified.  Let the recruiter rework the resume if necessary, or write a paragraph hi-lighting why you’re a good fit for the specific position.  If you have enough background for the job, it will come out in the conversations with the recruiter...and if it is a stretch, that will come out too.  Remember to work as a team with your recruiter!

(Next Time: Information needed (and not needed) on a resume)