People’s protected characteristics can sometimes cause them to lose out on job opportunities, regardless of their suitability for the role.
Here are a few questions you might encounter on a job application or in an interview that could flag discrimination:
1. Are you thinking of having children?
Some employers do not like hiring a woman they think is likely to become pregnant and take time off. Turning someone down for this reason could amount to pregnancy discrimination.
2. What religion are you?
Religion should not come into job applications or interviews. Employers should not be asking if you attend the mosque, go to church or believe in God – except if the job is something like being a pastor at the local church. They are, however, allowed to inform you of the hours the job will require and ask if there is any reason you won’t be able to make those hours (which you might not if your religion requires you to do (or avoid doing) certain things at certain times of the week.
3. Where are your parents from?
Your origin is irrelevant to your ability to do a job, so employers must not ask about it. Questions like, “That’s an interesting name, where is it from” could just be genuine curiosity rather than an attempt to weed out people of certain nationalities, but employers should refrain from asking any question that could give them information about your roots.
If you don’t get a job, and the employer asked one of the questions above or something else they should not be asking, it may well be discrimination. Or, it’s always possible that they may have asked the question without realizing it was inappropriate, but discounted you solely because there was someone else better qualified for the position. It can be hard to know what the truth is. However, if you believe it was discrimination that made you lose the opportunity or position, you may have legal options to explore.
