Recently, I’ve been hearing more about companies discriminating against the long-term unemployed, and even those who haven’t been unemployed very long. This is absolutely ridiculous! As a recruiting professional and hiring manager, let me apologize on behalf of my narrow-minded peers who happen to believe this makes sense!
Because I just couldn’t believe this phenomenon was as wide-spread as the reports were saying, I decided to dig a little deeper into the hype. My friends, there’s good news and bad news. Let’s start with the bad:
BAD NEWS
It’s true – some companies are using this tactic when looking to hire for open positions. A recent report by the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a worker advocacy group, called out 73 businesses for asking in job postings that applicants be currently employed. In a review they conducted from 3/9/2011 – 4/5/2011, one of their researchers reviewed job postings on Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, Indeed.com, and CraigsList.com and found 150 ads that contained exclusions based on current employment status. Most (75%) of the identified ads were on CareerBuilder.com and Indeed.com, with staffing firms (aka “head hunters”) prominently represented.
Why are companies taking this approach? It’s speculated to occur primarily for two reasons:
- Screening out the unemployed reduces the load on their entire recruiting process;
- There’s an assumption being made that the currently employed are more likely to be good performers
Now for the GOOD NEWS
In a national survey conducted on behalf of NELP by Hart Research Associates, 90% of survey respondents classified this practice as either “Very Unfair” or “Somewhat Unfair.” Nearly two-thirds (63%) said they favor a congressional proposal making it “illegal for companies to refuse to hire or consider a qualified job applicant solely because the person is currently unemployed.”
On July 12, 2011, two congressional representatives introduced the Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011. This act prohibits employers and employment agencies from refusing to consider job applicants solely because they’re unemployed. While the unemployed would not be considered a “protected class” under current anti-discrimination laws, they would be protected from this blatant and unproductive form of discrimination.
To see a sample listing of discriminatory job postings by company, click on this link and scroll down to page eight.
If you find yourself encountering these types of ads and are becoming more and more frustrated in your job search, here are few things you can do to improve your circumstances:
1. Fight to stay positive. No matter how frustrating and unfair your circumstances are, no employer will want to hire you if you are negative.
2. Don’t give up. In spite of this recent activity, most employers are still looking to hire the best person to fill their jobs, regardless of their current employment status.
3. Networking is critical. Making personal connections with key decision makers (recruiters, hiring managers) is extremely important! By doing this, it will allow you to explain your circumstances and “make your case.” Reach out to people you know, and ask those in your personal and professional circles to reach out on your behalf to introduce you to the people you need to know.
4. Apply your skills to not-for-profit work. This will allow you to keep your skills sharpened, help others who may be in a direr situation than you (which will help you to be more genuinely grateful while in your present condition!), add this “work” to your resume, plus you never know who you might meet.
5. Realign your resume. If your resume is not structured in a functional format, work with a resume writer to make this adjustment. This will allow you to highlight the skills you have before an employer sees where you’ve worked …. and when.
I know times are really tough, but hang in there. It’s going to get better!
Until next time….