What to Avoid

In the United States, it is illegal for employers to disqualify job candidates based on a variety of personal characteristics. For example:

• Questions dealing with arrests
• Questions asking about citizenship
• Questions concerning a spouse, the spouse’s employment or salary, children and child care arrangements, dependents, or pregnancy
• Overly specific questions not likely to affect job performance, such as health questions
• Questions dealing with marital status
• Questions about type or condition of military discharge
• Questions about whether sales applicants own or rent their own homes cannot feign a false belief in the product all the time. A lack of conviction leads to cynicism and, eventually, personal problems for the candidate.

© 2010 Growth Resources, Inc.