Recruiters don’t seem to know the law but don’t let their ignorance affect you. You don’t have to answer anything from the list below:
Race, Color, Religion, Sex, National Origin, Age, Pregnancy, Plans to start a family, Disability, and Citizenship status
However, they still try to be clever about getting these answers. Here to avoid indirectly answering these questions.
Race- They will ask if you are a US citizen. Many people can work who are not US citizens.
Color-They will look up your social media. If you want to get more jobs, don’t have a photo on social media.
Religion-They will ask what you do on the weekends. They will also ask if you belong to any associations, trying to find out your demographics.
Sex-They will assume things based on the way you present yourself.
National Origin-They will refuse to call people back if they have a non-white name on a job application. This is a proven statistic.
Age-They will ask details of when you graduated high school. One recruiter said that he had to talk to his HR team when I told him I would not share this information. High school has no relevance for someone who has a skill.
Pregnancy- They will ask questions like how you are enjoying being married and do you enjoy your kids.
Plans to start a family as above but they will be more subtle and say that they have a ‘work hard play hard’ mentality and if you share the same.
Disability you are over a certain age they don’t want to hire you, or if it looks like you have job stints shorter than they think you should keep a job. You are a worker, not a person with the right to choose what is best for you.
Citizenship status will ask if you need help in the future to continue working and make it mandatory.
The worst companies make things mandatory on the application. Expect to be disrespected when working for them.