Ask only job-related questions
| *It is illegal not to hire candidates because of their race, color, sex, religion, national origin, birthplace, age, disability or marital/family status |
| *Do not ask questions that could elicit such information, and discourage candidates from volunteering personal details |
Illegal/inappropriate questions
*Questions related to birthplace, ancestry or national origin:
| *"How long has your family been in the U.S.?" |
| *"That's an unusual name-what does it mean?" |
| *"How did you learn to speak Chinese?" |
| *Acceptable question: |
| *"Are you eligible to work in the U.S.?" |
*Questions related to marital status, children or pregnancy:
| *"Are you planning to have children?" |
| *"What does your husband/wife do?" |
| *"What are your child care arrangements?" |
*Acceptable question:
| *"Would you be able to work a 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. schedule?" |
| *If asked of all applicants, and a specific work schedule is a business necessity |
*Questions related to physical disability, health or medical history:
| *"Are you able to use your legs at all?" |
| *"Do you have any pre-existing health conditions?" |
| *"Are you on any medication?" |
*Acceptable question:
| *"Can you perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation?" |
| *If asked of all applicants |
*Questions related to religion or religious days observed:
| *"What is your religious affiliation?" |
| *"What religious holidays do you celebrate?" |
| *"Do you attend church every week?" |
*Acceptable question:
| *"Can you work on weekends?" |
| *If asked of all applicants, and weekend work is a business necessity |
*Questions related to age:
| *"How old are you?" |
| *"What year were you born?" |
| *"I went to high school in Oakland, too-what year did you graduate?" |
*Acceptable question:
| *"Are you over the age of 18?" |
*Questions related to criminal records:
| *"Have you ever been arrested?" |
| *"Have you ever spent a night in jail?" |
| *"Have you ever been caught driving drunk?" |
*Acceptable question:
| *"Have you ever been convicted of a crime?" |
*Other illegal questions:
| *"Was your military discharge honorable or dishonorable?" |
| *"Have you ever brought a lawsuit against an employer?" |
| *"Have you ever filed for Workers' Compensation?" |
| *"Have you ever been sexually harassed?" |
| *"How much do you weigh?" |
| *"Do you use drugs or alcohol?" |
*If asked an illegal question, you have four options:
| *Briefly answer the question anyway, if you are comfortable doing so. |
| *Respond to the intent of the question. |
| *Ignore the question and change the subject. |
| *Refuse to answer the question. |
| *Tell the interviewer that the question doesn't seem to be legal or relevant to the specific requirements of the job. |