Background to Discrimination in HRM
Discrimination in the workplace has become a major challenge facing an increasingly diversified world, especially in recruitment and selection of workers. The concept of discrimination has been described by Collier (2017) as the unequal and unfair treatment of an individual due such characteristics as cultural, racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, as well as political affiliation, gender, and sexuality. Discrimination has become such a serious problem that legislations have been developed to counter the practice. For example, the Equality Act 2010 ensures that workers and candidates are safeguarded from unfair treatment. According to Hennekam et al. (2018), organizations still find ways to discriminate by using two major strategies. First, the firms use covertly controlled in-house recruitment to make preferential appointments or overrule certain hiring decisions. Secondly, companies outsource recruitment to divert the responsibility of compliance with the anti-discrimination rules.
Federal Laws Against Discrimination
Several federal laws have been developed to safeguard against discrimination during the hiring process. The first federal law is the Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1964, whose main purpose is to protect employees and candidates from discrimination based on protected characteristics. The term protected characteristics is often used to imply race, gender, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and nationality. It is important to acknowledge that this legislation applies across the entire spectrum of employment, starting with recruitment and selection. Even termination is also governed by this law. Another federal law is the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which specifically applies to individuals with disabilities. Besides protecting employees and candidates from discrimination based on disability, the law also enforces such requirements as making accommodation for this group of workers.
Consequences of Violating Discrimination Laws
In many cases, the consequences of violating the two federal laws are often both punitive and compensatory. Punitive consequences entail where the organization or the specific individuals accused of discrimination are punished by law. Compensatory consequences are those that directed as awarding damages to the employee or candidate aggrieved by the discriminatory recruitment practices. Violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 often results in lawsuits by the aggrieved parties. When found guilty, punitive damages may include hefty fines whose amount depend on the size of the business. Additionally, the business may be forced to pay the worker or candidate any accrued backpays or even reinstate a worker if wrongfully dismissed. Similar consequences are suffered for violating the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. in this case, the firms may experience affirmative actions, injunctions, fines, and accrual of backpay.
Pros and Cons of Recruiting Strategies – Recruiters
Among the pros of using recruiters is that they are excellent at networking, which provides access to the best candidates available. Due to the list of candidates they keep, recruiters also ensure a constant pipeline of candidates, which means that an organization only has to select the one that best fits the set requirements. Recruitment can be time-consuming, a problem that can be resolved by the use of recruiters. Lastly, recruiters often use similar sources and strategies, which means that no significant difference in recruitment outcomes. The drawbacks of recruiters include the lack of a cultural fit assessment by the recruiters. Use of recruiters also eliminates the aspect of employer branding. Since recruiters have to be paid, this strategy can be costly. Lastly, there are possibilities of rogue practices, including rewriting candidates’ resume to fit an organization.
Pros and Cons of Recruiting Strategies – Referrals
The use of referrals is another commonly used strategy with multiple benefits. First, it is considered to have the highest rate of returns on investments due to high success rate. Second, it can save time significantly since not many processes are involved. Referrals operate similarly to networks, which means that an organization can easily access higher quality candidates. Lastly, retention levels are also high since referrals produce candidates with greater fit to the company. The drawbacks of referrals include the possibility of nepotism as individuals refer friends and relatives. Additionally, there are concerns about lack of diversity since referrals could produce people who are alike. Management problems may also occur as the closely connected employees may gain too much power over management. Lack of diversity also has management implications, especially when considering compliance issues.
Pros and Cons of Recruiting Strategies – Website/Social Media
With the advances in technology, companies now use own websites and social media as a recruitment strategy. Such a strategy is inexpensive since once a website has been created then only maintenance is required. Similarly, social media is often free to use. Websites and social media have tools that can be used for screening. Additionally, a company advertises its corporate culture through these media channels, which helps find the best fit among the long list of candidates. In terms of cons, use of this strategy can be overwhelming for human resource managers. The rationale is that they are likely to attract a long list of unqualified candidates. Screening through the long lists could be time-consuming, which means that the strategy may not work best in cases when urgent recruitment is desired.
Recommended Recruiting Strategy – Website/Social Media
An employer who seeks to be in control of the recruitment process may require to undertake the process internally using the available infrastructure. In this case, digital recruitment is increasingly becoming a norm in human resource management, which is one of the main reasons why websites and social media strategy is recommended. Having control of the process means that the employer can develop and design job characteristics and requirements, which will help attract candidates with the necessary qualifications. Even though the long lists are often exhausting to address, the availability of algorithms and tools for screening can make the work easier. Additionally, a wide pool of candidates can be attracted using this strategy due to the wide outreach. Millions of users have access to internet and social media, which means that job postings can reach to hundreds and thousands of candidates.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities for Mid-Level Manager
The mid-level manager position requires certain qualifications that con be categorized under knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). As a mid-level manager, the knowledge required is often broad and covering issues that go beyond the departments or even the organization itself. Therefore, the knowledge in federal regulations is needed to facilitate compliance. Knowledge in sustainability and lean and agile concepts also aligns with the current trends in corporate management. Skills needed will also include such soft skills as public speaking and leadership and team building. Hard skills include ICT, which are necessary in a modern digital workplace. Lastly, the various abilities include organizing projects and solving problems, most of which will require analytical skills. Verbal and non-verbal communication is aa critical ability for the mid-level management position.
Job Posting for Mid-Level Manager
The job positing pertains a branch manager, which is one of the major mid-level management positions for the company. A branch manager oversees and coordinates all operations for the branch. The job description comprises a summary of the major duties and responsibilities that a branch manager will be expected to handle. First, the branch manager supervises specific tasks that require the attention of the superiors. Daily routines are also developed and implemented with the help of the branch manager. Other duties include monitoring employee performance within the branch, fostering teamwork and building teams, allocating resources to departments and business units, and reporting emerging issues to top management. The list is not exhaustive and other duties and responsibilities may be included, for instance, monitoring customer service, managing staff, and attaining sales goals.
Hiring Process and Decision
The hiring process and the decision to be made will rely on the conventional recruitment and selection steps. In this case, the first step will be to make a job posting as a means of attracting applicants. All applications are then reviewed based on the job description and requirements. The selection is done to ensure that only those who qualify undergo interviews. The interviewing process also incorporates various tests to determine the proficiency levels of the candidates. The candidate that passes the test will be hired. After the hiring decision is made, the candidate is taken through the pre-employment checks and tests. The hiring decision will be made based on the qualifications of the candidates. As such, reference checks are conducted followed by a review of the qualifications. Most importantly, cultural fit tests will determine the final hiring decision.
Non-Discriminatory Interview Questions
The above interview questions can be considered to be non-discriminatory since they do not relate to any of the protected characteristics. In the first question, the academic qualification does not seek information regarding the school attended. Questions about how candidates heard about the job position are often used to inform the management on which channels worked the best with the job posting. Preferences in the type of work environment or individual or teamwork could test the personality and cultural fit for the candidate. Lastly, handling pressure is something that all employees will experience in the workplace. Overall, these interview questions have not asked the candidate questions regarding their backgrounds, which means makes them non-discriminatory. They have focused mostly on the qualifications and job fit.
What to Avoid in the Interview
There are several things that an interviewed should not do during an interview. Besides asking discriminatory questions, the interviewer should avoid all issues that indicate lack of readiness or preparedness for the interview. For example, one should not fail to have interview questions ready and should not fail to read a candidate’s resume before interview. Other issues to avoid include being too quick to judge and speaking negatively about the candidate. The reason why all these issues should be avoided is that they might paint a negative picture about the company. In many cases, employer branding is used as a tool to attract the most qualified candidates. Any negative impression may cause candidates to change their mind and prefer a different employer, which means losing top talent.
Discriminatory Questions to Avoid
In terms of discriminatory questions, a simple way to develop them is to look at the protected characteristics and use them as the basis for the questions. Asking candidates about the school they attended may show intent for preferential treatment. Similarly, asking questions about age, marital status, age, and sexual orientation may also hint at the potential for discrimination. The reason why these questions should not be asked is that they might cause a biased recruitment process where preferential treatment is given to certain candidates due to their characteristics. Most importantly, there could arise legal consequences should candidates decide to sue the company for discriminatory practices. To avoid any lawsuit from dissatisfied candidates, it is recommended that all hints or discrimination are eliminated.
Legal Considerations during Selection
The selection process should be conducted in compliance with various legal considerations. Today, employers are often interested in the background checks for the candidates, which reveal critical information that influences the selection outcome. According to Smith (2022), employers are also interested in findings workers who fit the values and expectations of the company. The legality of the background checks and the information that the recruiter remains contentious and controversial due to the questions or privacy. Checking criminal records may present similar challenge. Most importantly, the selection process should consider the legal implications of discrimination and the Equal Employment Act of 2010, as well as other legislations governing workplace discrimination.
References
Collier, E. (2017). How to avoid discrimination in recruitment. Retrieved from High Speed Training: Web.
Hennekam, S., Peterson, J., Tahssain-Gay, L., & Dumazert, J. (2018). Recruitment discrimination: How organizations use social power to circumvent laws and regulations. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 32(10), 2213-2241. Web.
Smith, J. (2022). Navigating the complexities of background checks. Web.