Talk about institutionalizing a wrongheaded idea. A new twist in hiring, as seen on both job boards and in online job postings by employers, is that candidates must be employed to apply for an open position.
This from a major job board: “If you are currently employed and confidentially seeking a new opportunity…”
It’s something that’s been popping up with distressing frequency. I think it’s discriminatory, and, moreover, I think it’s just stupid.
Let’s look at this in a practical way. What are the benefits to the hiring employer?
Theoretically, the employer would know that the candidate was able to have a job, and could assume that that candidate could show up on time and breathe. Beyond that, who knows? To use being currently employed as a yardstick for quality job performance is a fallacy.
And as a baseline disqualifier? Wow, you’re losing some potentially great people in a world of work that veers between 8-11% unemployed.
In these crazy economic times, the last thing we need is more hindrances or confusion in the hiring process. But that’s what we’re getting. With this new restriction, or qualification, employers and staffing agencies are losing a huge part of the talent pool. Such wrong-headed thinking can also damage our jobs comeback.
Let’s look at this in a practical way. What are the benefits to the hiring employer?
The National Employment Law Project (www.nelp.org) agrees. The nonprofit says that it’s a “perverse Catch-22” to mandate that someone have a job before getting a job, and also states that it is “deepening our unemployment crisis by foreclosing job opportunities to many who are otherwise qualified for them.”
Luckily our government is catching on to this. New Jersey made such wording illegal in March, and similar bills are gathering steam in Michigan and Illinois.
A letter sent to a major job board by Senators recently seems to sum it up. It says, in part:
“It is unreasonable and unfair to assume struggling Americans lost their job because of their work ethic or performance when so many businesses are struggling from financial hardship.” This was sent by Senators Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York.
And there’s one more thing… how many of these potential job candidates will simply be provoked into lying and say, “Oh, sure, I’m currently employed?” Sorting that out will be another headache for the hiring manager.
I’d be willing to listen to arguments on the other side. Leave your comments below!
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i agree Jeff and one of my best hires ever was an unemployed person…we have to shed our biases and truly keep an open mind in acquiring great talent
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