Once all the legal stipulations have been met, and it is time for a face-to-face meeting with a prospective new employee, recruitment personnel must ensure that they do not slip up during the interview process—as the wrong question can, and often does, lead to later complaints of “bias” by rejected applicants.
Here follows a list of issues which can be addressed during an interview—but always, it should be remembered, with due care.
– The applicant’s availability for work outside or beyond routine working hours. The following question is generally acceptable: “Since this position requires work outside of normal work hours, are you available to work [describe the hours and frequency]?”
– Age. It is permissible to ask an applicant if they can provide proof that they are at least 18 years old—if that is a requirement of the job, or to meet state child labor restrictions. As a general rule, there are no other situations in which an inquiry may be made about an applicant’s age, unless
there is a legal restriction in this regard.
– Past criminal behavior. Generally, there must be a relationship between the conviction and the job requirements. For example, in the SNF environment, convictions for fraud, theft, and so on are all valid reasons to inquire, but traffic convictions are not.
– Citizenship. Employers are not allowed to discriminate against foreign nationals, but it is perfectly permissible—in fact it is a legal requirement—to ensure that all potential employees are eligible to work in the U.S. A direct question such as “Can you provide proof of your eligibility to work in the United States?” can be made without fear of any resulting claim of “bias.”
– Language. If it is directly job-related, an employer can ask if an applicant speaks any language other than English—but care must be taken that this is asked of every other applicant as well, to avoid problems down the line.
– Mental or physical disabilities. An employer is entitled to ask every applicant if they can perform the essential functions of the job “with or without reasonable accommodation.” In this regard, it is important to ensure that a full job description is provided to all applicants which describes in detail the essential job functions.
– Inquiries about providing compassionate care. In the SNF environment, it is perfectly acceptable to ask a question relating to the applicant’s ability to provide professional standards of care—and to use the answers to determine job suitability. For example, a candidate’s reaction to questions such as “How would you respond to a resident’s or family member’s concern?” or “What would you consider to be a high quality nursing home?” are perfectly acceptable.
– “Open questions” which provide the opportunity for the applicant to speak for themselves are permissible and can provide important pointers in choosing the right candidate. Examples of such questions are “Tell me about your last job,” “What do you know about our company?” and “How do you handle conflict?”
– “Closed questions” are used to acquire specific job-related information, and are also perfectly acceptable in determining job suitability. Examples can include “What is your IT proficiency level?” “What salary do you want?” and “Have you ever applied here before?”
Generally, the more complex the job, the more open-ended the questions used by the interviewer must be in order to secure the information necessary to determine whether or not the applicant can perform the job.
Next: What questions not to ask.
