You’re all set to spend the day interviewing a group of potential employees for a new position.  Are you ready with a list of appropriate questions to ask candidates?    Interviewers must use caution to avoid an impermissible line of inquiry that might be misinterpreted as discriminatory.  After all, you’re in the market for a new employee, not a lawsuit. 

Julie T. London, in the issue of EEO Update provides an invaluable list of recommendations for interview questions.  Keep in mind, foremost, that any questions you ask need to be related to the position at issue.

Planning your questions in advance greatly reduces the risk that you will ask a question that your interviewee might construe as discriminatory.  It also puts you on guard against making offhand comments that might be considered derogatory or inappropriate. 

In addition, be sure to avoid questions that are “hidden indicators.”  Asking how old an individual is, for example, is illegal in an obvious sense, but so is asking what year they graduated from high school, because knowing a graduation date gives an interviewer a good idea of exact age. 

For more tips on great hiring practices, contact HR Outsourcing, Inc.  Hiring the right people is one of the most important business practices you can develop.

Source: London, Julie T.  “Inquiry Guidelines for Job Interviews,” EEO Update