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Discrimination during recruitment?

Can any help me with this HR recruitment questions in-regards to recruitment shortlisting, any advice would be appreciated

Question

The question I have is it possible to determine the best candidate just using the shortlisting criteria such as  ''experience'', ''knowledge'',''skills''( whether essential or desirable from the job ad) then combine with the assessment criteria but there is no number scoring, or either a  final score?

Any general or technical advice would be
appreciated. I understand when shortlisting a job candidate always use the shortlisting criteria and score them, so this process confirms it was objective  and not subjective.

 

Thanks

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  • Sorry I forgot to add the following-
    Can there be no scoring between all the candidates, or either no score based selection criteria applied as good HR practice to determine the best candidate for the interview stage?
  • I don't think you could find the 'best' candidate with just short list criteria.

    What position is being hired for?
  • In reply to Peter:

    Hello Peter
    I applied for a low lever (non hr) admin role-
    job ad=
    Job ad-Administrator ( temp 2 positions)
    Person spec-
    ''We are looking for self motivated individuals, who will be able to adapt to the changing demands of the business throughout the course of the fixed term contract. Additionally you will have ;
    -Aptitiude to work in a fast paced role
    -Experience of working in a professional office environment
    -Good IT skills
    -Ability to work independently with initiative
    -Excellent attention to detail and accuracy

    I was given a quick job response in the exact words of ’Thank you for your interest in our Administrator vacancy. Your CV has been unsuccessful but I wish you luck with your job search. I think your experience is too strong for what we require but would happily discuss further with you.’’

    I did respond back for feedback by email to see if I may need to change my cv ( 4 pages), or change the job letter. I asked in the feedback letter the following questions-

    6i-What did I the candidate score in the recruitment shortlist criteria against the person specification on the job advertisement?
    FEEDBACK RESPONSE-A score based selection criteria was not used and so you do not have a score.

    6f-What recruitment selection criteria was used for the interview shortlisting?

    FEEDBACK RESPONSE- Candidate's skills, experience and knowledge was consider against the requirements of the role. No score
    based selection criteria were applied.

    6g-Exactly how were the candidates score on those criteria?
    FEEDBACK RESPONSE- No score based selection were applied.

    6j-What did the successful candidates who selected for interviews and whom were successful for the two jobs score?
    FEEDBACK RESPONSE- A score selection criteria was not used and so you do not have a score and so they do not have a score.

    6k-What is the reason the successful candidates were appointed?
    FEEDBACK RESPONSE-The two individuals whom were appointed had experience in administrative roles.

    I thought I would be given a score, but nothing given.Any advice would be appreciated .
    Thanks
    Wahid
  • In reply to Waheed Akhtar:

    Wahid

    You are looking for something that isn't there.

    I would focus on making a far more targeted and shorter CV (2 pages max for admin) rather than trying to show there was something odd about this selection criteria.

    Unless you have something far stronger to go on then this is not going anywhere.

    Good luck in finding a suitable role.
  • In reply to Waheed Akhtar:

    Hi Waheed,

    I've never scored candidates applications, and you are mistaken if you think this is common practice.

    Recruitment isn't an exact science. So many factors determine who is selected for interview.

    I don't find anything discriminatory however in your experience. Why do you believe this to be the case?
  • In reply to Keith:

    Thanks Peter - I found a p-t admin role for a charity already.
  • In reply to Laura Ann:

    Hi Laura
    Something Acas said about if your the strongest candidate, but turn down as for an interview, should seek feedback for the rejection. As it appears an issue for overqualified applicant policy is in place, and job applications are not open for all ages on merit for an interview or job etc. I did the admin role before twice and in an admin (non hr admin job) role again but on a volunteer basis. I may have to speak to Acas again.
    Thanks
    W
  • In reply to Waheed Akhtar:

    Hi Waheed,

    The difficulty you have is that you don't know the standard of the other candidates applications. I've sometimes received hundreds of CV's for a role and have had to make quick and harsh judgments about who to interview e.g. distance to workplace, format of CV, number of jobs (stability of job history), too much detail in CV, not enough detail in CV, worked for a company i know (or think) has a good reputation, no spelling or grammar mistakes in a CV, has a skills that i wasn't looking for but that i think would be useful etc.

    That might well mean that i miss out on a candidate that might have been perfect for the role, but unfortunately when time is at a premium and i'm juggling many different things at once i can't be as scientific as i would like when recruiting.

    I'm not sure that this is the case at all in your example, but I'm just trying to explain how a process can work in real terms.

    Had you worked for this company before?

    I would think you would struggle to make a case for discrimination based on what you have said here I'm afraid.

    Good luck with your new role