Preparing Students for Responding To Illegal Selection Interview Questions
The selection interview is a very important communication event for all of us who seek employment because our ability to earn a living is at stake. The recognition that this kind of decision is being made and the uncertainty regarding how the interviewer might evaluate what we say undoubtedly contributes to the stress we feel. Beyond this, the potential is high for being asked to supply information that is not legally usable in the employment decision-making process. Research indicates that we might very well be asked an illegal question and that we are likely to answer the question directly, if asked (Springston & Keyton, 1988; Siegfried & Wood, 1983). Adding further to this problem is the likelihood that the interviewee has not been taught strategies for managing these questions (Siegfried & Wood, 1983; Wilson, in press). The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how strategies for answering illegal interview questions can be taught. First, the nature of the illegal questioning problem is discussed. Then, a plan for teaching strategies for managing illegal questioning is presented.
I Don't Want To Answer That! A Response Strategy Model for Potentially Discriminatory Questions.
Two studies examined the effectiveness of a model designed as an instructional aid in teaching coll,,, students how to respond to potentially discriminatory employment interview questions. Subjects in the first study, 91 students enrolled in communication classes in a mid-size Wisconsin university who were told that they would be asked to respond to potentially discriminatory questions and 99 similar students who were not told that they would be asked to respond to potentially discriminatory questions, were instructed to think about the type of job they wouln be seeking in the near future and were asked to write how they woui-.actually respond to a set of six discriminatory questions. Subjects for the second study, 291 adults identifieu from the mailing lists of the continuing and adult education division of a mid-size university in Alabama, were sent a three-page questionnaire asking them to write exactly what they would say if an interviewer asked them questions which, unknown to the respondents, were discriminatory. Sixty-two surveys were returned, for a response rate of 21.3%. Results indicated that although the demographics for the student and non-student populations differed considerably, the primary response strategy was the same--the overwhelming response to potentially discriminatory questions was to give the information regrested, even when the subjects were told that the questions were illegal. Findings suggest support for the model for interviewee responses to impermissible interview questions. (Three tables of data are included, and 17 references are attached.) (RS) *********************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. *********************************************************************** I DON'T WANT TO ANSWER THAT! A RESPONSE STRATEGY MODEL FOR POTENTIALLY DISCRIMINATORY QUESTIONS Joann Keyton Assistant Professor
Gender Pay Gap in the European Union Labor Market
The participation of women in the European Union labor market has been increasing over recent years, putting an end to the notion that women are a marginal part of the labor force. However, such increased integration of women into paid work has neither ended the traditional gender divide between jobs nor it translated into gender equality in terms of economic opportunity and economic participation in the labor market. The purpose of the paper is to briefly discuss the gender pay gap in the EU labor market. The paper defines gender pay gap and provides a brief theoretical overview of the underlying causes of such pay asymmetry between men and women. Statistics provided for EU 25 reveal that the current policy attempts to reduce such a gender asymmetry still lack improvement in practice. The paper concludes with selected policy suggestions aiming to make a progress in the issue of the gender equality in pay.