Do you think that companies can do without detailed job descriptions? Why or why not?

Answer each question and then reply on one classmate post for each one.

Question 1

Do detailed job descriptions give current employees the opportunity to say, “I’m not going to do that because it’s not my job.”?

Classmate answer

There are some companies that are well known for what they produce and what they stand for. Certain jobs that entail retail or the restaurant industry more than likely don’t require a detailed job description. I think for big and small unknown companies and even well known companies with unknown positions need job descriptions. I believe that a job description can make or break a applicants decisions based on where they see themselves and what they want to do. Job descriptions list what is required of their applicants for a reason because if you just go in blindly then you might make a big mistake and end up wasting your time. I do believe that detailed job descriptions give current employees the opportunity to say, “I’m not going to do that because it’s not my job.” I have seen it happen before to a company who would have made the employee question their morals and ethics, the employee stood up and stated that they didn’t have to go against their morals/ethics and do that task because it wasn’t in the description when they signed the contract so they weren’t obligated to do so. Job descriptions overall are important but I can see how some would have one and some wouldn’t have one.

Question 2

When recruiting, how could you ensure that you are not inadvertently violating equal employment laws?

Classmate answer

Recruitment process is one of the most important for businesses because it dictates the future of the business by dictating the talents the company attracts. Various issues might arise during this process that might be considered unfair or unethical. During the process, it is important to ensure that none of the employment laws are violated and to do so, a hiring manager or an organization should start as early as advertising. The first step to a free and fair recruitment is ensuring that the job advertisement does not state or imply job restriction to people on the basis of personal attributes such as gender, race, age among others. The advertisement should avoid language that relates to specific attributes and follow a standard set criterion. Business owners and recruiting managers should actively avoid discrimination during an interview process by only asking the questions that focus on professional and skill based qualifications. The interview questions should not focus on the protected area. For instance, asking a woman if she intends to have children during their time in the company or asking a candidate how their religious beliefs might impact the organization bring out an element of discrimination. Another important way of preventing the violation of employment laws is by avoiding unconscious bias. We are all biased in different ways and during an interview, an interviewer should avoid showing excessive empathy to someone of the same gender or race. The last and most important way of preventing the violation of employment laws is offering jobs based on ability.

Question 3

Oftentimes, when we check references, the only thing that former employers are willing to say is, “John was employed here from 2010-2014.” They are not willing to say anything negative about the employee for fear of retribution.

Explain some ways you would dig deeper to get the real truth out of former employers in order to get a better picture of whether or not an applicant would be a good fit for your organization.

Classmate answer

The first step in “digging deeper” would be asking the applicant if it is possible to contact a former employer. You need to make sure the applicant is okay with you contacting their previous employer. If they say yes, they are confident in their work ethic there and have no problem with you speaking to their former employer. If they say no, this can lead to some suspicion and make you wonder why they do not want you speaking to them. At the same time, if the former employer says negative things about the applicant, you could possibly directly or indirectly discriminate them which could lead to other problems.

I think a great way to dig deeper is doing a legal background check with consent. Another thing that may help is asking the applicant if they have been fired or voluntarily resigned from their former employers. If they resigned, you can ask why they made the decision. If they were fired, you can ask what caused it and what are the reasons for it. This will help you get a better picture of the applicant.