Good and Bad Interview Preparation Guide

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There are few questions legal to ask relating to ancestry and race which are pertinent to employment. During an interview, you may legally be asked, "How many languages are you fluent in?
Faced with questions such as these, you can refuse to answer, stating simply, "This (these) questions do not affect my ability to perform the job."

A prospective employer cannot ask about your financial status or credit rating during the course of an interview. There are limited exceptions to this, if you are applying for certain financial and banking positions. In addition, employers can check the credit of job applicants, with the candidate's permission.

An interviewer can ask questions regarding whether you are able to meet work schedules, or travel for the position. He can ask about how long you expect to stay at a particular job, or with the prospective firm. Whether you anticipate any extended absences can also be asked.

An interviewer cannot ask your religious affiliation, or holidays that you observe. It is illegal to be asked your place of worship, or your beliefs. If you are asked questions of this kind, you may reply that your faith will not interfere with your ability to do the job.

You may not be asked about your type of discharge, or about your military records. Questions relating to foreign military service are forbidden as well. If you choose to answer these questions, you can indicate that there is nothing in your records that would impair your ability to succeed in the job.

In a face to face interview, it is unlikely that an interviewer will not know your gender, but important that your gender not be taken into account in her assessment of your ability to do the job. You can't be asked your gender during any kind of interview for a position, unless it directly relates to your qualifications for a job, such as an attendant in a rest room, or locker room.

The interviewer may ask questions pertaining to your ability to perform specific tasks, such as "Are you able to safely lift and carry items weighing up to 30 pounds?", or "This position requires standing for the length of your shift, are you able to do that comfortably?" or "Are you able to sit comfortably for the duration of your shift? "Under no circumstances is a prospective employer allowed to ask your height, weight, or any details regarding any physical or mental limitations you may have, except as they directly relate to the job requirements. If you choose to reply, you can state "I am confident that I will be able to handle the requirements of this position."

Employers cannot make employment decisions on the basis of a service member's membership or active duty service in the military. Essentially, the employer cannot ask questions about the effect of the employee's military service on his ability to work for the employer.

Employers can not make judgments about a person's dedication to their work by whether they have kids or will have them in the future. "If the employer wants to find out how committed the candidate will be to the job offered, the interviewer should ask questions such as, 'What hours can you work?' or 'Do you have commitments aside from work that will interfere with specific job requirements such as traveling?

It is legal to ask about whether candidates have been convicted of a crime, but not if they have been arrested. Cases may have been dismissed without a conviction, or the original charges may have been lowered to lesser charges.

There are instances where an employer may need to determine an applicant's age. The interviewer can ask a young interviewee if he has appropriate working papers. If the job requires that an applicant is of a legal minimum age for the position (i.e. bartender, etc.), the interviewer can ask as a pre-requisite to employment that proof of age be furnished. If the company has a regular retirement age, they are permitted to ask if the applicant is below that age.

Even if you have shared information about having children, there is no need for a prospective employer to ask who is taking care of them. The law prohibits making employment decisions based on gender stereotypes. "For instance, that women or men with children are less committed to work than those without."

Yes, you should have questions, but not these:
☛ Will I need to pass a drug test before I get hired? How much notice will I have?
☛ Do you do background checks?
☛ Will you be checking my references?
☛ How often do people get raises here?
☛ Do you cover sick days? How many can I have each month?
☛ How much vacation will I get?
☛ How big is the employee discount? Is there a limit on how much I can buy? ☛ Is it OK to resell?
☛ Would you like to go out for a drink after this? (flirt after accepting a job offer)

There is nothing I have ever done that would give your company any concern that I would breach any trust that the job you have requires. (The interviewer may be concerned about employee dishonesty, hence the question. Your answer satisfies the concern without turning off the interviewer.)

Best Answer:
I collect stamps and coins, ski in the winter and sail with a friend on his boat in the summer. (Is the interviewer trying to find a pitcher for the company's softball team? There is no reason not to give a direct answer, although you are looking for a job based on your business skills, not your sports ability.)

The ADA prohibits not only discrimination against those with an actual disability, but against those who are 'regarded as disabled. Prospective employers may, however, ask if you are able to perform essential functions of the job, with or without accommodation.

Best Answer:
I am not sure how this relates to the job. Can you explain? (The question is plainly discriminatory and against the law. Your answer doesn't offend and leaves the door open should the interviewer provide some relevancy, though that is unlikely. Some interviewers are simply nosy.)

Best Answer:
Two years ago. (This is an area in which you decide ahead of time whether to give a direct response to an inappropriate question, one that the employer may be using to learn about physical handicap. Since discrimination for handicaps is illegal, you are on safe ground to answer directly.)

Best Answer:
Yes, and very supportive of my seeking employment here. (Some employers believe that people from dual-income families have less incentive to work, are less dependable, and, therefore, are less productive. You've skirted the illegal question, laid to rest the concern and avoided and unpleasant confrontation.)

Best Answer:
There is no task in your job description that I can not perform.
This is an illegal question and I will not answer.

Best Answer:
I will be glad to take a pre-employment exam by your company physician to be sure I am able to handle the job. (The employer may be trying to uncover maladies ranging from AIDS to drug addiction. Your answer relieves those concerns without directly replying to the question.)

Best Answer:
I plan to pursue a career whether or not I decide to raise a family.

Do not give these answers:
☛ Nothing. (So, you applied why???)
☛ You have got this job open.
☛ I hear you pay well.

These answers are shallow and completely focused on the benefit to the job seeker:
☛ My mom said I had to get a job. (Highly-motivated job seeker!)
☛ Because I would look GREAT in your uniform!
☛ This is a short walk from where I live now.
☛ I understand you give employees great discounts.

Most of these answers are worrisome:
☛ I do not know. (Neither will the employer.)
☛ No one else will hire me.
☛ I am unemployed.
☛ I am desperate.
☛ I need the money.
☛ I need a job.