This post goes out to all employers, both in showbiz and outside of it.
You come off as a holy-rolling twat cake when you ask nay, require an applicant to submit a photograph for a job that doesn’t need a special ‘look’ or ‘appearance’ to get the job. I’m not talking about jobs like actor, model, etc, where the look of a person is a visually integral part of the product, even though I still have concerns over that ball of razor blades.
I place anyone (or any company) that requires a photograph with an application somewhere between ax murder and pedophile. Actually, as far as that scale is concerned, I’d rather converse with a pedophile for the research perks that would provide me as a writer. You on the other hand, I’d rather work in a factory chopping up baby animals than waste my time applying to your company for a job that requires I look a certain way rather than perform my job with the skill set I have so painstakingly cultivated.
When you ask for a photograph with an application you are:
- NOT Professional – A dead giveaway to REAL professionals interested in becoming a part of your company or team). No one wants to work for someone who has NO CLUE what they’re doing.
- Breaking Laws – The EEOC says it is ILLEGAL to ask a prospective employee for a picture or anything before the job is formally offered.
- It appears as discriminatory. Why do you want to look like an uneducated bigot when trying to build a team that will raise your product from an idea to fruition?
So employers, producers, directors of Craigslist and the Los Angeles Table (names politely but not deservedly withheld): STOP.
Stop asking for photographs when asking for applications. I will fight for the rest of my life while this law is in place to bury your stupidity with requests like this because there’s no room in this world for shallowness. I don’t care if this is Los Angeles where ugly people are arrested for fashion mishaps, or plain Jane, Arkansas. There’s just no room for you here.
The EEOC guidelines:
Taken from the EEOC (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission)
Pre-Employment Inquiries (General)
As a general rule, the information obtained and requested through the pre-employment process should be limited to those essential for determining if a person is qualified for the job; whereas, information regarding race, sex, national origin, age, and religion are irrelevant in such determinations.
Employers are explicitly prohibited from making pre-employment inquiries about disability.
Although state and federal equal opportunity laws do not clearly forbid employers from making pre-employment inquiries that relate to, or disproportionately screen out members based on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, or age, such inquiries may be used as evidence of an employer’s intent to discriminate unless the questions asked can be justified by some business purpose.
Therefore, inquiries about organizations, clubs, societies, and lodges of which an applicant may be a member or any other questions, which may indicate the applicant’s race, sex, national origin, disability status, age, religion, color or ancestry if answered, should generally be avoided.
Similarly, employers should not ask for a photograph of an applicant. If needed for identification purposes, a photograph may be obtained after an offer of employment is made and accepted.
I recently wrote a member of a networking group why they required a photograph with the application for a job as a Script Supervisor.
Their twat cake vacant reply was: “Because I asked for one.”
Don’t be this person.
Get off your arse and interview people like adults instead of petulant junior-high cheerleaders chittering behind the Gator-ade dispenser.
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4.10.13 In a lovely turn of events, the moderator of The Table has now banned submissions requiring photographs because it promotes a discriminatory atmosphere. I bow to you, sir and thank you.
