(It wasn't bad enough, they just thought they could make it worse, and look, they did! Thanks for the link, Rob.--jef)
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In the caste system of career seekers looking for jobs during this economic downturn, employers are deeming the unemployed as untouchable, worker advocates say.
The reported screening-out of applicants without jobs could lead to discrimination against women and minorities during one of the worst job markets in recent memory, those testifying at an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission hearing today said.
And while companies may not specifically have a policy to exclude the unemployed and may informally use employment status in hiring, that allegation, if true, would be of much interest to the EEOC, which enforces federal antidiscrimination laws.
Unemployment data showed that the jobless rate among blacks was 15.7 percent and that it was 11.9 percent for Hispanics, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Among whites, the rate was 8 percent, and the overall rate is 9 percent.
Several examples of discriminatory help-wanted ads were presented at the hearing including an online ad from a Texas electronics company claiming it would "not consider/review anyone NOT currently employed regardless of the reason." A separate ad for a restaurant manager position in New Jersey said that applicants must be employed, the Los Angeles Times reported.
As the unemployed struggle to find work, there has also been a rise in the business of employing temporary workers. According to figures from one remote-staffing firm, oDesk, the number of employers hiring contractors on an ongoing basis rose 800 percent over the past three years.
U.S. employers review nine applicants for every two available jobs, William E. Spriggs, assistant secretary of Labor for policy, said at the hearing.
That is slightly better than in June, when unemployment stood at 9.5 percent and there were five job seekers for every posted job, a figure that does not really reflect how many candidates there actually were per job, since the unemployed or others could be applying to multiple jobs.
Even experienced executives looking for jobs have had a difficult search if they are out of work and are having to find ways to market themselves.
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