Recruitment - Discrimination is not the name of the game

However, there are certain aspects of the law that have implications for employers; most importantly not to unlawfully discriminate. UK legislation dictates it is unlawful to discriminate against a candidate on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, race, disability, religion and age. Therefore a job advert should:-
Avoid the use of age limits or ranges;

Avoid words such as “youthful”, “dynamic”, “energetic”, “hungry” or “mature person”. These could result in a complaint of age discrimination since they suggest an employer is looking for applicants from a particular age group;
Use gender-neutral job titles. Stating a preference for a man or woman is unlawful sex discrimination unless the requirements of the particular job mean that it is lawful to employ only a man or a woman. You should therefore, avoid “handyman” and “salesgirl”.

Be placed in suitable media to reach as broad an audience as possible, to avoid complaints of indirect discrimination. Consider using specialist publications, websites and agencies to target different communities, sexes and ages.

Weight Discrimination is developing as an issue and “fatism” is rife. Although there is no Weight Discrimination Act, a recruiter should be aware that other laws could be called upon rendering weight discrimination unlawful. It was reported that Thomas The Tank Engine operators had been advised against advertising for a suitably fat Fat Controller – this would discriminate against thin people. A good job advert will be based around objective criteria relevant to the job. This should all follow the preparation of a job description and person-specification. The person specification will identify and differentiate between ‘essential’ and ‘desirable’: should a discrimination claim arise this specification may help to justify the language used in the advert.