Will EEOC make online application illegal?

November 10, 2008 by
Filed under: Online recruiting, Security and law, Special Report 

These days, recruiters and HR pros don’t think twice about posting open jobs online. But do online recruiting methods unfairly exclude minority candidates?

The answer is yes, according to a recent study by the JobApp Network, a recruitment outsourcing firm.

JobApp accepts applications both online and over the phone. To study the effects on different groups, the company looked at the demographics of job seekers who applied using each method.

The results:

  • More than 40% of the telephone applications came from minorities, and
  • minorities made up just 20% of the online applicants.

The upshot: If companies only take online applications, they may be excluding minorities from the selection process.

It’s not a new theory — given the difference in Internet access among racial and ethnic groups, the notion that an online-only hiring process will adversely impact some groups has been discussed before.

But this study is the first to support the theory with statistics.

HR’s big question: Is it illegal?

In 2005, the EEOC issued an informal discussion letter warning about accepting applications exclusively via the Internet.

The law prohibits not just intentional bias, but also the use of “neutral selection criteria” that exclude a disproportionate number of people in a protected class.

Online recruiting methods may fall under that category if people over the age of 40, minorities or disabled job seekers have limited access to the job.

So far, the courts haven’t tested the issue, and informal discussion letter’s aren’t meant to give the EEOC’s official position. In other words, it’s not clear whether employers are at risk of being sued when they only advertise jobs and accept resumes through the Internet.

Either way, companies looking to attract a diverse workforce will want to consider recruiting employees through a variety of methods.

You can the EEOC letter here. The full study from JobApp is available here.

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Comments

19 Comments on Will EEOC make online application illegal?

  1. Angela on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 1:53 pm

    2. We changed to accepting applications exclusively via a web site in 2002, but there were some things we put in place to ensure that we were accessible to all potential applicants. First, we provide computer kiosks in our Employment Center for use by the public if they do not have ready access to a computer. We also have staff available who will assist and actually sit down with the applicant, ask them the questions, and type in the application information for them if need be. Also at these kiosks are notebooks with our position vacancies listed so that someone can come in and look thru the notebook if they are not comfortable searching on the web. Secondly, we still utilize print advertisement in our local paper; we do a large ad every Sunday listing all of our position vacancies. In this ad we give the address and telephone number of our Employment Center, and also advise candidates needing assistance that they can go to the local state workforce agency office. We also state that internet access is available at public libraries.

    We have switched to web-only recruitment for our mid and upper level positions where we are doing regional or national searches, but we would expect individuals qualified for those positions to be adept at using computer resources.

  2. Steven on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 1:53 pm

    3. Our experience has been just the opposite. In the years before on-line applications, we struggled to get minority applicants. Since going to on-line applications, our percentages are much higher and are well above the local population. I believe a lot of this has to do with the location of the business. We are in a part of town that does not have a high population of minorities. We are also not on a bus line. So prior to on-line applications, it was more difficult for someone from another part of town to apply. On-line applications seem to have actually leveled the playing field for our applicants.

  3. Ian on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 2:32 pm

    4. I would never consider an applicant who does not have either the means or skill to submit an electronic application. This day and age, if someone does not have the minimum skill set to be able to use a computer, they will certainly not have the skills necessary for the position.

  4. Dana on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 2:59 pm

    5. Every “minority” I have come in contact with (including many low income families), as well as the multitude of minority friends of my four children, have cell phones with Web Access. If they are looking for a job, they have access to that information. We have over 200 minority workers. We are never at a loss for minority and/or low-income applicants.

    Also, the public libraries and the Government Employment Agencies have free computer access for job seekers.

  5. Laura on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 3:02 pm

    6. Angela: How many employees do you have?

  6. Walt on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 3:04 pm

    7. I will check these statistics, but frankly they appear to be meaningless. They identify two distinct methods of applying, either of which is viable. In one, minorities are represented – and probably overrepresented – by a significant percentage. This proves that minorities (some) may prefer phone application, in comparison to non-minorities, or that non-minorities do not. It proves nothing else, because we don’t know the jobs, the representations in the qualified workforce, the numbers of applicants, etc.
    Anyone who would draw any conclusion from this data would be asking to be misled. Moreover, I would guess that any attempt to overcome the above flaws would be highly suspect, again because we cannot know which applicant group is being affected by the application method.

  7. Marcie on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 3:43 pm

    8. A lot will depend on the position. As a construction company, we would not recruit via on-line methods exclusively for say a carpenter or laborer position. However, a controller or project manager – web is the way to go.

  8. Dana on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 3:56 pm

    9. I refer to some white collar and some blue collar jobs in a workforce of 300. I am not a statistician and I am only submitting what I witness daily. But I would also add that there are less and less people that subscribe to a Land Line — and more and more with cell phones having Internet Access included in their features. Most of my own family — including grandparents — possess only cell phones because of the high cost and limited features of Land Lines.

  9. Angela on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 4:50 pm

    10. Lara – We have over 3,000 employees in the job classifications recruited to via our web site.

  10. Laura on Tue, 11th Nov 2008 4:51 pm

    11. Thank you Angela

  11. Randy on Wed, 12th Nov 2008 9:49 am

    12. It is not really a minority issue, although may may try to make it one. There are a lot of people in rural areas, or of lower income, who do not have access to the internet. They have to make a greater effort to access online applications by traveling to a place with internet access, such as a public library or a local employment office or career center. Doing away with online job postings will not solve anything. Posting jobs online exclusively, however, is not a good idea at present, especially in rural areas, as you can limit your pool of applicants. Using online postings to supplement traditional methods is still the best way to go.

  12. Den on Wed, 12th Nov 2008 11:38 am

    13. Interesting this is a job posting for the EEOC and here is the how to apply page. It says you Must create an online account, and faxing your information should be used as a “last resort”
    http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov/getjob.asp?JobID=77076156&jbf574=EE00&brd=3876&AVSDM=2008-10-30+00%3A03%3A01&sort=dt&vw=d&Logo=0&FedPub=Y&caller=%2Fagency_search.asp&FedEmp=N&SUBMIT1.x=69&SUBMIT1.y=15&ss=0&SUBMIT1=Search+for+Jobs&TabNum=5&rc=2
    Isn’t it funny they want you to do as they say and not as they do……

  13. Gary on Wed, 12th Nov 2008 12:58 pm

    14. If the EEOC had their way, they would require companies to go knock on doors in minority neighborhoods as the only method of recruitment. If the internet is not an acceptable method, surely running ads in a newspaper is not acceptable; people would actually have to spend money to buy a newspaper; and be able to read. I guess you could hire someone to stand on street corners and hold signs advertising jobs, but then your would have to decide where to have them stand in order for everyone in the world to see them and which languages would have to be shown. Maybe job listings could be put on large signs in outer space as long as they are visable to everyone on earth; but then if the have bad eyesight or can’t read, you might still have a problem. There is no method of recruitment for which you could not make some type of argument as to the possiblity that someone doesn’t have equal access. This is just another part of the radical left agenda. These are the types of suggestions that continue to erode the credibility of the EEOC.

  14. Patricia on Wed, 12th Nov 2008 1:05 pm

    15. I work in Silicon Valley and find there are many people who surprisingly don’t have computers. They know how to use computers but can’t afford to own one, or can’t afford to pay for internet access. I think the EEOC is pointing out that making assumptions that everyone has a computer or access, and if they don’t they aren’t computer savy, are assumptions companies shouldn’t make. Excellent candidates are probably being overlooked.

  15. Troy on Wed, 12th Nov 2008 3:00 pm

    16. The adverse impact of application processes on populations is a valid area for study. Unfortunately, this report doesn’t prove the point that the author presents. Consider these four points:

    1. The report is not on a scientific study, but an analysis of a pre-existing data set.
    2. The report details that the sample was “26,403 applicants who applied for a position in the restaurant and retail industries.” Since the JobApp Network specializes in retail, distribution, healthcare, hospitality and restaurants, these results can only reflect the experience of applicants in those sectors. These limited results cannot be generalized to a population as a whole.
    3. Since the report does not detail any exclusionary options, it presents a false dilemma. The applicants were given a choice of two methods of applying. Some populations chose to apply by phone. Nothing in the data suggests that those applying by phone had no other way to apply.
    4. Given #3, the author’s thesis statement, “Employers who offer only a web-based employment application process limit their applicant pool and may also adversely impact their efforts to promote diversity” is not proven.

    This is shoddy science.

  16. Angela on Thu, 13th Nov 2008 10:36 am

    17. Re: Den – We actually had an EEOC rep here a couple of years ago investigating a complaint, and she took issue with the fact that our applications were not actually “signed” by our applicants because we had an online process. I came back to my office, pulled up the EEOC web site, hit the print button, and showed her that her own agency was using a web-based application process! She was a loooong-term EEOC employee (read here: completely out of touch with reality!!) and didn’t even know her own agency’s application process!! Jeez!

  17. Lisa on Fri, 14th Nov 2008 1:21 pm

    18. We currently only have our open position listed in two places. Both Free to list the position.

    One is the local community college, which anyone attending college has free access to computers and internet. They can fax it from the college if needed for free.

    The second is with the Texas Unemployment office, and it is completely computerized. If they do not own a computer or have internet access, they just go to the unemployment office and apply. About 95% of the people replying to our opening are minorities. They can apply via fax from the Unemployement office if they wish.

  18. Greg Nall on Fri, 21st Nov 2008 7:46 am

    19. I strongly disagree with this article. I would venture to say that all municipalities have multiple free employment resource centers including unemployment offices and public libraries. I believe that to assert minorities are unable to apply online and utilize the free resources available to them is both offense and discriminatory.

  19. Dave B. on Tue, 20th Jan 2009 3:13 pm

    20. I’ve been in HR for a long time and I agree with Gary. The assumption that “minorities” are not as prone to utilize or be able to utilize online applications is discriminatory itself! The fact of the matter is, online recruiting and job hunting is evolving daily. Print ads are too expensive for the return and paper applications are a pain to log and manage in general.

    Survival of the fittest should not be a thing of the past. If you can’t use a computer (regardless of your race, age, sex, etc.), we do not want to employ you. All job functions in my organization are performed through a proprietary software system.

    Also, if the candidate does not have the motivation to go to a library or employment center, they may not be the most employable individual to begin with.