Seven in 10 employers accept exclusion from candidates due to illness or age

According to a new survey, seven out of ten employers lack candidates for specific groups, including those living with long-term illness, disability, mental illness or the over-55s.

The Australian HR Institute (AHRI) surveyed more than 600 business leaders or senior HR decision-makers and found that one-third of employers admit to excluding workers with mental illness.

Twenty-nine percent rejected applicants with chronic illnesses, while 19 percent reported rejecting applicants with disabilities or if they were 55 or older.

Recruiters and careers coaches called the findings “disgusting”, while the AHRI said the talent pool had “clear economic risks”.

AHRI Executive Director Sarah McCann Bartlett noted that it was illegal for employers or employers to discriminate or even inquire about potential employees’ health conditions.

“For traits like a history of mental illness, it would require an employer or potential candidate to disclose, which they’re not legally obligated to do, and employers aren’t allowed by law to actually ask them,” she said.

“By limiting their willingness to hire these candidates, employers are limiting their potential job pool and, importantly, the diversity of their workforce.

‘absolutely disgusting’

Career coach Leah Lambert said the AHRI survey findings were “absolutely shocking”.

“Some companies want to discount the hiring process even for people who have challenges. They might have ADHD or other neurological differences that might affect how the hiring process goes,” she said.

“Because we know people get kicked out because of these things, I often suggest to my clients that they probably don’t ask for special attention if it’s a red flag and causes them to be kicked out.”

Gail McNaught, from SANE, the national mental health organisation, said the findings were “deeply worrying” and reflected the “prejudice and discrimination” faced by many people.

Disability Discrimination Commissioner Rosemary Keyes said it was clear there was still “some way to go” in tackling stereotypes.

“This reinforces the fact that we have not moved past the perception of people with disabilities as being expensive or a burden to employers,” she said.

“We clearly haven’t done enough on the demand side to get employers moving in their understanding of disability.

“Why does it always come back to doing the heavy lifting to prevent discrimination against people with disabilities?”

The Australian Human Rights Commission has called for changes to the Disability Discrimination Act to put this back on employers.

“One of the things we’re really pushing for is affirmative action, where duty-bearers have to put mechanisms in place to ensure that discrimination doesn’t happen in the first place,” Ms Keyes said.

‘Now I just don’t say no’

Tim Hillier, an experienced customer service manager in financial services, thought he was doing the right thing by disclosing to his employer that he had taken time off from the workforce to deal with a mental health condition.

“I had that negative experience where I really felt it was affecting my chances just to be honest. We talked about it and then I didn’t follow through,” he said.

“I never got a call back for some of the roles that my friends were going for, and I had the same experience and graduate qualifications, but I wasn’t offered.”

Mr Hillier said his honesty about his history with obsessive-compulsive disorder, and sometimes depression, led to applications being delayed.

He said a recruiter told him to give up looking for a job in the corporate sector altogether.

“On most applications … they ask, ‘Are you disabled?’ or “Do you need an adjustment?” Mr. Hillier said.

He now works in a banking role in Melbourne where he recently became comfortable disclosing his mental health history.

Clinton Marks, president of recruiting firm Robert Hoff, said it would be unusual for an employer to ask about someone’s personal information.

“The only way I can really establish that they will be able to learn this information is if a candidate bids on an interview,” he said.

“It’s likely that they raised they were limited in their performance for some reason.”

Mr. Marks said that in the case of a long-term illness, a candidate may want to share this information because they may need to take personal leave.

“So that might show up on the actual resume, or they might just establish that they’ve been out of work for a period of time and lose some jobs as a result.”

“I would not suggest to any employer that they should consider a chronic illness, which one cannot control.”

Mr Marks said that while he had not seen more cases of age, he had seen a preference for gender.

He said if someone grew up in another country, it is assumed that they will not have English skills.

“Sometimes consumers are very curious and realize they have an unconscious bias,” he said.

“And we remove names, photos, demographic indicators [the] Candidates, if they are open to it. Increasingly, we are seeing this [they] Ready to do it.”

Ms Lambert said it was not necessary for job seekers to disclose information such as why they had career breaks.

“This is personal information, as you do not need to disclose that you have a six-month-old baby at home, a sick parent or a child who is sick, [so] You might as well take the time,” she said.

“It’s up to the person whether they want to reveal it after they’ve started, but it can definitely hurt their chances.

“Sometimes it’s easier to just say it was for personal reasons and focus on the positive things you’re doing at the time where you’re developing some skills.”