CAREERS NOW 03-02-08

Tale of a Strange Interview

DEAR JOYCE: At 55 I took early retirement after 21 years with my employer. Still needing I full-time work, I answered an ad for "Office Manager who knows QuickBooks, $35,000/Year." When I arrived for the interview, there were two other applicants for the same appointment time, a man and a woman. The man was interviewed first, then me.

The interviewer immediately told me he could not pay what was stated in my resume - $32,000 to $35,000 annually. He said the best he could pay was $8 an hour and wanted to know why I was looking for a job since I'd retired. Then he asked if I was married and if my husband worked. When I answered "yes" to both questions, he got huffy and told me that I didn't need to work and that I was just wanting something to fill my spare time.

I was shocked but calmly told him that although "retirement" was the way in which I'd left my former employer, retirement is not my goal for many years to come, and that my husband and I still have financial obligations that require two incomes. I added that I enjoy working and want to be a valued member of another team as I'd been for my former employer. The interviewer basically said I was wasting his time, that he could not afford me, and that he needed someone who would stay longer than three-six months. Nothing in our five-minute interview indicated that I would not be a long-term employee.

I thanked him for his honesty and time but I have never had such an angry, negative interview! Is there an organization where I could make a complaint or should I just chalk it up to the nature of job hunting?

Oh, by the way, this organization is 99.99% minority. I am Caucasian. The man and woman there for this same position were minority. - V.H.C.

Concerning the question of whether, as a 55-year-old white woman, you are a member of a protected class entitled to file a complaint with the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) or state or local civil rights agency, you may be surprised at the answer.

George Lenard is a management labor and employment attorney with Harris Dowell Fisher & Harris in St. Louis, and blogger at George's Employment Blawg. Lenard says that many people think of employment discrimination laws as protecting people based on their membership in "protected classifications," such as African-Americans, women or Muslims.

"In fact, with two exceptions, employment discrimination laws protect people based on protected characteristics rather than membership in specific protected classifications, "Lenard explains.

I asked Lenard why this distinction is important. "While ordinarily one thinks of the law prohibiting discrimination against people based on membership in minority classifications, the law also prohibits the opposite - so-called "reverse discrimination. Just as it is unlawful to discriminate against African-Americans, women or Muslims, it is equally unlawful to discriminate against whites, men or Protestants," Lenard explained..

The two exceptions: If you're under 40 the law doesn't protect you against age discrimination, and if you're able bodied, you can't claim protection under disability discrimination laws.

Your timing of lodging a complaint matters. If you decide to file a charge of discrimination, jump on it - don't miss filing deadlines, Lenard advises. "The interviewer has a lot of questions to answer, including why there was a huge gap between the advertised rate of pay and his interview comments. The questioning about marital status and husband's employment status may be technically unlawful in some states.

"And under federal law, asking the questions is not per se illegal, but, particularly in the context stated, provides strong evidence of bias against married women. Under EEOC regulations, discrimination against married women is considered sex discrimination because sex is still a factor if the employer does not take into consideration marital status of men."

So, as Lenard says, you've got a lot to work with if you want to push forward on a complaint. You were dealt deceit about the pay as well as rudeness based on discriminatory judgments, including possible ageism and racism.

Even so, your irritating experience - and, yes, you were treated like a bug - doesn't mean that your personal best move is to invest your time and focus on legal redress. The outcome may not be worth your effort to document your experience. That's why I encourage you to toss out the unpleasant episode and again direct your energy to your job search. Borrowing from a familiar sentiment, working well is the best revenge.

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