As of: March 15, 2024, 6:15 p.m
By: Marco Blanco Ucles
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Applicants have to answer many questions in interviews.
Some, however, are not allowed to be asked by HR staff at all.
Applicants are often tense before an interview.
What questions come to mind?
Do you make a good first impression?
How can you assert yourself against possible competitors?
There are a lot of questions that are floating around in your head.
Many people prepare conscientiously for such an appointment, including potential trick questions.
Anyone who has done their homework in advance knows that an HR manager is not allowed to find out everything about their counterpart.
Some questions do not have to be answered by the applicant at all.
1. Religious views must not play a role in the interview
Normally, in the world of work, it should not be important which religious denomination the potential employee belongs to.
The question about religion is inadmissible and the applicant may therefore even answer it untruthfully.
Denominational employers are an exception, explains the
Hasselbach law firm
.
A church institution, for example, should logically know whether an applicant's religious orientation matches its own.
2. Questions about pregnancy are only permitted in exceptional cases
Even if companies like to plan for the long term, asking an applicant about pregnancy is not allowed in the vast majority of questions.
The following also applies here: Since the question is not legally permissible, the potential employee does not have to answer this question truthfully.
The only exception according to the
Hasselbach law firm
: “As an exception, such a question is permissible if the applicant is applying for a position that has been set up solely to cover pregnancy.”
Uncomfortable questions are sometimes part of an interview - but there are some things that HR professionals are not allowed to ask applicants at all.
© Westend61/IMAGO
3. Health questions are not permitted in the interview
If you suffer from a chronic illness - such as diabetes or rheumatism - or are at high risk of developing a hereditary disease, you do not have to tell your potential employer about this, even if they ask about it.
Like the previous examples, this question also violates the General Equal Treatment Act, informs
Randstad.de
.
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4. Questions about a disability are only permitted to a limited extent
The Social Code of the
Federal Ministry of Justice
states that employers are not allowed to ask their applicants about any possible disabilities they may have.
However, there is a single exception.
This is if the employer has reasonable doubts about the applicant's suitability due to the specific requirements of the job.
5. Financial circumstances may only be requested from managers
If you apply for a position that does not correspond to that of a manager, you do not have to respond to the employer because they are legally not allowed to inquire about it.
Things are different for managers.
Here, the potential new employer can use the financial situation to get an impression of how reliable the applicant is in dealing with assets.