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Posted: 1999-09-27 06:13
If a candidate offers unsolicited personal information during an interview, can the interviewee legally further discuss the information?
mmmcafee
Joined: Sep 13, 2001 Posts: 147
Posted: 1999-09-27 06:41
I would not continue to discuss "Personal Information" in the interview discussion. I would do my best to keep the entire discussion on "JOB RELATED ISSUES". The more unsolicited personal information you have the worse off you are. (Even though you did not ask for that information, it CAN be used against you!) That information is not needed to determine who is best applicant for the job and you should STOP the applicant from "volunteering" that information.
EpsteinBecker&Green,P.C.
Joined: Sep 13, 2001 Posts: 8461
Posted: 1999-09-27 22:33
O.K., the real world is a hard place to live. Imagine this: You are interviewing a very attractive, 28 year old woman (call her Mary) for a position with your company. You require all candidates to provide references from prior employers. Your candidate informs you that she was known by another name at her prior employer -- "John". Now, you might be tempted to opine that she had a really, really good doctor, and I would not be surprised if that was the reaction. Of course, that would not be a terribly smart thing to say at that moment.
The "better part of valor" whenever "personal" information is volunteered is to exercise self control and keep the interview focused on what you want to focus on. Now, that is not to say you should or can ignore the comments. You cannot pretend you did not hear the information and, in some cases, you might even need to make a note of it. (If the interviewee runs off on a rampage and offers all kinds of inappropriate commentary, then you might want to think of how well that employee will fit into your workforce. Of course, that is a double-edged sword.) Generally, however, personal information during an interview does not help either the interviewee or the interviewer.
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Posted: 1999-09-27 06:13 
