Should a Job Interviewer Ask If You're Pregnant?

An employer shouldn't have the right to ask this question unless the job was not safe for a person who is pregnant.

Yes, the employer has every right to ask this question. While I believe that most aspects of a potential employee's life are off limits to interviewers, this one will profoundly affect the job.

As was stated, a pregancy brings with it a long absence from the position, one that may be critical if they are newly hired. It will also cost the company a good deal in both benefits and paid leave, this could be a deal breaker for a smaller company with a thin profit margin.

What it boils down to is the fact that pregnancy greatly affects job performance and that is exactly what the interviewer is looking to judge.

- BAM -

No, the interviewer should not ask about being pregnant. It's like asking their age, which is discrimination and against the law. If you clearly see she is pregnant, don't lead her on. Just tell the truth, she doesn't meet all the qualifications your company requires right now. Tell her you will keep her application and resume on file should another position come available.

Always - C.Y.A. Document everything especially in situations such as this.

Regardless of what you think, there are a ton of federal, state, and local laws that regulate the types of questions potential employers are allowed to ask in an interview. These topics include, but are not limited to:

*national origin/citizenship
*age
*affiliations (social, political, or otherwise)
*personal (weight, height, etc.)
*disabilities
*arrest record
*military (as in types of discharges)
AND
*marital/family status

That means an employer CAN NOT ask a woman if she is pregnant, and if said employer were to do so, said employer would be BREAKING THE LAW and would be subject to criminal prosection and all penalties and fines applicable therein.

Not only is it fully within a woman's right not to answer an illegal question such as this within an interview, it is also within her rights to not wear any engagement or wedding rings she may be in possession of thereby keeping her marital (or potentially upcoming) status confidential.

These laws were created and have been in existance for years because of the need for protecting people in job interviews from being subjected to unfair biases, summations, projections, and otherwise. An interviewer is judging POTENTIAL job performance, and pregnancy does not affect that potetential in the financially apocolyptic way which you described. In an age where companies have flex/alternate schedules, Results Only Work Environments, and telecommuting, in addition to the "in and out" hospital stays that medical patients are pushed through, it seems like your statement is pregnant with inaccuracies.

This question is really academic. Laws can give any number of rights. But if a potential employer doesn't want to deal with a person's physical condition,ethnic background, beliefs, etc., he or she will find a legal reason not to hire the person. That's assuming the employer has half a brain.

You and the employer may both know the real reason for not being hired was an illegal one, but try proving it. I think it can be almost impossible. Right or wrong, the difficulty of proving intent makes most anti-discrimination laws anti-discrimination suggestions.

Well, that position speaks to the hypothetical aspect of the company potentially being on the smaller side, with a tighter budget--if such is the case, a few weeks maternity leave costs a lot less than expensive litigation. Don't forget, while criminal cases bear more possible consequences, civil cases are extremely common nowadays, and have a lesser burden of proof, and often carry a great financial settlement.

Regardless, if an employer is willing to falsify the reasons as to why they are not hiring a potential candidate just to cover up the fact they don't want to hire someone who is pregnant, ALL THE MORE REASON FOR A WOMAN TO NOT BE UPFRONT ABOUT THAT FACT.