Protections against workplace discrimination don’t start after you are hired. Rather, these protections, guaranteed under Title VII legislation, begin the moment you seek employment. It regulates both the assessment of resumes, interview process, and job placement and even before all of that when the advertisement for the job is placed. Every step of employment from soliciting prospective employees to hiring to the workplace itself bans discrimination.
Title VII prohibits discrimination against someone based upon their race, the color of their skin, religion, culture, or association or marriage with a minority group or religion. This includes prejudice against someone because of their cultural beliefs or religious practices (provided these practices do not materially interfere with the ability to perform their duties). This prohibition begins, as stated above, during the recruiting and hiring phase.
Job requirements must be uniform and consistently applied to all persons. However, even if your prospective employer applies the requirements consistently, it can still be discriminatory if it excludes significantly more persons than others.
At some point everyone has probably filled out a questionnaire that asked questions about ethnicity, race, and sex. Title VII does not grant you the right to sue your employer for asking these questions. Many times, employers need to track this data to determine track applicant flow or for affirmative action reasons. The way employers avoid tripping up Title VII is by including these questions on a separate sheet of paper, which is clearly separate from the substantive portions of the application.
If you or a loved one believes that you suffered from racial, ethnic, religious, or any other kind of discrimination while seeking employment then you may want to speak to the discrimination attorney. Everyone is meant to have the safe, fair shot at employment as everyone else. It is the cornerstone of a free society and a right that should not be easily surrendered.