A woman from Australia has issued a cautionary tale after encountering what she termed the ‘mother of all red flags’ during her job application process with a small company.
Sasha, who was on the hunt for a job, expressed her astonishment on TikTok after one specific question in the application made her uncomfortable and seemed to her as ‘inappropriate and illegal’.
In an interview with Yahoo! Finance, Sasha detailed that she had been requested to complete a questionnaire that probed into personal aspects of her life as part of her application for a position at the small business.
As she progressed through the questions, she was taken aback by one that inquired about her ‘relationship status today’.
The options provided included: ‘married, single, in a long term relationship, married with children, [or] in a new relationship’.
The last option was: “I don’t know what I’m in, I’m confused”.
Sasha commented in her TikTok video that she immediately recognized the question as ‘highly inappropriate’, prompting her to contact the CEO to express her concerns.
However, the CEO’s reply left her even more perplexed as he stated: “I still ask it anyway because from our cultural perspective it’s important for me to know what kind of mental stability someone is [in] when they are planning to look after our team.”
The CEO also mentioned that understanding an individual’s ‘ability to manage [a] relationship’ provided insight into the applicant’s character.
Unsurprisingly, Sasha did not concur. She informed Yahoo! Finance: “I immediately thought that it was inappropriate and illegal. I knew in that moment I would not be proceeding with the questionnaire as it told me all I needed to know about the employer.”
Sasha proceeded to caution other job hunters on TikTok, advising: “If anybody ever asks you a question that is inappropriate, has nothing to do with the role, absolutely run for the hills because this kind of individual clearly has absolutely no boundaries.”
@sashandlady Im good though 🚩🚩🚩#interviewquestions #interview
She disclosed that she chose not to respond to the CEO, asserting that he appeared to lack understanding of ‘basic employment rights’.
“If they’ve got no boundaries when it comes to your personal/professional life, they’re going to continue to push those boundaries within the workplace,” she stated. “I’m shocked that managers like this exist. Granted, this is a small private business, but I cannot believe this actually happens behind closed doors.”