One in three hiring managers knowingly ask “illegal” questions during job interviews, according to a recent Resume Builder survey. And while, technically, very few of the questions mentioned in the survey are illegal to ask, queries about religion, race, gender, and pregnancy status (among other things) can still land you in hot water.
Why? Because it is illegal to consider a candidate’s answer to those questions as part of the hiring process.
The distinction between the two is critical. Obviously, you don’t need to panic if a candidate sees a picture on your desk of your three adorable children and says, “Oh, three kids is a lot!” and you reply, “Oh, so much work. Do you have kids?” That’s just conversation.