Issue: Prejudice Against the Unemployed

Unemployment discrimination happens when employers do not consider or offer jobs to unemployed people. Employers and recruiters who screen out unemployed people from the hiring process are discriminating against those people. Some organizations, especially those in the high-tech industries, claim to have legitimate reasons for such discrimination, i.e., up-to-date skills, knowledge, certifications. Unemployment discrimination affects millions of people who can work. This type of discrimination seriously impacts people with disabilities, certain racial and ethnic groups, older people, and women. Because it is difficult to prove, there are currently no federal laws that prohibit bias against unemployed people in the hiring process. However, in 2014 President Obama issued a memorandum banning federal agencies from discriminating against unemployed people. In addition, a few states have banned employers from having employment policies and procedures that are biased toward unemployed job applicants. States with laws that prohibit unemployment discrimination are New Jersey, New York, and Oregon. The District of Columbia also prohibits employers from discriminating against people who are unemployed in the employment process.

Sources: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Society for Human Resources Management.

Make a Case for the Law: You are an HR manager in charge of recruitment. What do you believe arethree good business reasons for supporting a law prohibiting employers from discriminating against unemployed people. Record your team's reasons for supporting the law. Cite any references you used to develop your response.