What Questions Can't I Ask At A Pet Sitting Interview?

Did you know there are certain questions that you can’t ask during a pet sitting interview? If you do, and a person wants to report you, they can report you and your business to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission(EEOC)?

Questions about Race, Color, Sex, Religion, National origin, birthplace, and age are all off limits. This might seem easy and straight forward enough, but if you have ever asked the following pet sitting interview questions, you might have opened yourself up to a lawsuit:

Describe to me who you live with (to see if they were a Mom or will be trying to bring their children on jobs)
Where are you from?
Asking where or how they learned their foreign language.
If they have a spouse, if their spouse is employed, how much their spouse earns (I could see pet sitting interviews going down this road to see if the applicant needs supplemental income and has another source of a provider at home)
Can not ask if they have children or about child care arrangements.
Can not tell them they have to work certain holidays or ask them about their customs around holidays.

There Is A Fine Line When Asking Pet Sitting Interview Questions:

It is a very fine line because on one hand, you are not allowed to ask these questions, yet if they are worded another way, you can. Tricky, huh? I am offering you this blog pot as a guide and a way to start the conversation with yourself, office manager, hiring manager, etc. These are fundamental things that you need to be aware of if you are interviewing in your pet sitting company for staff. I know a lot of us can be chatty cathy’s and naturally (as if we are having a regular conversation) we could say something like, Oh I love accents! Where is your’s from? or What types of things do your family do to celebrate Christmas? or What would you do with your newborn/child if you had to run out and do petsits?

A Great Resource I Recommend You Check Out!

You know me…. I don’t like to just talk about things, but I like to point you in the right direction to have the resources at your fingertips. Michigan Tech has put together a really great document that breaks down the differences between Legal and Illegal Interview Questions. Go ahead and check it out.

If you don’t take it seriously, this story that CBS could be you and could cost your company. (and a mear 1 Million Dollars!)