0920_September Comstock's Magazine September 2020 | Page 19

SHUTTERSTOCK ILLUSTRATION There is a small loophole for this: While it’s OK to do targeted recruiting, once people apply, you must treat all equally, and the best person should get the job. So if you direct your recruiting toward Black candidates, you’ll likely get more Black applicants, increasing the probability that the best person for the job will be Black. You’ve probably seen this type of disclaimer on the bottom of job applications: “We’re an equal-opportunity employer. We do not consider race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status or disability. We strongly encourage diverse candidates to apply.” This type of statement should be at the bottom of your job postings, but that’s not the only thing you should do to help attract candidates who are people of color. You can make some significant changes in how you source candidates. If you currently have very few nonwhite employees in an area with a reasonably sized population of Black, Indigenous and people of color, then you need to change your sourcing. Here are some ideas that can help you increase your reach to a more diverse group of candidates for your job openings. 1 If the job is entry-level, recruit at a college or high school that has a high percentage of BIPOC students. For further long-term hiring, work with these schools to provide internships. Not only will this give you future employees, but it will help train and develop these students. 2 Advertise in niche job boards. You might be tempted to throw every job opening onto Indeed or Monster or another one of the big job boards. But there are so many more. If you’re looking for someone for a financial position, for example, the National Association of Black Accountants has a job board. 3 Consider blind screening. This is where you strip resumes of names and other identifying information that may identify a race or gender. It removes bias in job screening. Of course, when you interview in person, you’ll know the candidate’s race and gender, but this allows you to remove your own unconscious biases. 4 Take a look at your company’s web page. Does it look like an attractive place for BIPOC to work? If not, it’s time to revamp the website. Of course, the most important thing is to be a good employer and make your workplace the type of place at which people want to work. Then you’ll get an abundance of applicants. Check your Glassdoor reviews, and if there are any problems (especially related to discrimination), work hard to correct those. After getting as many qualified candidates as possible, approach the hiring process as you usually would. The best candidate gets the job offer. Make sure it’s a fair offer based on market rates and not based on what the candidate earned at their last job. That type of behavior is not only forbidden in California, but it also perpetuates discrimination. Hopefully, your VP will be happy making changes to the recruiting process, and this will go smoothly. Suzanne Lucas spent 10 years in corporate human resources, where she hired, fired, managed the numbers and doublechecked with the lawyers. On Twitter @RealEvilHRLady. Send questions to [email protected]. What does your company do to advertise job openings to a diverse field of candidates? TWEET US @COMSTOCKSMAG September 2020 | comstocksmag.com 19