Curious bosses in job interviews
Your potential boss and you want to get a taste of each other. The “chemistry” may be right, but you have opposing interests. The employer particularly wants to find out about your personal circumstances. You don't want to be investigated about this.
The employer's right to ask questions
Normally, questions from the employer must be answered truthfully. However, the employer sometimes has to curb his curiosity - both verbally and in writing in the personnel and recruitment questionnaire:
* First, if the information has no direct relevance to your job performance
* Secondly, if his interest in information must take precedence over your right to unprotected privacy.
Invalid questions
But how do you react when you are unprepared for a question like this? You don't have to answer them. However, you run the risk that the employer will interpret this against you and therefore not employ you. Therefore, you have a “right to lie” recognized by the courts. However, only when answering inadmissible questions.
...before starting work
If your employer finds out about you before you start work, you don't even have to show up to start work. The employer can then challenge the contract or terminate it without notice. If he can also prove that he suffered damage (e.g. costs for a new job advertisement) as a result of your untruths, you will also be liable to pay compensation.
... after starting work
If your fraud comes out later, the employer can also challenge or terminate the employment relationship. However, this does not necessarily have to happen. Because now, as an employee, you have more extensive protection than before you started working.
If you have always performed your work properly over several years, the employer can only throw you out if the subject of the false statement is still really relevant to your current job.
With the student legal protection you have access to the extended legal information from DAS. Here you can discuss tricky questions about labor law with a lawyer over the phone.
Examples of invalid questions
1. According to the willingness to do military or community service
2. By religious affiliation
(This only applies if it is not a so-called tendency company. This includes employers with a religious tendency, e.g. churches, denominational schools, Caritas, etc. In this case, incorrect information leads to the possibility of challenge by the employer.)
3. By party affiliation
(An exception is if you work for a party, one of your institutions, or if you have a special connection to a party. This can also be the case, for example, with a daily newspaper when it comes to hiring an editor and the publisher has a (political ) tendency, here the question is aimed specifically at the implementation of the content of the activity. Service staff etc. in the same company do not have to answer such questions (correctly).
4.After a committed relationship and family planning
5. After intended marriage
(Trend companies are an exception; here at least the question of remarriage/second marriage is permissible.)
6.According to the desire to have children or contraception
7.By union membership
8. After an existing pregnancy (according to recent case law, even if the woman cannot start work because of a ban on employment for this activity, the ECJ decided in the case of hiring a pregnant surgical nurse)
9.After recreational sports (An exception here is activities with a particular risk potential, such as skydiving.)
10.According to previous convictions in general, if there is no specific connection to the employment relationship
(Exception: The previous conviction is important for the activity, e.g. in the case of property crimes by accountants, traffic offenses by drivers; however, relevant previous convictions no longer have to be stated if they have been deleted from the Federal Central Register).
Which offenses may be relevant for which position must be verifiable using an objective standard; the employer cannot arbitrarily determine which previous convictions must be provided with information. The applicant may also have an obligation to notify if an investigation only begins during the application process.
Examples of acceptable questions
1. According to the professional qualifications
2. According to professional career
3. Details of previous work
4. After completing military or community service
5. After existing (chronic) illnesses, e.g. allergies, if these can have a negative impact on the fulfillment of work obligations or infectious, contagious diseases, as this can also endanger the workforce and operational processes, for example addiction, HIV disease, not against mere HIV infection; (Exceptionally, the question about an HIV infection is also permissible if the professional activity poses a danger to other people, e.g. in the medical profession)
6. After severe disabilities. Reason: The employer has legally established duties of care towards severely disabled people, which must be coordinated with the main welfare office
According to Section 2 Paragraph 2 SGB IX, a severe disability exists if the degree of disability is at least 50%. A disability of less than 50% does not have to be answered truthfully as long as the applicant has the appropriate suitability for the intended activity.
7. After cooperation or membership in the Ministry for State Security, the BVerfG has, however, made a restriction for events before 1970; an incorrect answer in this regard does not justify challenging the employment contract.
8. After over-indebtedness and wage garnishment, in any case if an application is made for a position that requires a special relationship of trust (usually only for senior employees) and the employer also poses a potential danger (e.g. bribery, betrayal of secrets) due to the future employee's disordered economic circumstances may accept for his asset-related interests. A question about wage garnishment in a job interview is probably inadmissible, but the employer has a legitimate interest in this after the hire at the latest in order to be able to carry out payroll accounting.
9. After secondary employment
10. After an existing non-competition clause. In this case, the employee has contractually agreed not to work for the competition for a certain period of time after leaving the company in return for a significant fee.
The interview and especially the question of a confident demeanor are of course also topics in the free assessment center training . Here you can see differences and clarify uncertainties using a living example. You can register for the free AC training here.
As part of the Ready for Business workshop series, the topic of applications and job interviews is even covered in a separate workshop. You can register for Ready for Business here (offered at several locations in Germany).
The “chemistry” may be right at the interview, but you have opposing interests. How do you behave?
