Posted on Dec 8, 2015
Have you experienced discrimination during interviews?
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I have had some interesting situations during interviews and this past interview was "rather interesting"
1) I interviewed with a company called Tekno Telecom and the manager asked me: "So how do you feel working in an all white environment" ?
MY ANSWER: "I have been doing it all my life".
Which is very true, not lying or being confrontational, just the truth.
The owner had an issue I guess with people with "extracurricular activities" like skydiving, this was from a past employer. The manager and recruiter both mentioned it. Unfortunately I went to airborne school....doooh.
I didn't get the job, I felt with the manager I had a good feel but with the owner not as much. Nothing technical, oriented why they said no. They simply changed the requirements of what they wanted and said I wasn't a fit.
2) I interviewed with Motorola Solutions in 2012 and one interviewer was constantly asking about my deployments. I told her a year out, she woudl know but mentioned a couple of times the possibility of me deploying was very slight. I'm in the National Guard BTW. I didn't get the job.
3) In 2003 I interviewed for a DSP (Digital Signal Processing) job at Motorola Mobility, and noticed the entire office was speaking mandarin Chinese and the group just hired an engineer from the University of China. I answered all the questions correct. But didn't get the job.
Truth is you SUCK IT UP AND DRIVE ON.
1) I interviewed with a company called Tekno Telecom and the manager asked me: "So how do you feel working in an all white environment" ?
MY ANSWER: "I have been doing it all my life".
Which is very true, not lying or being confrontational, just the truth.
The owner had an issue I guess with people with "extracurricular activities" like skydiving, this was from a past employer. The manager and recruiter both mentioned it. Unfortunately I went to airborne school....doooh.
I didn't get the job, I felt with the manager I had a good feel but with the owner not as much. Nothing technical, oriented why they said no. They simply changed the requirements of what they wanted and said I wasn't a fit.
2) I interviewed with Motorola Solutions in 2012 and one interviewer was constantly asking about my deployments. I told her a year out, she woudl know but mentioned a couple of times the possibility of me deploying was very slight. I'm in the National Guard BTW. I didn't get the job.
3) In 2003 I interviewed for a DSP (Digital Signal Processing) job at Motorola Mobility, and noticed the entire office was speaking mandarin Chinese and the group just hired an engineer from the University of China. I answered all the questions correct. But didn't get the job.
Truth is you SUCK IT UP AND DRIVE ON.
Employment
Discrimination
Interview
Transition
Jobs
Edited 10 y ago
Posted 10 y ago
Responses: 13
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I was asked how I felt about working in a "diverse environment" during an interview once.
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I was asked during one interview why a person with my experience was applying for an entry level help desk position. I said "Well, I don't think this is going to be a good fit for either of us, have a great day."
I was asked during one interview why a person with my experience was applying for an entry level help desk position. I said "Well, I don't think this is going to be a good fit for either of us, have a great day."
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SSG (Join to see)
The question isn't unreasonable... why waste time and energy integrating someone who is likely to jump ship the moment a better opportunity comes along. I started with an entry level help desk position when I retired from the Army. I explained that I had heard good things about the company, explained that they were in the area/field I wanted to work and that I was still finishing up my degree.
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PO1 John Miller
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In this particular case, I got a vibe that the hiring manager didn't even want me at all.
I also guess I should include some background. I did explain that I had heard great things about this company (one of the larger Defense Contractors) and that the position also had chance for promotion. He didn't seem to buy it so that's why I said what I did in my original reply.
In this particular case, I got a vibe that the hiring manager didn't even want me at all.
I also guess I should include some background. I did explain that I had heard great things about this company (one of the larger Defense Contractors) and that the position also had chance for promotion. He didn't seem to buy it so that's why I said what I did in my original reply.
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PO1 John Miller - When you sense something like that, I believe it's always a good idea to ask the hiring manager how you could become more competitive / better qualified for the position. Worst case scenario they don't answer or give you a useless answer, there is also the off chance that they tell you something that could be extremely helpful.
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PO1 John Miller
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At the end of the day, I got the feeling that this job was more of a stepping stone than anything else. It seemed to have a pretty high turnover rate. I just didn't feel like it would have been a good fit for me, so had I been offered it I probably would have quit as soon as something else came along.
At the end of the day, I got the feeling that this job was more of a stepping stone than anything else. It seemed to have a pretty high turnover rate. I just didn't feel like it would have been a good fit for me, so had I been offered it I probably would have quit as soon as something else came along.
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While I don't necessarily think you experience racial discrimination, I do think you experienced military discrimination. Every civilian job I've ever interviewed for since retiring from the Navy I was not ultimately offered. Personally I have always had better luck with veteran-owned defense contractors.
While I don't necessarily think you experience racial discrimination, I do think you experienced military discrimination. Every civilian job I've ever interviewed for since retiring from the Navy I was not ultimately offered. Personally I have always had better luck with veteran-owned defense contractors.
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