Interview Question (Military)

sambu · November 2002

May we ask in an interview why a candidate was given a military discharge?

Down_the_Middle · November 2002

I'm not sure what you mean by a "military discharge", but you can certainly ask about the type of discharge received from the military. Presumably, you'll ask this of all cand's with military service and they'll tell you---honorable, dishonorable, disability, etc...... Apparently you do not ask this question on your employment application and therefore feel the need to verbally inquire?

jules2001 · November 2002

You can ask for a copy the form that they receive when they are discharged. It will tell you dates of service and type of discharge. It is called a DD-214.

Don D · November 2002

Yes you may. Our application asks the following questions: Have you served in the U.S. military? If yes, branch of service, service dates, type of military discharge, rank, military service MOS, special skills obtained, and Can you provide a copy of your DD-214 or other discharge document?

Pork · November 2002

Sambu, why do you have a need to know? Is there some connection to your company and military service? Is someone trying to weed out a military experienced person that is NG/Reserve potential employee. Is there a grudge against military, so that someone would not offer employment because of ADT time or Week-end meetings, etc. If these are the motivating concerns, then I would stay miles away from this information. If management would always choose a military experienced candidate over another candidate as the best possible candidate, then yes, I would get the information by including it on the application or make it a standard part of the interview record! On the other hand, if there is a built in bias against the soldier, sailor, marine, or airman, then find yourself another company to work in as a professional HR. Hope this helps, Pork (a x soldier)

Don D · November 2002

Being from a long family line of military people myself, and having bounced a quarter off the foot of my freshly made bed as a kid before my Air Force Colonel dad would dismiss me, I feel strongly about the excellent skills and mindset that military veterans, honorably discharged, bring to the workforce. I also worked in State and Federal programs for years where there were very strong, positive veteran service programs for job placement, training and counseling. And I've participated in untold numbers of Military Job Fairs and Recruitment events on military bases and elsewhere as well as multiple hitches at the National Veteran's Training Institute in Denver, CO which trains professionals in providing services to servicemen and veterans. Having said all that, I will say that gathering such information can be valuable in identifying military acquired skill sets that are transferrable to your work site and can also help you establish whereabouts of the individual during otherwise unexplained periods of not working. It can be requested, and unlike lots of other information, does not have to be brought up by the candidate in order to pursue a conversation about it. There is a law that prohibits a company from having a question about union membership or handicap status on a work application. There is not a law that prohibits asking that about veteran status. Nor is there a law that prohibits us from rejecting a person who was discharged under 'other than honorable' conditions. Let's not jump to conclusions about why such questions are asked. On the issue of Veteran's preference, however, I point out that it's required in many of the State and Federal programs, but is NOT required in the private sector. (At Ease)

SDDCHR · November 2002

Excellent reply Pork! You can ask based upon the information that they gave you. If it isn't on their initial application (i.e. military pref.) I'm sure they gave you the information from some other source. If that is the case, then you can expand on it. As Pork states, make sure you have a good reason and the information obtained is used objectively.

SDDCHR (20 year x Air Force!)

Holly · November 2002

I'm with Don D. The DD-214 is a valuable tool, and in many cases with retired military the only true reference you're able to get (without waiting 6 months for verification from the DOD). And you definitely want to know what their status was on sepearation.

Our business is 15 minutes from a Naval Air Station and we strongly recruit active and retired military as well as military dependents. They are a wonderful resource.

Terri B · November 2002

If the purpose for gathering the information is akin to other employment verifications and asking the previous employer if the candidate is eligible for rehire, it is totally legitimate to ask for this information. I would ask even if it wasn't a special question on my app. The only reason I can see to have it ask a special question on the app is if you will (voluntarily for private sector) give preference to vets. If the person is fresh out of the military this is the only practicle way (the DD 214) to do an employment verification, since there are no other previous employers to consult.

Even though Pork sounds a bit defensive, you may not be looking at vets predjudicialy. There is a strong bias against long term vets and retirees in business. They are considered rigid and uncompromising. I have worked against it my 8 years in the private sector. I too am a vet. 12 years in the Army. We are team players and consensus builders.

Go Army!!!

Crout · November 2002

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 11-13-02 AT 09:11AM (CST)[/font][p]Pork's reply is very interesting. So "bias" is okay, so long as it is always used for the benefit of the candidate? I would say that companies should gather ALL the information they can, so long as it's legal. But getting back to Sambu's question: WHAT IF the candidate was discharged for a MEDICAL reason that could fall under ADA? Would the company still be on solid legal grounds to inquire about the nature of the discharge?

FORMER United States Marine (There are no EX-Marines)

Don D · November 2002

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 11-13-02 AT 11:35AM (CST)[/font][p]No. And perhaps applications should be revised to specify HONORABLE and OTHER THAN HONORABLE and DISHONORBLE, which eliminates the need to list MEDICAL. Even though I understand fully that Pork's intentions are honorable, to grant veteran's preference in the private sector could easily lead to the establishment of a charge based on "disparate impact". It is conceivable that it could readily be shown that your policy of preference, although it results in the hiring of well qualified military vets, also has the practical impact of excluding, say, females, eligible Hispanics, minorities and others. Don't overlook the potential of this biting you in spite of a well intended policy of preference.

Interview Question (Military)

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