{"id":216,"date":"2010-03-23T11:59:00","date_gmt":"2010-03-23T11:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/career-advice\/blacklisting-liars-losers-and-misfits\/"},"modified":"2019-10-19T06:17:51","modified_gmt":"2019-10-19T13:17:51","slug":"blacklisting-liars-losers-and-misfits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/blacklisting-liars-losers-and-misfits\/","title":{"rendered":"Blacklisting Liars, Losers, and Misfits"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Blacklisting_Liars_Losers__and_Misfits\"<\/p>\n

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According to the Globe & Mail, employers and recruiters are assembling a \u201cblacklist\u201d of people considered unfit for hiring.\u00a0 Apparently, if you are a liar, a loser, or a misfit then the chances are good that your name will end up on such a list.<\/p>\n

Joann Lublin, in her article, \u201cBlacklisted: One mistake can land you on a do-not-hire list\u201d addresses the \u201cunofficial\u201d practice of listing \u201cundesirable applicants\u201d.\u00a0 Unbeknownst to the individual, his or her job prospects are curtailed by the fact of having been labeled as an undesirable.<\/p>\n

It seems that the practice of accumulating a list of \u201cdo-not-hires\u201d is fairly widespread.\u00a0 One recruiter, mentioned in Lublin\u2019s article, claimed that every headhunter and employer he surveyed on the topic admitted to keeping a so-called blacklist.<\/p>\n

The fact that recruiting firms<\/a> (a.k.a. headhunters) and human resources departments keep such lists is perhaps not surprising.\u00a0 To some extent, after all, their job is to weed out undesirables or, as Lublin calls them, \u201cliars, losers and misfits\u201d.<\/p>\n

Once an employer or a recruiter has identified an individual as unattractive for some reason or another, it makes some organizational sense to make note of that name.\u00a0 This prevents the inadvertent hiring of that same individual at some point in the future.<\/p>\n

But if there\u2019s one thing we, as a society, seem obsessed about right now it\u2019s the existence of secret lists containing our information.\u00a0 And, no doubt, many people will be disturbed by the revelation that hiring blacklists are out there and will never, ever be offered for public viewing.<\/p>\n

The existence of such lists will surely be a cause for concern for some people.\u00a0 According to Lublin\u2019s article, it doesn\u2019t take a whole lot to get on the list.<\/p>\n

Is there anything, legally-speaking, a person can do in response to such blacklisting?\u00a0 The first hurdle, of course, is simply uncovering that you\u2019ve \u201cmade\u201d a list.<\/p>\n

Assuming there is some evidence that someone has blacklisted you there are, in theory at least, some legal avenues for redress.<\/p>\n

The first thing that jumps to mind is the range of so-called \u201cprivacy\u201d or personal information statutes.\u00a0 Those, such as B.C.\u2019s Personal Information Protection Act,<\/a> provide individuals with legal mechanisms to gain access to their personal information being held by an organization.<\/p>\n

But does someone else\u2019s opinion of your fitness for hiring qualify as your personal information?\u00a0 My own sense is that it does not, but that shouldn\u2019t stop you from trying to make use of the statutory disclosure mechanisms to find out what is being said about you.<\/p>\n

Another legal avenue is the civil law of libel and slander.\u00a0 If information about you which you consider defamatory has been published in some manner \u2013 say, from recruiting agency to employer \u2013 there is the potential of obtaining damages.\u00a0 An even more effective remedy might be an injunction preventing further distribution of the information.<\/p>\n

However, truth is a full defence to an allegation of defamation.\u00a0 So, I suppose actual liars, losers and misfits need not bother suing (\u201cYour honour, I submit for the consideration of this esteemed Court that Mr. Jones has, in fact, demonstrated himself to be a misfit!).<\/p>\n

If the reasons for blacklisting relate to protected grounds set out in human rights legislation \u2013 B.C.\u2019s Human Rights Code, for instance \u2013 then there may be a discrimination complaint waiting to be filed.\u00a0 If, for instance, the reason for your name appearing on a do-not-hire list arises out of a physical or mental disability, then a human rights complaint would be the route to follow.<\/p>\n

Realistically, the best approach may be to avoid getting on a blacklist at all.\u00a0 A reading of Lublin\u2019s article indicates that shouldn\u2019t be all that difficult of a task for most people.<\/p>\n

Some of the common mistakes made by applicants seem to include exaggerating their experience<\/a> and qualifications, exhibiting poor presentation skills<\/a>, having the temerity to make a counter-offer to an employer, playing one headhunter off against another, and reacting flippantly to interview questions about serious subjects such as drug abuse.<\/p>\n

These are pitfalls that any career consultant<\/a> can help the average applicant avoid.\u00a0 It\u2019s better, I\u2019d say, to take such preventative measures than to end up on someone\u2019s secret list of liars, losers and misfits.<\/p>\n

Robert Smithson is a lawyer in Kelowna practicing exclusively in the area of labour and employment law.\u00a0 For more information about his practice, or to view past \u201cLegal Ease\u201d columns, log onto www.pushormitchell.com<\/a>\u00a0 This subject matter is provided for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as legal advice.<\/p>\n

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