Why did they Reject me from this Job?
The Shocking truth surfaces!
Big companies promise all applicants employment opportunities without bringing colour, race, sex, religion, nationality, gender orientation and age in the way.
Is that really true!
Equal Employer Opportunity
The whole purpose of EEO regulation is to make sure that nobody faces rejection or difficulties on the basis of above-mentioned groups. It is important for any organisation to build an inclusive environment wherein all employees feel equally welcomed and their voices valued without inclusion, diversity cannot thrive.
Does this really hold good? All the time and every time- Not for me at least
I happened to apply for a position in a big multinational company with a diverse background. I met the eligibility criteria just right, my experience and qualifications were a right match to what was required for the position I was applying for. Hence I was extremely confident in making my way into this big organisation.
I cleared my initial online mock tests and got a go-ahead from HR for the next round of interviews. I made it through to the Group discussion and finally to my final round of interviews. Everything seemed so positive till I got a call from HR saying that I finally hadn’t made the cut. Pretty disappointed as it sounded, I really wanted to know the reason for the same so that I didn’t land up making the same mistake again in future. Shocked, was I to hear that it was my age that got in the way. I was totally blown away! With a career of over two decades never was I ever made to feel or experience something like that. My belief in such big companies stood shattered. It was the saddest day of my life. I felt completely devastated and for a while lost faith in myself.
No one can make you feel bad without your consent
I didn’t let these negative thoughts play on my mind for long and therefore thought of fighting back-Raising my voice to this bias. The purpose of EEO regulations is to make sure nobody should face rejection or difficulties for being part of a protected group. Winning or losing was not something that I was looking at, neither did I want to file a lawsuit or a fine; all I wanted was justice.
My approach
I knew by now that the best way forward was to let the Leadership team know about the disappointing incident and my experience that had left me feeling not too sure of the core values of such an elite organisation. I wrote an e-mail to the top leadership team and expressed my agony and anguish and stated my entire journey from start to end of the interview process. I requested them to get to the root cause of this disheartening experience that I had had. Sure enough, I immediately got a reply to my mail assuring me of the way forward to the investigation. That made me think that it only takes one bad person or an element to break the image of a brand, in my case they were a few employees in HR who I interacted with. But this mail made me believe in the morals and values of the top hierarchy of the same organisation yet again.
I was very sure that the truth will come to limelight.
At the same time, I was also sure of the obvious outcome for me. There was an exchange of a whole lot of back and forth e-mails and after about 10 days I was asked to meet face to face.
The opening sentence post the introduction was an apology and a thank you for the feedback on this serious matter highlighted by me to the organisation. It was an expected answer to the above goof up. They went all out to assure me that the interview procedure was not age biased, yet were apologising and agreeing to me for the unfair conduct of the interview process. This sounded pretty confusing. I was very clear, not once but thrice, what I was told by HR — that they were unsure whether I would be a good fit for the role in terms of my age. I was also sure that the outcome of the investigation would prove to be true and aligned with my feedback. They emphasised staying steady on their decision of not taking me for the role I had applied for. I wondered, ”How could an incorrect approach to hiring lead to a correct conclusion?” By now I could highlight a lot of follies in their HR vertical which probably made it hard for this organisation to hire me.
At Peace
I did feel like a guinea pig yet this organisation could take advantage of my inputs and work upon their policies to ensure that every employee hereafter worked, lived, ate and breathed their policy, ethics and motto.
I, after a long battle on Inclusion and Diversity with this Organisation, had no choice but to make peace with myself. As I strongly feel that no one has a right to spoil your day without your consent. And I, for sure would not give that right to NO ONE.
On the other hand, I feel that now after exposing this extremely serious abnormality in this organisation, these few bad apples would not even think close to or act in this unacceptable way with anyone. Even though I didn’t get what I strongly felt I should have yet no one like me, hopefully, would be made to feel anything close to what I had gone through. I do hope that such companies coach and teach recruiters not to discriminate by age, which indeed is an illegal practice.
Fairness shall prevail.
Research proves that those over the age of 38 are three times more likely to create successful companies as a result of their patient, collaborative natures, and their lack of a “need to prove myself attitude”.
It is imperative to create an inclusive, fair, and meaningful experience for the candidates who go for an interview with such big organisations. I just hope that companies improve their concept of Inclusion and Diversity in their organisation. Instead of addressing the symptoms of discrimination they rather should work on the root cause. Employment should be based on merit regardless of characteristics such as age, race, sex, gender and everyone should have an equal opportunity to pursue a job. For the world to excel, we must create an inclusive environment for our people that welcomes and supports differences and encourages inputs from all perspectives.
