This article originally appeared on DiversityInc.com on November 24, 2004

Some people are just nosy. They pick and prod and ask pointed questions, probing for little bits of personal information they clearly are just dying to know.

A neighbor who won't mind his own business might be dismissed as a busybody. A workplace peer might be discounted as a gossip. But what happens when the interrogation expert holds the power to hire?

"Mind your manners," counseled diversity consultant Mary-Frances Winters, founder and CEO of the Winters Group, Landover, Md. "You always want to be gracious in an interview."

Discrimination in hiring is a serious issue. In 2002, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission logged 8,176 charged of discrimination in hiring, 10 percent of all charges filed.

Abercrombie & Fitch, the Ohio-based retail chain, last week was slapped with a second lawsuit alleging discrimination in hiring and employment. The most recent lawsuit was filed in federal court in New Jersey on behalf of an African-American woman, who says she was told she doesn't fit the company's image. A similar suit was filed in June in a federal court in San Francisco. Both seek class-action status.

In truth, prospective employers can ask an applicant almost any question they like without violating the law. At the same time, however, they also are prohibited from basing hiring decisions on "protected" characteristics, such as race, age, gender and nation of origin.

As a result, most corporate hiring executives--even the lowest-level human-resources interns--are cautioned to avoid questions that an unsuccessful applicant later could point to as evidence of discrimination.

Meanwhile, corporate legal advisers nationwide have crafted lists of questions that always should be avoided, including questions such as: "How old are you, anyway?" "What sort of name is 'Rashid'?" and "Do you come from Mexico?"

Where are the landmines?

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers are prohibited by law from asking applicants any medical question that could reveal a disability. Further, they are cautioned to avoid questions about:

• Age or date of birth. If state or federal law has set a minimum age of 18 for certain occupations, the appropriate question is "are you over 18?"
• Race or nation of origin. "Are you eligible to work in the United States" is an acceptable alternative.
• Marital and family status. Keep the question centered on the job. "Can you be here from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.?"
• Arrest record. Arrests aren't convictions, so it's best not to ask about them. On the other hand, an employer may ask about felony convictions.
• Finally, employers might want to take a cue from the age of gentility, when religion, sex and politics, all were regarded as conversational taboos.

And what if the interviewer hasn't read the list? "I do believe in honesty. If the question gets asked, answer the question," Winters said. "And then I would get to the job relatedness."

"Turn it around," echoed Marian Kaplan, a career counselor in New York City. "You have to focus on the job. What qualities are they looking for? Turn it around and interview them."

"Let's say you are a woman, and they want to try and find out how many kids you have, so they ask you 'is there anything that would prevent you working on Saturday or late nights?' You say 'absolutely not. I'm here to do the job,' " Kaplan said.

"That's a loaded question. Some people cannot work on Saturdays because of their religion ... if you ask that question, you are killing a few birds with one stone," she added. What does an interviewer want to hear?

"My preference ... would be to be told politely, 'I'm sorry, I'm not comfortable answering that question, but if mutual interest continues, I will be happy to discuss the issue with you further, ' " said Suzanne Waha, a human- resources executive with a Midwestern publishing firm.

"This way, the applicant doesn't have to worry that we are going to make a decision based on a protected characteristic. If the interview proceeds and there are subsequent interviews or an offer made, it's obvious that we aren't making any decisions based on those characteristics and they may feel more comfortable answering the questions," she added. "I don't want a rejected applicant to be able to point to my questions as proof they didn't get the job due to their placement in a protected class. "

On a practical level, Waha said, "there really are few instances where these questions, asked bluntly, are necessary. Do you really care if the applicant has small children or plans on having a baby soon? No. You care whether or not she is going to come to work every day, so you direct your questions in that area."

Better questions, she suggested, include: "This is the normal working schedule of the position ... can you meet this schedule?" "Are you available to work occasional overtime on Tuesday evenings and Saturdays?" "How many days were you absent from work in the last full year you were employed?"

"We are really looking for the answers that benefit our business. I don't care if she has seven children and plans on having seven more, I want to know if she's going to show up for work," Waha said.

In the end, the best answer is one that is honest, polite, and reveals nothing the applicant doesn't choose to share.

"You say "thank you for that question, I appreciate your concern and I appreciate why you might be asking,' " Winters counseled."And then you say, 'I can assure you that if I am selected for this position, I will do what I need to.'"

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