Answering Innapropiate Interview Questions
Posted on December 6th, 2008
When you look for a job in Canada, you will have to attend to the so called job interviews.
Very often, you will be asked some inappropriate questions. You definitely need to know how to answer these questions so that you can land the job of your dreams in Canada!
Normally, hiring decisions can not be based on certain things, such as marital status, race, religion, etc. For this reason, questions pertaining to this topic are usually considered off limits by most experienced interviewers. They realize theres no reason to ask a candidate if he or she goes to church or if they have reliable child care.
The bad news for you is that not all of the interviewers you are going to encounter will be experienced. Some will be managers or supervisors who are more comfortable giving direction than asking questions. Others just wont see the potential harm in asking personal questions such as these.
Before we discuss how to deal with these types of questions, let me give you an idea of what topics are generally accepted as being inappropriate during an interview:
Questions about your ethnicity, culture, or parental background
Questions about your marital status or sexual preference
Questions about your race and gender
Questions about your religion or your religious practices
Questions about your health or physical limitations
Questions about your children, child care, or family plans
These questions can be phrased in the most seemingly innocent ways, such as Thats a beautiful diamond ring! Are you engaged? or they can be blunt Do you plan on having children in the next year? It all depends on the interviewer.
Regardless of how the question is asked, there are a couple of ways of dealing with the problem. Some are preferable over others.
Option 1 Reminding the interviewer that the question is inappropriate
In most cases, the interviewer asks these questions without malice. He or she doesnt plan on using the information against you. They might just be trying to break the ice. If your first reaction is to point out that they question should never have been asked or to start making comments about the legality of the question, chances are youre not going to get that job. Employers dont want to hire people who are going to cause trouble at the drop of a hat. If you make a big deal about a question during the interview, theyll take it as a good sign youll cause more trouble as an employee.
Youre better off not taking this approach unless youve made up your mind not to work for this company.
Option 2 Answer the question briefly
Theres no harm in going ahead and answering the questions, but youll want to keep your answers brief. For example, if an interviewer asks you How does your wife/husband feel about you taking this position? then you could answer depending on your marital situation She/he is fine with it or Im not married. Theres no reason to go into any further details, such as how long youve been married or if youre in a serious relationship.
If the interviewer continues to ask follow-up questions that are inappropriate, such as How long have you been married? or Do you ever plan on getting married? then you may need to be more forceful. Simply smile and ask, Id be happy to answer your questions, but Im really not sure how my marital status relates to my ability to fulfill this position.
In my next article, I will explain other steps you must follow to answer inappropriate questions during a job interview in Canada.
Alex Berezovsky is author of the book Step-by-Step Immigration to Canada He helps immigrants achieve their dream: moving to this amazing country! He owns http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com
Tags: canada, career, immigration, immigration canada, job, recruitment, resume, travel
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Answering Innapropiate Interview Questions
Posted on December 4th, 2008
When you look for a job in Canada, you will have to attend to the so called job interviews.
Very often, you will be asked some inappropriate questions. You definitely need to know how to answer these questions so that you can land the job of your dreams in Canada!
Normally, hiring decisions can not be based on certain things, such as marital status, race, religion, etc. For this reason, questions pertaining to this topic are usually considered off limits by most experienced interviewers. They realize theres no reason to ask a candidate if he or she goes to church or if they have reliable child care.
The bad news for you is that not all of the interviewers you are going to encounter will be experienced. Some will be managers or supervisors who are more comfortable giving direction than asking questions. Others just wont see the potential harm in asking personal questions such as these.
Before we discuss how to deal with these types of questions, let me give you an idea of what topics are generally accepted as being inappropriate during an interview:
Questions about your ethnicity, culture, or parental background
Questions about your marital status or sexual preference
Questions about your race and gender
Questions about your religion or your religious practices
Questions about your health or physical limitations
Questions about your children, child care, or family plans
These questions can be phrased in the most seemingly innocent ways, such as Thats a beautiful diamond ring! Are you engaged? or they can be blunt Do you plan on having children in the next year? It all depends on the interviewer.
Regardless of how the question is asked, there are a couple of ways of dealing with the problem. Some are preferable over others.
Option 1 Reminding the interviewer that the question is inappropriate
In most cases, the interviewer asks these questions without malice. He or she doesnt plan on using the information against you. They might just be trying to break the ice. If your first reaction is to point out that they question should never have been asked or to start making comments about the legality of the question, chances are youre not going to get that job. Employers dont want to hire people who are going to cause trouble at the drop of a hat. If you make a big deal about a question during the interview, theyll take it as a good sign youll cause more trouble as an employee.
Youre better off not taking this approach unless youve made up your mind not to work for this company.
Option 2 Answer the question briefly
Theres no harm in going ahead and answering the questions, but youll want to keep your answers brief. For example, if an interviewer asks you How does your wife/husband feel about you taking this position? then you could answer depending on your marital situation She/he is fine with it or Im not married. Theres no reason to go into any further details, such as how long youve been married or if youre in a serious relationship.
If the interviewer continues to ask follow-up questions that are inappropriate, such as How long have you been married? or Do you ever plan on getting married? then you may need to be more forceful. Simply smile and ask, Id be happy to answer your questions, but Im really not sure how my marital status relates to my ability to fulfill this position.
In my next article, I will explain other steps you must follow to answer inappropriate questions during a job interview in Canada.
Alex Berezovsky is author of the book Step-by-Step Immigration to Canada He helps immigrants achieve their dream: moving to this amazing country! He owns http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com
Tags: canada, career, immigration, immigration canada, job, recruitment, resume, travel
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Answering Innapropiate Interview Questions
Posted on November 28th, 2008
When you look for a job in Canada, you will have to attend to the so called job interviews.
Very often, you will be asked some inappropriate questions. You definitely need to know how to answer these questions so that you can land the job of your dreams in Canada!
Normally, hiring decisions can not be based on certain things, such as marital status, race, religion, etc. For this reason, questions pertaining to this topic are usually considered off limits by most experienced interviewers. They realize theres no reason to ask a candidate if he or she goes to church or if they have reliable child care.
The bad news for you is that not all of the interviewers you are going to encounter will be experienced. Some will be managers or supervisors who are more comfortable giving direction than asking questions. Others just wont see the potential harm in asking personal questions such as these.
Before we discuss how to deal with these types of questions, let me give you an idea of what topics are generally accepted as being inappropriate during an interview:
Questions about your ethnicity, culture, or parental background
Questions about your marital status or sexual preference
Questions about your race and gender
Questions about your religion or your religious practices
Questions about your health or physical limitations
Questions about your children, child care, or family plans
These questions can be phrased in the most seemingly innocent ways, such as Thats a beautiful diamond ring! Are you engaged? or they can be blunt Do you plan on having children in the next year? It all depends on the interviewer.
Regardless of how the question is asked, there are a couple of ways of dealing with the problem. Some are preferable over others.
Option 1 Reminding the interviewer that the question is inappropriate
In most cases, the interviewer asks these questions without malice. He or she doesnt plan on using the information against you. They might just be trying to break the ice. If your first reaction is to point out that they question should never have been asked or to start making comments about the legality of the question, chances are youre not going to get that job. Employers dont want to hire people who are going to cause trouble at the drop of a hat. If you make a big deal about a question during the interview, theyll take it as a good sign youll cause more trouble as an employee.
Youre better off not taking this approach unless youve made up your mind not to work for this company.
Option 2 Answer the question briefly
Theres no harm in going ahead and answering the questions, but youll want to keep your answers brief. For example, if an interviewer asks you How does your wife/husband feel about you taking this position? then you could answer depending on your marital situation She/he is fine with it or Im not married. Theres no reason to go into any further details, such as how long youve been married or if youre in a serious relationship.
If the interviewer continues to ask follow-up questions that are inappropriate, such as How long have you been married? or Do you ever plan on getting married? then you may need to be more forceful. Simply smile and ask, Id be happy to answer your questions, but Im really not sure how my marital status relates to my ability to fulfill this position.
In my next article, I will explain other steps you must follow to answer inappropriate questions during a job interview in Canada.
Alex Berezovsky is author of the book Step-by-Step Immigration to Canada He helps immigrants achieve their dream: moving to this amazing country! He owns http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com
Tags: canada, career, immigration, immigration canada, job, recruitment, resume, travel
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Getting A Job Offer From A Company In Canada
Posted on November 15th, 2008
If you receive a job offer from a Canadian company, your visa application process will be much easier!
I strongly recommend obtaining a job offer from a Canadian company before submitting your visa application. If you can get this document, it will not only help you settle easier in Canada , but it will also increase your Pass Mark assessment.
Let me explain the way a job offer will help you increase your Pass Mark assessment:
You will receive 10 points if:
- You have a permanent job offer in Canada . However, please note that this offer has to be confirmed by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC).
If you are already in Canada (with a temporary work permit), and you decide to apply from within the country, you will also receive points in the following situations:
You will receive 10 points if:
- Your temporary work permit was issued after receiving a confirmation of a job offer from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada ; - Your temporary work permit was exempted from the requirement of a issued after receipt of a confirmation of your job offer from HRSDC (due to an international agreement).
Also if it represents a relevant benefit to Canada or its competitiveness (i.e. intra-company or post-graduate work respectively).
I recommend visiting the following website for further information about the specific requirements for these situations: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/skilled/qual-5-4.html
It is very important that you understand this process, in case you are interested in using a Canadian job offer in your application.
First of all, what is The Department of Human Resources and Skills Development (HRSD)?
This Department has a very specific objective: to ensure that all the Canadians have the right elements and tools to succeed in the Canadian workplace.
To achieve this objective, one of the main duties of this Department is to make sure that all the foreign workers support the Canadian economic growth. Foreign workers are very important for the Canadian economy!
For this reason, this Department is responsible of ensuring that the right Skilled Workers are hired by the Canadian companies.
Let me explain what the Canadian companies have to do to make a permanent job offer to a Skilled Worker (I hope that is your case, you will earn 10 points!).
Basically the companies have to options:
1.They can submit an application for an HRSDC labour market opinion (normally called LMO). This is one of the requirements that Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) takes into consideration when they evaluate your visa application.
2.The companies can also submit an application for an HRSDC arranged employment opinion (normally called (AEO).
A positive AEO will also be extremely important when your visa is processed. However, the AEO does not allow the person to work in Canada before the Permanent Residence visa is accepted and issued.
If you have already contacted a Canadian company, and they are interested in giving you a job offer, I suggest letting then know that the following two websites will be very useful.
- To apply for the LMO : http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/epb/lmd/fw/poWorkPerm.shtml
- To apply for the AEO: http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/epb/lmd/fw/poArrEmp.shtml
See you in Canada !
Alex Berezovsky is the creator of the Step-by-Step Immigration to Canada program, and he manages http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com
Tags: Business, canada, career, immigration, job, jobs, recruitment, travel
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Canadian Immigration Alternatives
Posted on November 11th, 2008
Every year, Canada welcomes thousands of new permanent residents from all over the world to start a new life. This fact represents an excellent opportunity but it is also a great challenge that requires effort and dedication in order to achieve the objective of immigrating successfully. Canada offers a number of options to immigrate in order to apply for permanent residence status. Let me explain briefly the most important alternatives.
The different options to immigrate to Canada are:
a) Skilled Worker Class Immigration.
In order to fill employee shortages, Canada constantly needs skilled persons from diverse backgrounds. To immigrate under this scheme, the applicant should have education, work experience, knowledge of the official languages in Canada (English and/or French), and other relevant factors. Applicants with substantial work experience and academic qualifications are far more likely to immigrate under the Skilled Worker scheme.
b) Business Class Immigration
This scheme seeks to promote economic development in Canada by attracting successful business people. Business immigrants considered for this category are mainly people that are able to invest in, or start businesses in Canada . This program seeks to attract people experienced in business to Canada in order to support the development of the economy. The Canadian government encourages prospective business immigrants to invest in the country. As a result, foreign business people often find Canada to be an excellent place to invest capital. Business immigrants represent approximately 10% of total immigrants.
There are three classes under this category:
Investors - The program seeks to attract capital and persons with business experience to Canada . Investors must make a prescribed investment of CDN $400,000, which is placed with the Receiver General of Canada .
Self Employed persons - The program seeks persons that have the intention and ability to create their own employment in order to contribute to the cultural or athletic life of Canada. Self Employed persons must have relevant experience in cultural activities, athletics or farm management. They must have the intention and ability to establish a business and create their own employment.
Entrepreneurs - The program seeks to attract persons with business experience that will own and actively manage a business or businesses in Canada. Entrepreneurs must demonstrate a minimum net worth of CDN $300,000 and business experience. They are subject to conditions upon arrival.
In my next article, I will discuss the other immigration options.
Alex Berezovsky enjoys helping potential immigrants from several countries achieve their dream: moving to Canada! He is founder and owner of the website http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com
Tags: Business, canada, canadian, career, immigrate, immigration, investment, jobs, law, travel
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