That I might one day be in a position to take the federally mandated paid maternity leave happens to be one of the factors playing against me. I'd always suspected that to be the case, and, when I asked, had it confirmed point-blank by several recruitment agencies. I've been told that I will have great difficulty getting hired because, based on my age and my marital status and my current lack of children, a potential employer will make the presumption that I'm looking to fill a position for a quick nine months before disappearing into maternity leave and mommyhood. How would a potential employer know my age and my marital status and how many children I (don't) have, you might wonder? Because in this country, that information must appear on one's resume. Accompanied by a headshot.
Or perhaps it's the headshot that's the problem. Who'd want to hire such a cow?
A head-shot? That's crazy. I haven't had to add one of those since I was an actress. I also can't believe they can get away with asking for all of that info, you could be 40 with six kids and still get pregnant with another, or you could be 20 not married with no kids and get pregnant, or you could just be bad at a job or unreliable and have none of the 'alarm bell identifiers'. Grrrrr, it makes me mad.
ReplyDeleteThat's really interesting. The US is the only industrialized country that doesn't have paid maternity leave, so I typically only hear the benefits of paid leave. Not the downfalls. I would think that the statute would also be armed with anti-discrimination provisions, but those are so hard to enforce anyway.
ReplyDeleteYou know, when I first moved to Europe I too was floored by the practice of photo/personal data included on one's CV. (It's common, by the way...not just Switzerland, but Holland, Austria, Spain...and I've seen it in the UK).
ReplyDeleteThe thing is, much as this just highlights structural inequalities, I don't think Swiss policies are the crux of the problem. I know for sure that in my single, pre-pregnancy obsessive days, when I was competing for jobs with other 20 or 30-something women, many of whom were recently married, that - all other things being equal - I was often on the winning end of the equasion. Even if you get to interview without divulging that personal stuff, potential employers will often find a way to weed it out, and consequently pass you over. And yeah, it's impossible to 'prove' that kind of discriination. I think that goes for Canada, the UK, Holland (where I've worked)...
Did somebody say the glass ceiling had been abolished??
Great post, and so true!
That's insane! I am both outraged that this could be a deciding factor in hiring a qualified person and laughing because it seems so ludicrous that they ask for this. What's the reason for the headshot?
ReplyDeleteOh wow, that's a little crazy. It doesn't seem fair.
ReplyDeletepaid leave is wonderful, but one should not be discriminated against in order to receive it. unfortunately, lots of women are regardless of where they live. it's the nature of sexism.
ReplyDeletegood luck!
Thank you for your thoughts, everybody! I will respond all at once here. First, although I culpabilise the Swiss (or general European) practices a bit, I have no illusions that these factors aren’t taken into consideration elsewhere, even if this kind of information isn’t asked for or given explicitly.
ReplyDeleteI’m used to the situation in the US, where, given the anti-discrimination laws, there is a real “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy surrounding a woman’s age, marital status, and number of children. But even if an employer is forbidden to ask about this, most of it is usually easy enough to figure out anyway, whether from looking at her resume or from meeting her at an interview.
And in most cases, as Sarah points out, no matter what country one is in, it’s so difficult to prove that this kind of discrimination takes place anyway. In my case, there are at least two other valid reasons that I would be immediately overlooked – I have no prior experience working in this country, and all my past experience was in a consultant role rather than the employee position I’m seeking now. So ....
And Em, I guess they just make assumptions, even if they’re not always accurate. Audrey, I imagine they want the headshot to see if you look professional (or something ...) enough – or to rule out those giving off serious baby-wanting vibes!
As an interesting side note, women here have been voting in federal elections only since 1971 – or even later in some cantons!
You wouldn't be allowed to ask this in any other European country. Certainly, in the UK, you could get in trouble for asking (I suspect that in some other European countries you could ask and no-one would get you in trouble, and people certainly *do* ask in the UK, but they have also got in trouble for asking, so employers are wary of doing so).
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