Is this discrimination?

[Dusty11]

I recently had a group interview for a (non-teaching) job in a primary school. I was one of six candidates (all women). Four of the candidates were white, one was Pakistani, and I am mixed race.

I was surprised that the application form contained no Equalities monitoring section, as I understood that schools had a duty (public sector equality duty?) to monitor the gender, age, ethnicity etc of all job applicants. I had expected to be able to declare my ethnicity on the form.

The interview process was one that involved a written exercise, a group discussion, and a then a session with a group of children. Individual interviews with the Deputy Head were scheduled for after lunch.

As I left the lunch room, I was approached by said Deputy Head, who was running the interview process, and quite literally bundled out of a side door and into the car park. I was told that I wouldn't be required for the individual interviews. I was surprised and shocked at the way in which the situation was handled.

A few days later, I sent a polite email to the school asking for feedback, and specifically the reasons for their decision not to interview me. I received no response. I re-sent the email the following week, and rang the school admin to confirm receipt, but still no feedback.

What's my next step?

@CantSleepWontSleep2019
Thanks. That's a route that I hadn't considered. I think that I'd be tempted to serve questions procedure first though.
m.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/m/p/Asking-and-responding-to-questions-of-discrimination-in-the-workplace.pdf

I just don't understand which bit makes you think the fact you are mixed race made them reject you? They are so specifically racist that they accept Pakistani and White applicants but not mixed race?

It's more likely you just didn't do very well in the group interview and didn't want to take you to the next stage of the application process.

What basis is it discrimination? What the hell has discrimination got to do with any of this at all?!😂

@oldowlgirl She's not even told us anything to support them being shoddy and clueless.

Perhaps the OP was so busy misunderstanding legal concepts that she overlooked the monitoring form that she needed to submit. Nothing would surprise me after this thread!

Dusty, if you behaved in the group exercise as you are behaving here, I’m not surprised they decided you weren’t right for the job.

Do you know what happened to the Pakistani candidate?

I was the only mixed race interviewee

Out of interest, how do you know this? Are you basing it on how the other candidates looked or on something else? It isn't always evident from appearances as to who is mixed race and who is not, so unless you quizzed them all on their ethnic background, it's quite an assumption to make.

As for discrimination, you don't seem to have any reason for thinking this was a factor, other than the fact that you as a mixed race candidate were not selected for the role. However, for all you know, some of the other candidates may have been asked to leave at that point in the process too.

I'm really interested in how they treated you on the day.

I don't think this is about a lack of a monitoring form (though that is unusual I think) but maybe you have a feeling about how they were with you that made you think they were biased?

Genuine question by the way

I've been part of an interview process before where half the candidates were bundled off to the car park. It was also a school and very weirdly done as a member of staff was allocated to each person to walk them out and I didn't notice they'd gone until it was just me and one other person outside the Heads office. Felt a bit horror movie-ish

Honestly op, you sound a bit unhinged. You weren't selected to the next stage of interview and they haven't given you feedback yet, a bit rude but that's all. It's not a requirement and many companies don't citing too much admin. It doesn't make them racist 🙄

The worst person I have ever interviewed walked out seemingly certain they had the job. In fact they kept calling leaving messages to ask about it that evening despite being told the timeline for being told the outcome. Luckily we had objective notes and other scores to give feedback with.
Yanbu to ask for feedback but you surely have something to point to to assume discrimination?

I am currently just thankful I have never interviewed the OP. Feedback is time consuming and sometimes a candidate is simply a clear pain in the ass!

I don't think the OP necessarily sounds unhinged. Discrimination is real and it undoubtedly happens. It may have been a factor in this case, but the OP hasn't really explained why she thinks this.

OP, unless you can give them specific objections as to why you believe their actions, behaviours or questioning during the interview that put you personally at a disadvantage due to your race compared to the other candidates, which is the thrust of Equality Act, you'll struggle to prove discrimination. Them "quite literally bundling you out of a side door into the car park" doesn't count.

They would undoubtedly state that they " showed you out of the interview room, as you had not met the criteria to continue" so your own vocabulary sounds emotive and biased.

Unless, of course, they grabbed your arms and legs, bound you in a sack and carried you into the car park, in which case, you most definitely have a case for discrimination.

^ but even then you'd have to prove you were the only one to have the sack treatment

The problem is that OP will call up and ask for feedback and they will say that she didn't perform as well in the group task, or that her written exercise was off-topic, or three of the other candidates had stronger experience, or they really needed someone familiar with a particular software package.

But she still won't believe that because what she thinks deep down is that they wanted a white person. So feedback is pointless because she's made up her mind.

I think it is terrible to accused them of racial discrimination when you have nothing at all to go by that this is the reason why you were not selected. I could sympathise if the person who wasn't white had also been dismissed at that stage but it doesn't seem to be the case. I agree too that your assumption that you were the only mixed race candidates says it all about your judgemental views too.

What difference would have made if you'd feel in the form? If anything, it shows that they don't use it as a mean to discriminate. So they don't want to provide feedback. There may be a number of reasons for this, all ha Eling nothing to do with you being mixed race. Even if they did decide not to take you forward due to your race, they will find another reason in the feedback anyway.

Proving racial discrimination is hard enough when your employed, I'm not even sure it applies when you are supposedly discriminated at interview stage. You need to accept that you were not good enough up to that point.

Do you know the job went to a 'white' woman and that the 'Pakistani' woman got sent home at lunch time? Do they only employ 'whites' in the school currently? If they had wanted to discriminate they would have asked about race in the application (or just did a bit of research) and then not offered you an interview.

It is very standard at full day interviews not to take any candidates that haven't impressed at the earlier stages to be sent home at lunchtime. Why waste everyones time interviewing you if you have already demonstrated that you aren't up to the job.

It is quite possible that during the mornings discussion they realised you had a chip on your shoulder about race and a sense of entitlement that doesn't have a place in the school.

I assume your CV or application form will have had your name? If it is one that is not Caucasian origin then I would imagine that, at it's most simple, the school will use that as a defence "well we knew the candidate was BME origin and still interviewed her".

I would tread carefully OP, because the local school community will no doubt be very small (even in big cities everyone seems to know each other) and you don't want to end up on everyone's "don't bother employing list".

One of two things has happened, either you were racially profiled or the interviewer simply didn't see your skin colour at all. If you have a very Caucasian sounding name then perhaps you have a good argument for saying that their attitude changed when they met you and realised your ethnicity but if not then your complaint could be interpreted as vexatious.

Also are you certain the role was public sector and not for an academy?

I'm white and mixed race. I think you're looking at this through your own bias.

You still haven't explained why you feel that your ethnicity was a factor in the decision?

You are also making judgements about the backgrounds of the other candidates without knowing them.

I understand your wish for feedback, but you are coming across as determined to find wrongdoing when in all likelihood there is none.

I think it all depends on the feedback I receive. If they provide a clear explanation about why I didn't get the job, then I'll be happy to accept it and take it on board. If there answers are evasive then I'll probably serve questions procedure www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/m/p/Asking-and-responding-to-questions-of-discrimination-in-the-workplace.pdf .
I'm not sure that I understand your phrase "going legal"?!?

I’d suggest you check how up to date that guidance is before you completely waste your time.

Or alternatively you might be best just applying for other jobs. You’ve said absolutely nothing about why you feel you’ve been unlawfully discriminated against here.

Wow!
I’m sorry but as a mixed race person myself, I can see that things like this are what give actual racists the ammunition to justify why they think the way they do.

No, it's up to the employer to prove that they didn't discriminate - not for you to prove they did

I'm afraid you are wrong. HermioneWeasley has it right.

You have to provide evidence from which the tribunal could decide that there was discrimination. Simply saying, "I was the only mixed race person there, I didn't get the job and they won't tell my why" (which appears to be all you have at the moment) doesn't get remotely close.

If you can establish a prima facie case (i.e. show that there are facts that suggest the employer may have discriminated) it is then up to the employer to prove there was no discrimination. But, based on what you have posted here, you won't get that far.

As others have said, the employer doesn't have to give you feedback as to why you didn't get the job. You could make a subject access request for any information they hold on you. That will include any interview notes if they have kept them but note that they are not required to keep interview notes. If you do get the interview notes they may reveal evidence of discrimination or, at least, give you some indication as to why you didn't get the job.

For the avoidance of doubt, whilst they should be monitoring, failure to do so is not discrimination.

Just to add...

You talk about "serving questions" (actually you are just "asking questions" - this isn't a formal legal process). If you want to do that you have to describe the treatment you received and explain why you believe it was discriminatory. Simply saying, "I'm mixed race and you didn't give me the job" doesn't cut it. Nothing you have said on this thread suggests there was unlawful discrimination. The school is under no obligation to respond if you do ask questions. Unless you have something more solid than this I would expect them to ignore your questions.