[Talk Host]

I saw a story on the internet today about the 10 questions job candidates should not ask during a job interview.

This one was not on that list.

About 13 years ago, I was interviewing a young woman for a sales opening we had at the radio station I was working for. We were located on the 5th floor of the Security Mutual Life Insurance Company building.

When I asked her if she had any questions, she leaned forward and looked out the window and up Court Street and said, "Yes, how well can you see parades from here?"

[jojo]

I was interviewing for a secretarial/receptionist position. The want ad clearly stated that the job included reception duties. When I told the woman interviewing that she would be first on the phones in our office, she said "I don't do phones," picked up her portfolio and left. Needless to say I was stunned.

[nancy thereader]

Ha . ha. Great thread. Very funny, those young'uns ....

[redwitch]

I used to be lead secretary for a law firm in SF, which meant they came to me before meeting the attorney. One young lady looked at me and asked if it would help if she hiked up her skirt when she talked to the attorney (whose first name was Sarah!). I simply told her that it would probably be better if she was a fast typist. Strangely, she never made it to Sarah's office.

[Boomer]

I was the one being interviewed.

He asked me if my husband traveled for his job.

Boomer

[uujudy]

Originally Posted by Boomer

I was the one being interviewed.

He asked me if my husband traveled for his job.

Boomer

Hahahaha! It's amazing what the interviewers thought they could get away with, wasn't it? I had in interviewer ask me when I planned to have children. Since it was clearly illegal, but I really wanted the job, I pretended it was merely a social question, and asked him about his children. He pulled out his wallet and showed me all of his kids' photos...
I got the job.

[bestmickey]

It was 1969. I was asked if I was on the pill. Could have been two different reasons for that question. One was obvious ... would I be having kids and be out of work? Or, as I later learned, the interviewer was a lesbian. Maybe she wanted to know if I didn't need birth control after all.

[Barefoot]

At IBM in the 1950s, (in Canada), if a woman got married, she had to resign.

And in the 1960s, married women were finally accepted for employment. And it was OK for IBM interviewers to ask the question "when do you intend to start a family?"

Glad those days are long gone.

[islandgal]

In 1960, my husband was interviewed by a stock brokerage firm in Richmond, VA with headquarters in NY..
Before he was hired, we first had to have dinner with the head partner of the firm in Richmond at his home.
Second interview was we had to have dinner with the chairman of the firm in NY. Fortunately, I passed the test.
Both us us had to be approved
Can you believe that????? Didn't think a thing of it at the time except I had the jitters!

[Boomer]

Originally Posted by uujudy

Hahahaha! It's amazing what the interviewers thought they could get away with, wasn't it? I had in interviewer ask me when I planned to have children. Since it was clearly illegal, but I really wanted the job, I pretended it was merely a social question, and asked him about his children. He pulled out his wallet and showed me all of his kids' photos...
I got the job.

uu,

Yes, it was amazing. That question I was asked -- I just acted dumb and said, "No, he never has to travel at all." We sure knew how to maneuver in those days. We had to.

Boomer