Hijab question in job interview discriminatory: rights watchdog

By Bahk Eun-ji

It is a discriminatory act in recruitment to ask an applicant about whether she will wear a hijab while working, when the work has nothing to do with the head covering, the country's human rights watchdog said Monday.

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) accepted a petition from a woman, who applied for an intern position as a translator at a nongovernmental organization here, and recommended the head of the group come up with measures to prevent a recurrence of such discriminatory questioning in hiring.

The offices of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea / Korea Times file

According to the commission and multiple media reports, the woman, whose nationality was not disclosed, said she was rejected from the position in June 2019 after the organization chief, who was the interviewer, told her that a person wearing a hijab would not be accepted by other workers from different countries.

During the commission's investigation, however, the interviewer said he told her that other Muslim employees there worked without a hijab and asked her opinion about this. He stated that in response to the question, “the woman caused a disturbance saying she was being racially discriminated against.” He added the applicant received a low evaluation as she was late for the interview, did not submit a required document, and had poor translation abilities, and thus the hijab issue was not the basis on which she was not hired.

The NHRCK accepted part of the interviewer's claims, saying it could not conclude the hijab issue was the decisive factor for the petitioner not being hired. But it said that the question related to the woman's wearing of a hijab was discriminatory in and of itself and there was no reason to ask such a question.

“In job interviews, interviewers and interviewees are not in equal positions, so if the question is about a social minority, it will inevitably affect the employment chances of applicants,” the commission said. It said interview questions unrelated to work or job skills are considered discrimination in various countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom and Japan.

The NHRCK also said, due to the question about her wearing a hijab, it was very likely that the petitioner understood she would not be considered for the position if she continued to wear it.