Any Law Experts or just EU citizens that could answer?

Panoush

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Is it right in saying, under EU regulations it is illegal to have a sexist approach when searching for employees when not properly mentioned??

a few days ago i applied for the position of virtual assistant with an english firm from an ad i saw on an expat classified site. on the job listing the only things they said they were looking for was "powerful computer, reliable broadband and to be intelligent and articulate" , so as i have all of those qualities ;) , naturally i applied with my cover letter and resume.

i got an email back from them today, they replied with: "I am really sorry but at this time we are only looking for female receptionists" .

now i my be wrong, but i do seem to remember learning in school about these things and i recall it being quite illegal to be biased when hiring people when based on age, sex, religion and ethnicity.. could someone please just tell me if this is correct or not? i feel like sending them a nasty-ish reply but just wanna double check i'm right first :)

thanks guys.

edit: i would research this on my own but i don't really know how to word it in google..
 
That is definitely against employment regulations in the UK and it was very silly of the company to send that response to you.

Companies do discriminate for all sorts of reasons - age, sex, nationality, disability etc., but they tend to do it without being obvious.

They have invited trouble by putting that reason in a written communication to you.
 
That is definitely against employment regulations in the UK and it was very silly of the company to send that response to you.

Companies do discriminate for all sorts of reasons - age, sex, nationality, disability etc., but they tend to do it without being obvious.

They have invited trouble by putting that reason in a written communication to you.

thank you, i have been dreaming about sending them an email quoting the EU regulations and threataning to take them to court, but then saying i would be happy to settle it out of court, for a small fee of course.. should i go for it? is there any chance this would work?
 
Its a virtual position....just reapply as a girl.

They should have said thanks but no thanks without giving you a reason but unless its a physical position within the EU then I doubt theres much you can do.
 
thank you, i have been dreaming about sending them an email quoting the EU regulations and threataning to take them to court, but then saying i would be happy to settle it out of court, for a small fee of course.. should i go for it? is there any chance this would work?

So you want to blackmail them under the pressure of law? Really?
 
That's entirely your choice and I wouldn't want to advise or influence you to either do it or not do it.

thank you, i have been dreaming about sending them an email quoting the EU regulations and threataning to take them to court, but then saying i would be happy to settle it out of court, for a small fee of course.. should i go for it? is there any chance this would work?
 
That's not actually blackmail.

He is threatening to report them to the police if they do not pay him, isn't that considered blackmail?

Blackmail is an act, often a crime, involving unjustified threats to make a gain or cause loss to another unless a demand is met.It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats for the purposes of taking the person's money or property.
Criminal prosecution - one more time, so legally it is blackmail and he is a criminal if he does it.
 
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Firstly, he said threatening legal action - that has nothing to do with the police.

Secondly, taking a company to court over a breach of Employment Law is perfectly acceptable, as is settling a case out of court.

Suggesting settling out of court in the same communication as the initial threat of legal action is a bit naive but is certainly not blackmail. A better way would be to start proceedings and then await their response.

He is threatening to report them to the police if they do not pay him, isn't that considered blackmail?
 
So you want to blackmail them under the pressure of law? Really?

i wouldn't think it is blackmail. i would tell them i am seriously considering taking legal action, and as it would be easier for them to settle this out of court then i'd presume that they would suggest it, or i would suggest it.. would suggesting it be considered blackmail? i'm not gonna be like "pay me 1k within a week or i will take you to court" i would do it sensibly and legally, i do not want to break any laws myself and i wouldn't offer to settle out of court if it was blackmail, i am pretty sure it is not though!!
 
Firstly, he said threatening legal action - that has nothing to do with the police.

Secondly, taking a company to court over a breach of Employment Law is perfectly acceptable, as is settling a case out of court.

Suggesting settling out of court in the same communication as the initial threat of legal action is a bit naive but is certainly not blackmail. A better way would be to start proceedings and then await their response.

Firstly, I did not mean police exactly.
Secondly, I never said it is unacceptable to take the company to court.
And if they do have proof that he asked for money - then that is blackmail.
If OP wants to do this, he can make a deal with them without threatening - let's just say he says them that they have legal issues and he can help the company to resolve them if they provice him with xxx$ money.

i wouldn't think it is blackmail. i would tell them i am seriously considering taking legal action, and as it would be easier for them to settle this out of court then i'd presume that they would suggest it, or i would suggest it.. would suggesting it be considered blackmail? i'm not gonna be like "pay me 1k within a week or i will take you to court" i would do it sensibly and legally, i do not want to break any laws myself and i wouldn't offer to settle out of court if it was blackmail, i am pretty sure it is not though!!

Tell them about your story, tell them that you could go to court with them, and then tell them that you are so generous to fix their legal issues for an xxx$ amount so it doesn't happen to someone else.
Be a generous guy!
 
Apply once again as a female. If they select you, then dress like a female (shemale style) and attend the interview. You might want to grab a camera with you and publish your story on YouTube. Seems like theres a potential to go viral :)
 
haha, not a bad idea at all.. :)
 
Suck it up, just because you didn't get the job, you don't have to cry about that. So if they need a female, they can hire a female. If your argument was valid, then I surely would be hired as an exotic dancer.
 
i sent a reply back to "them" , turns out it was just a woman doing referral marketing for Elance.. :D
 
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