Legal Question in Discrimination Law in California
Unethical Hiring
I have worked at this company for over 5 years working my way up the ladder. When the opening for Director became open, the company placed newspaper ads and relied on word-of-mouth to fill the position. They did not use a recruiting firm as I suggested. Only one candidate was interviewed-a previous employee who worked at an entry level position and left the company to earn a Masters degree and MBA. Most employees felt the candidate had insufficient experience so the CEO rewrote the job description to match the candidate's qualifications. Rather than search for more candidates, the CEO downgraded the position to Associate Director and offered the position to the inexperienced former employee without our knowledge. The CEO now expects the rest of us to participate in supporting the growth and training of the new hire. When I expressed an interest in advancing to a Director level 3 years ago, I did not receive much support. I feel the candidate gained employment mostly due to favoritism and not based on actual achievements. I feel discriminated against and my performance will be affected by my emotions. I do not feel that I should report to someone that I will have to ''train''. What recourse do I have?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Unethical Hiring
Start your own company and then you can hire whomever you want.
There is no law that says an employer must hire the most qualified person for a job or that the new hire must meet with the approval of the rest of the employees. Private business is not a democracy.
When you speak of discrimination, to be unlawful, an employment decision cannot be based upon reasons that are prohibited by law, such as age, race, national origin, gender, religion, a person's handicap and several other protected classifications.
If your employer hired this ex-employee simply because he likes the guy, that is not illegal discrimination.
If you refuse to support your new boss, you run the risk of losing your job for insubordination. You will have to weigh out if this decision is palatable. If not, it may be time to move on.
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