Legal Question in Employment Law in District of Columbia

Re: Requiring Free Labor From Interviewees/Applicants

This is an interesting and novel question. Generally, it is legal for an employer to place reasonable requirements on applicants, such as asking them to take tests which are applicable to their fields of interest, or take drug tests, etc. These of course are unpaid conditions upon which employment decisions are made.

However, your question seems to hint that the employer may be taking advantage. Perhaps assigning actual work that the employer could make use of, even if the employer does not hire the applicant. In that case, a crafty plaintiff could make a claim for "unjust enrichment," which means he or she should be paid for the work because the employer should not be able to have an economic or other benefit from the work without paying for it (i.e., become unjustly enriched).

More basically, such a person might be able to make a wage claim under the applicable wage and hour laws. In other words, they should be paid for the work because they have been constructively hired to do it, whether or not they

received an official job offer.

The practicality, though, is that if you want the job, you generally have to go along with the pre-job requirements. So unless there truly is a substantial amount of pre-work required, from which the employer could make significant economic gains, it probably is not worth making an issue out of.

If you want to discuss your specific facts, please call me for a free consultation. It does not appear as if you need an attorney, but I would be glad to chew the fat.

Good luck.

Jeff Sheldon

Jeffrey L. Sheldon, Esquire

The Sheldon Law Firm

6932 Mayfair Road

Laurel, MD 20707

301.604.2497

fax: 301.776.3954

[email protected]

http://www.SheldonLawFirm.com

Disclaimer: This posting does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice. It is not confidential, nor is it privileged, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please consult with an attorney for advice specific to the facts of your case.