5 interview questions you shouldnt ask potential employees

5 bewerberinterview questions you shouldnt ask potential employeesWe talk a lot about what questions interviewees should be prepared to answer, but what if youre on the other side of that equation? Are there any danger zone questions (or just plain ineffective) questions you shouldnt ask? There definitely are, and they range from inappropriate to downright illegal. Lets look at some of them. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) 1. How old are you?Age is always a no-no in an interview. Even if the interviewee mentions it themselves or you can deduce the age based on their resume, you cant ask about it or use it as a factor in the hiring decision. Per the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), its illegal to use age as a discriminating factor in hiring. So by mentioning age, youre opening the door to potential legal consequences for your companywhether youre just making small talk or not.2. Are you married/do you have kids?Again, illegal, even if its just small talk. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) forbids using gender or family status as an element in hiring someone for a role. A question about family status could make the interviewee think youre fishing to see if she is planning to take maternity leave, or a question about marriage could make the interviewee think youre trying to determine sexual orientation. Its best to leave it alone and find other ways to make small talk. And you dont want to risk making the interviewee feel uncomfortable about having to discuss rolleal issues. Its better all around to keep discussion limited to professional areas.3. If You Were a blank, what kind of blank would you be?This one isnt illegal, by any stretch. Its just not a very useful or effective interview question. Knowing which kind of tree the interviewer identifies with or which former member of One Direction theyd like to be doesnt tell you much of anything about how theyd approach the job at hand. Whenever possible, you should avoid filler questions like these.4. Whats your salary history?What a candidate made before is largely immaterial to what theyd make at your company, unless youre trying to take the easy way out and determine how low you can go, salary-wise. Either way, its not a terribly appropriate or relevant thing to ask someone whos applying for a specific job. It could put the interviewee on the verteidigung and steer the conversation away from the job itself.5. Whats your biggest weakness?If you ask this, youre not going to get a 100% truthful answer. Candidates are on to this game, so youre going to get an answer with spin on it. No one is going to say Yeah, Im just not good at motivating myself to get work done in the morning or I make a lot of careless mistakes. And does the spin answer like I am too much of a perfectionist really help you make this hiring decision?When youre the interviewer and have all the power, its important to make sure youre making a goo d faith effort to ask the right questions to get someone hired. The last thing you want to do is open legal cans of worms for your company or ask questions that just dont tell you much about the person youre hiring to fill this job. Learning to become a great interviewer is just as much a skill as learning to become a great interviewee, and the more you work on what to avoid, the more effective youll be.