Guide to Ethical Recruitment: Attracting, Selecting, and Hiring Fairly

Recruiting and hiring the right people is one of the most important tasks of any company. It is also one of the most difficult and complex tasks.

Not only do businesses need to attract the best talent, they must also ensure that recruitment and hiring practices are fair and ethical. In this ethical recruitment guide, we’ll look at some of the best practices for ethical recruitment, from attracting the right candidates to selecting and hiring fairly.

Attracting the right candidates

The first step in ethical recruitment is to create a job advert that is clear and accurate. Your job advert should accurately describe the role, the duties, and the skills and qualifications required. It should also include details of the salary and benefits package, so that candidates know what to expect before they apply.

When it comes to sourcing candidates, it’s important to ensure that you reach out to a broad range of potential applicants. This means looking beyond the traditional job boards and using different channels to attract a diverse range of candidates. This could include using social media platforms such as Monster, LinkedIn, et alia, promoting job opportunities on your website, or even attending job fairs and networking events.

Selecting the right candidates

Once you’ve attracted a range of potential candidates, it’s important to ensure that the selection process is fair and unbiased. To do this, create a clear selection criteria that is based on the skills and experience required for the role, and make sure that all candidates are assessed against the same criteria.

It’s also important to ensure that the selection process is transparent. All candidates should be made aware of what will be expected of them during the process, and given the opportunity to ask questions and raise any concerns.

Using a headhunter, or recruitment consultant can help with this, but the costs can (and do) quickly mount. 

When it comes to deciding which candidate to hire, it’s important to focus on the skills and experience required for the role, rather than any personal characteristics such as gender, race, age, or sexual orientation.

Hiring fairly

Once you’ve selected the right candidate for the role, it’s important to ensure that the hiring process is fair and transparent. This means making sure that you provide the same employment contract to all employees, and that you offer a competitive salary and benefits package.

It’s also important to ensure that all employees no matter the level receive a similar base induction and training in the company, and that you provide the same opportunities for career development and progression.