Hiring Manager Reveals He Rejected Candidate During A Job Interview After Finding Her Too Attractive — 'It's Not Good For Me Or The Team If She Ended Up Getting Hired'
He felt her looks would be too distracting for him and his team to work efficiently.
stockfour / ruigsantos / Shutterstock; victorzastolskiy via Canva Pro A hiring manager was accused of being sexist after admitting that he refused to hire a candidate because of how she looked.
The employer posted about a job interview that he had done with a woman on an anonymous online forum, which was later shared on Twitter, in which he claimed that he couldn't advance her to the next round of interviews because he feared that her appearance would disrupt the work environment.
He refused to hire her because he felt she was too attractive to work for him and his team.
In the post, the hiring manager explained that he usually does first-round interviews for his company, and for most of those interviews, he usually gets male candidates scheduled for interviews because in the field he works in, it's mostly men who are hired.
"I recently did an interview where the candidate performed good enough to be okayed for further rounds," he wrote. "But during the interview, I did get distracted a few times."
Photo: Twitter
He claimed that he found the job candidate both his type and extremely attractive. Based on that, he decided not to hire her for fear that her attractiveness would disrupt the work environment for him and his other male colleagues.
"I rejected her because I thought it was not good for me or my team if she ended up getting hired," he thought. After rejecting the candidate, he acknowledged that he feels terrible about it and insisted that while he's "happily married" and often finds other women attractive, he never acts on his impulses.
"This person would be in close proximity if she ended up getting hired, and I would have totally messed up," he continued. "Looking for advice on how to deal with situations like these and stop feeling guilt."
Unfortunately, this type of gender-based discrimination happens to a plethora of women in the workforce.
According to the Pew Research Center, about four-in-ten working women (42%) in the United States say they have faced discrimination on the job because of their gender.
Furthermore, women are roughly four times as likely as men to say they have been treated as if they were not competent because of their gender — 23% of employed women versus 6% of men.
When a hiring manager refuses to hire a candidate solely based on her physical appearance, specifically deeming her "too attractive," it can be seen as a manifestation of sexist and discriminatory attitudes.
Photo: Zivica Kerkez / Shutterstock
Many people were disgusted by the hiring manager's decision and pointed out he shouldn't be responsible for conducting interviews.
"No, don't stop feeling guilty. What you did was terrible, you know it. You rejected a good candidate [because] it wouldn't be 'good for you,'" one Twitter user wrote.
"You felt you could not 'handle' her attractiveness. I wish u were never in a position to make hiring decisions. That's the unfortunate part."
Another user added, "If you can't compartmentalize work & personal life you don't belong in a leadership position!"
"This is an issue with him not being able to control himself & unfortunately, it cost a qualified woman her job. All because of his misogynistic way of thinking."
A third user pointed out, "I love how he automatically assumes that she would also be attracted to him. I have also hired and worked with women for over 20 years."
"[The] ability to do the job is the only requirement and you are treated with the same dignity and respect as everyone else in the company."
Refusing to hire a candidate based on their attractiveness not only denies the candidate a fair chance of employment but also creates a hostile work environment. This kind of behavior perpetuates harmful stereotypes and objectifies women, reducing them to their physical appearance rather than evaluating their qualifications, skills, and experiences relevant to the job.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.