When was the last time you looked at one of your blank job applications?  Are you asking for information that could be used for a selection process with discrimination inadvertently attached?

There are some things you CAN’T ask on an application.  You can’t ask for a birthday.  Most folks know this because you can then tell how old an applicant is.  You can’t ask for an applicants marital status either, nor how many children.  Think about every question…can the answer or non-answer of this question be used to build criteria that is not job related?

There are some things you SHOULDN’T ask.  I put a social security number in this category.  Some folks think you can tell a person’s immigration status by the prefix of the number. Not sure on that one.  I was looking for an Administrative Assistant once back in Washington DC and recieved more than 200 applications for just one position.  That’s a LOT of personal information to take on.

Do you really want to have that kind of personal information for which to be responsible?  Do you want to have a formal policy to every job applicant of how you will be using this data, how long you will keep it, and how it will be destroyed?  With the threat of identity theft, this is a very personal identifier that I don’t think you want unless you really need it.

If the position you are offering requires a background check, of course you are going to need a social security number.  Maybe his or her drivers license, too.  I suggest building a separate form.  You probably aren’t going to complete a background check on every candidate…just the perfect one you want on your team.