A Reddit submit has ignited discussions about hiring biases in India, notably towards married professionals. The submit, shared by an nameless consumer, alleges that candidates—particularly software program engineers, product managers, strategists, and senior advertising and marketing and gross sales executives—are often requested about their marital standing throughout interviews, typically resulting in rejection in the event that they affirm they’re married.
The consumer claims that this pattern has turn into more and more widespread in interviews. “After clearing the fundamental rounds, somebody from the management staff casually asks, ‘Are you married?’ and most of the people I do know have misplaced the chance simply because they stated sure,” the Redditor wrote.
Whereas such questions are thought of inappropriate and even unlawful in lots of international locations, the submit means that they’ve been normalised in India’s job market. It ties this problem to broader office expectations, together with the broadly mentioned “90-100 hour work week” tradition. Employers, the submit hints, could understand married professionals as much less versatile or obtainable for lengthy hours in comparison with their single counterparts.
The dialogue additionally touches on systemic flaws in India’s job market, with the Redditor arguing that the nation’s give attention to cost-cutting and repair provision, quite than worth creation, has intensified hiring pressures. “However we’re well beyond that when we’ve normalised asking present and expertise salaries earlier than the interviews. The issue is there are too many candidates, and as a rustic, we didn’t give attention to creating worth. We centered on undercutting and repair offering,” they added.
The submit has sparked debate amongst customers, with some corroborating comparable experiences and others defending firms’ proper to evaluate candidates’ availability and long-term dedication. “The reply to this query is at all times no. Even in case you are married say no. Then after they discover out, you possibly can simply say that you simply couldnt hear correctly in the course of the name. And also you heard the interviewer ask are you “apprehensive”. And also you responded with ‘No’,” a consumer replied.
Regardless, it highlights ongoing issues about hiring biases and work-life steadiness expectations in India’s company sector.
