Experts say name discrimination and hiring biases are bad news for applicants and employers

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Australians with non-English names get almost half the call backs for job applicants, compared to those with English names according to a recent study.

Transcript

00:00 Nimash Pranapallige knows how to roll with the punches.

00:06 But when it came to finding a job after graduating, he says it's been an unfair fight.

00:12 Yeah, it was very frustrating.

00:14 He applied for over a hundred jobs, unsuccessfully until...

00:18 My full name's about 21 letters in total.

00:20 I just kind of like shortened it down to about eight letters.

00:24 Within a couple of weeks, I was getting callbacks for like roles I desired.

00:28 So yeah, I guess it worked.

00:31 Ilham Musa had a similar experience, applying for hundreds of jobs over two years, while

00:36 studying a Masters in Business Law.

00:38 I probably only heard back from about three.

00:41 One of my friends actually mentioned that it could potentially be my name, that that

00:45 could be a hindrance.

00:46 A study from Monash Business found a 21.1% success rate for job applicants with English

00:51 names.

00:52 That figure drops to 11.6% for non-English names on written applications.

00:57 Studies from the Federal Education Department and Diversity Council this year back those

01:02 findings.

01:03 Monash Business also found non-English applicants were seen as a risk and judged to a higher

01:07 standard compared to their colleagues.

01:09 It's likely that there are race-based biases that are coming into play because someone

01:15 visually presents differently.

01:17 That is, their racial phenotype might be not...

01:21 They can't be racialised as white.

01:23 The Diversity Council, however, says employers are hurting themselves.

01:27 We know that there's a war for talent.

01:30 We know that organisations need diversity to become more innovative, to solve problems,

01:36 to be more creative, and the data is really, really clear.

01:41 Nimash eventually found work evaluating million-dollar properties.

01:45 He's decided to stick with his shortened name, Ilham, on the other hand.

01:49 My name is my identity.

01:51 I wouldn't...

01:52 And I shouldn't have to change it for any reason.

01:53 Everyone should be given a shot and you should only be tested on your capability.

01:59 Previous generations have fought this problem, and experts hope this data helps current and

02:04 future generations beat it.

02:06 [Drum beat]

02:06 [Applause]

02:08 [Music]

02:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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