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Exercise 5.1 – Hiring a Social Media Director More and more public sector agencies are focusing on how governments and nonprofits can best use social media strategies and efforts to interact with the public. Social media or new media directors are fairly new positions, but their numbers are growing. It is now common for public agencies to use Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Foursquare to get public feedback on issues. Oak Park, Illinois, uses Facebook and Twitter to communicate with constituents, and when North Carolina was faced with eliminating a $2.5 billion deficit, the state placed an online interactive game-like platform to let residents choose among different options for closing the budget gap. Questions 1. Before hiring a social media director, a job analysis should be conducted. What job analysis method or methods would you recommend to identify the most important KSAOCs for the position? 2. Please identify the competencies that are required for the position. Source: Pittman (2012) Exercise 6.1 – EEOC Cautions against Making Employment Decisions Based on Criminal Records Using arrest and conviction records as a basis for employment decision may violate Title VII if employers fail to take certain precautionary measures. According to enforcement guidance released by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on April 25, 2012, asking about arrests may have a disparate impact on African Americans and Hispanics. An employer may treat a conviction as evidence that an applicant engaged in criminal conduct. The EEOC recommends as a “best practice that employers not ask about convictions on job applications because the employer is more likely to assess the relevance of an applicant’s conviction once the employer is knowledgeable about an applicant’s qualifications and experience.” If employers make inquiries about criminal convictions, the inquiries should be limited to convictions that would be related for the position in question and consistent with business necessity. The EEOC recommends that the employer (1) validate the criminal conduct screen for the position according to the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures, or (2) develop a targeted screen that considers the crime, the time elapsed, and the nature of the job, and then provides an opportunity for an individual assessment for people excluded by the screen. Questions 1. What criteria would you choose in developing an employment policy for assessing an applicant’s prior arrests? 2. What criteria would you choose in developing an employment policy for assessing an applicant’s prior convictions? 3. Are the policies the same or are they different? Explain your answer.
