Issues and Challenges in the Recruitment and Selection of ...

other occupations such as youth work can require very different training andprofessional backgrounds in different countries. A number of employers in boththe public and private sector were aware of incidences in which immigrantjob seekers were considered to be unsuitable for a position although theirqualifications would have been acceptable in their own country. Despite this, thedevelopment of job descriptions was not seen as an area that presented barriersfor immigrants or that needed to be addressed.3.2.2 Eligibility CriteriaWithin the more formal recruitment processes implemented mainly by largecompanies and public sector organisations, eligibility criteria for assessingapplications were drawn up and communicated to potential applicants. Inless formal scenarios, particularly in small companies where cold calling waswelcomed, eligibility criteria frequently remained implicit in that they were notformally communicated to applicants. Regardless of these differences betweenformal and less formal approaches, the criteria were considered to relate toattributes that were essential for undertaking the work required.Although employers perceive that the eligibility criteria are an essential reflectionof what is required by the job, defining eligibility criteria is also useful forpreliminary screening, particularly where large volumes of applications can beexpected: one company, for example, had received 25,000 applications last yearand consequently strict reference to formal eligibility criteria was a vital first stepin rendering these into more manageable numbers (see below). In contrast, oneemployer in a skills starved sector described the eligibility criteria for work in hiscompany as “hands and experience”.Among the most common criteria for determining eligibility were:• Qualifications: Not all employers used a minimum level of qualification aspart of their eligibility criteria (for example, only forty per cent ofthose surveyed did so). But amongst those consulted with that did usequalifications, these were frequently determined by the requirements ofthe relevant professional bodies. In other instances, the extent to whichthe qualification criteria are actually necessary to do the job or reflectedother considerations such as established precedent or the need to havea basis for preliminary screening is not clear. Although given the pointnoted above about large volume applications, it is likely that the latter is afactor. Outside of those contexts in which professional qualifications arerequired, all organisations had broadened the educational qualificationcriteria to include the Irish standard (usually Leaving Certificate)48Issues and Challenges in the Recruitment and Selection of Immigrant Workers in Ireland