{"id":17242,"date":"2026-02-02T22:29:45","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T22:29:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/?p=17242"},"modified":"2026-02-02T23:04:33","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T23:04:33","slug":"blog-illegal-interview-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/blog-illegal-interview-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"Illegal Interview Questions Employers Can\u2019t Ask"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As tech recruiters working across Australia for many years now, we&#8217;ve heard stories of well-intentioned interviewers asking illegal questions, without even realising. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It can happen if hiring managers aren\u2019t properly prepared or are new to hiring and don\u2019t have all the facts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not only exposing you to legal risk; it also hurts your employer brand. The last thing you want is a perfect candidate to walk away from the process because they felt uncomfortable or offended by a question.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hiring the right talent is hard enough without introducing unnecessary risk. That\u2019s why we\u2019ve put together this interview questions toolkit that includes our recruiter-approved alternatives to common illegal questions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Be sure to bookmark this one before your next round of interviews. \ud83d\udccc<\/b><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b>What Happens If I Ask Illegal Questions in Interviews?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Asking questions that touch on protected characteristics, like age, gender, family status, or disability, can:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Breach Australian anti-discrimination laws<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make your company appear biased or unprofessional<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lead to complaints, legal action, or reputational damage<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Drive away high-quality candidates<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A structured, legally compliant interview process protects your company and improves the candidate experience, which is equally important because it helps you attract and secure top tech talent faster.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b>What Interview Questions Are Illegal in Australia?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Below are common interview questions that are protected by law that you can\u2019t ask as an employer, even if you think they\u2019re harmless:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><i>\u274c \u201cHow old are you?\u201d<br \/>\n<\/i><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Age is a protected attribute. Asking this can be discriminatory unless it\u2019s directly relevant (e.g., licensing requirements).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>\u274c <\/strong><\/span><\/i><strong><i>\u201cDo you have children or care for dependents?\u201d<br \/>\n<\/i><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Family responsibilities are irrelevant to job performance and are protected under the law.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>\u274c <\/strong><\/span><\/i><strong><i>\u201cHave you had past injuries or illnesses?\u201d<br \/>\n<\/i><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Health questions can discriminate against disability. Only ask if it directly affects the role\u2019s essential requirements.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>\u274c <\/strong><\/span><\/i><strong><i>\u201cWhat religion do you follow?\u201d<br \/>\n<\/i><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Religion is a protected characteristic. Asking about it can lead to claims of bias.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b>What Are Some Safe Alternatives?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instead of the above, use these safe interview questions that are effective alternatives when an answer is needed as part of the role requirements:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How old are you?<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><b>\u2705 Alternative: <\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis role requires you to be able to provide proof of age\/licence after an offer. Will that be possible if needed?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do you have children?<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><b>\u2705 Alternative: <\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAre you able to work the following hours\/shifts?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Past injuries\/illnesses?<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><b>\u2705 Alternative: <\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAre there any medical conditions or limitations that would prevent you from performing the core duties of this role?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Religion\/political opinion?<br \/>\n<\/span><b>No Alternative. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Just focus on the skills and experience required to perform the job successfully.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ensure you\u2019re structuring interview questions around the role&#8217;s inherent requirements, you\u2019ll have a fair process with a good candidate experience and legal compliance.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b>Your Interview Compliance Checklist<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To keep your hiring process on track and compliant, follow this simple checklist:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Questions are focused on skills, experience, and capability<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Ask the same core questions to all candidates<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Avoid personal characteristics (age, family, religion, etc.)<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Document all answers objectively<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Involve HR or a recruitment partner if unsure on certain sensitive topics<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2714\ufe0f Use structured interview templates for consistency<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bottom line is that illegal questions are a compliance issue and a risk of losing great talent and damaging your brand. By using a structured, legally safe interview process, you\u2019ll protect your company, reduce risk, and improve your chances of hiring the right people for your tech team.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want help designing interviews that are fair and effective, <\/span><b>TheDriveGroup are your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/hire-smart-scale-fast\/\">tech recruitment partners<\/a> here to help you streamline your hiring process<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; saving you time while helping you secure top talent. \ud83d\ude80<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As tech recruiters working across Australia for many years now, we&#8217;ve heard stories of well-intentioned interviewers asking illegal questions, without even realising. It can happen if hiring managers aren\u2019t properly prepared or are new to hiring and don\u2019t have all the facts.\u00a0 It\u2019s not only exposing you to legal risk; it also hurts your employer&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":17248,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[63],"class_list":["post-17242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hiring-tips","tag-hiring-tips"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17242"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17256,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17242\/revisions\/17256"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/17248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thedrivegroup.com.au\/af-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}