Jewish Vocational Agencies Report Reduction in Employment Bias

Fair employment practice laws apparently have reduced discriminatory questioning of applicants about their religion by both employers and commercial employment agencies, although the asking of such questions is still widespread. This is one of the findings in a survey report released today, based on a questionnaire survey of the experience of 2,053 applicants registering at Jewish vocational service agencies in 16 cities in the United States and Canada during March, 1955.

The report reveals that in U.S. cities not covered by state or local fair employment laws, 40 percent of those who had also registered with private employment agencies had been asked about their religion. In cities protected by FEP laws, only about four percent had been asked such questions at private employment agencies.

Similar, but less striking differences were found in the case of those who had applied direct to employers. In cities without FEP, 17 percent reported they had been asked about their religion, as compared with about eight and one-half percent in FEP cities. The longer FEP had been in effect in a particular city, the less questioning about religion was reported.

The survey was part of a long range cooperative program undertaken jointly by Jewish vocational agencies and Jewish community relations agencies. The program is under the direction of a joint committee on employment discrimination of the Jewish Occupational Council and the National Community Relations Advisory Council. Questionnaires were filled out by applicants at Jewish vocational agencies in Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Louisville, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Montreal.