Migrant Worker

As you may already be aware, discrimination during hiring in China is not only permissible, but completely accepted and at times encouraged. Height, weight, and “attractiveness” requirements are commonly listed on job descriptions for a broad range of positions in which you would never have imagined that looks played any role. The vast majority of offices will require all applicants to attach a photo to their CV. I took my own resume head shot photo a few weeks back, wearing a blouse and jacket above the waist and a scruffy pair of athletic shorts and dirty red slippers below the waist. But local Kunming news has been reporting on a new obstacle between this soon-to-be-unemployed migrant worker and her next job: PREGNANCY TESTING

Apparently a few young women were asked to take a pregnancy test before starting work at a Kunming company, as reported by China daily here.

Feeling angry and embarrassed, the three went to the human resources manager, who said their refusal to take the test indicated that they were pregnant and told them they would need to have abortions to keep their jobs.

The article goes on to mention that 4 out of 10 companies that require health checkups for employees also request pregnancy testing.

I grudgingly attach a photo to my resume, although I know it is used to discriminate on the basis of race while hiring. I’ve thought long and hard about this one, but I am not really sure how I can both effectively resist the picture-attaching thing and actually get jobs.

But let it be known that I will NEVER NEVER NEVER take a pregnancy test in order to get a job, regardless of what is locally acceptable. This is almost as bad as South Dakota, where abortions are only legal if you have been “Napolied”