Kanye West (who now goes by Ye) and his latest headline-making commentary may be the most public example of the insidious nature of antisemitism — which could be more widespread in recruiting than assumed, data released Nov. 22 by ResumeBuilder shows.
One in 4 hiring managers said in a survey that they are less likely to move forward with Jewish applicants, due in part to a belief that Jews have too much “power and control” — the same antisemitic views recently espoused by West.
Additionally, 1 in 6 hiring managers said leadership told them not to hire Jewish applicants, while one-third said antisemitism is common in their workplace. Just under one-third (29%) said antisemitism is “acceptable” at their company.
Notably, some industries had higher instances of reported antisemitic views. While 23% of hiring managers overall said that their industry should have fewer Jews, 38% of managers in finance and 34% in technology said the same.
ResumeBuilder polled 1,131 hiring managers and recruiters for its report. Respondents were found via employment status demographic criteria and a screening question, the firms said; to take the survey respondents had to be employed and work as a hiring manager or recruiter.
“Antisemitism in the workplace starts at the hiring process with individuals who do not want to higher Jews because of bigoted stereotypes, but that is not where it ends,” Stacie Haller, executive recruiter and career counselor, said in ResumeBuilder’s blog post announcing the findings. “In this era of fighting for equality in hiring, Jewish individuals have largely been left out of the conversation, and the issue of antisemitism has for the most part gone unaddressed.”
Antisemitism has been noticeably on the rise since COVID-19 hit, experts said during a SHRM Inclusion event in 2021 — an event that took place not long after the shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Emboldened by conspiracy theories about vaccines, some people fall deeper into content with more and more antisemetic themes, one expert said.
To combat this issue, HR needs to publicly and broadly emphasize a zero-tolerance policy for racism, bias and injustice at work. Imbuing the workplace with kindness and inclusiveness is also key, Jonathan Segal, partner at Duane Morris LLP, said during the event, which can look like recognizing Jewish and other religious holidays, especially during the winter season.
