The St. Paul Chamber of Commerce is seeking to find a study on structural barriers to hiring. The focus is in job requirements that may not be necessary to fulfilling job duties but have the practical effects of creating a barrier for applicants otherwise qualified to do the job. For example, a driver’s license requirement for a job accessible by public transportation is such a structural barrier. Educational requirements may be another such example of an unnecessary barrier to hiring. Such structural barriers are bad for business and for the community. This is a rising movement.

Minnesota Employers dealing with the current low unemployment economy have a business reason for analyzing such structural barriers which usually are found in job description requirements. And it can only be a salutary process since any employment lawyer will attest that an accurate and updated job description is key to any defense of a discrimination, workers compensation, unemployment compensation or other wrongful termination claim. The process of review can be in partnership or in conjunction with a legal best practices review to have accurate and non-discriminatory job description.

Takeaway: The movement to eliminate structural barriers to hiring is strengthened by the hiring motivations in a low unemployment environment and put the spot light on job descriptions. Legal counsel can certainly assist in reviewing the legal implications of changing a job description to reduce unnecessary barriers to hiring while preserving legitimate and legally-enforceable job requirements.