Non-profit research center The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) recently called into question the practices of Utah-based recruiting company HireVue for their use of online game-based challenges and video interviews in evaluating a job candidate’s qualifications. EFF asked the Federal Communications Commission to investigate these practices as a potential threat to equal employment opportunity. HireVue has reportedly conducted one million job applicant assessments and boasts customers like Delta, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Hilton. The EFF criticism follows lawsuits claiming that software algorithms deployed by companies like HireVue discriminate against older workers.
HireVue operates with a proprietary algorithm that assesses these video interviews on aspects like emotion, intonation, and inflection. This applicant data is then compared with top performers within a company using predictive algorithms. The facial data collected to analyze candidates may discriminate against older men and women, those suffering from depression, autism, or other non-conventional appearances. However, the actual impact of HireVue’s algorithms is currently unknown and may soon be further investigated by the Federal Communications Commission following the EFF complaint.
Read More: Artificial Intelligence Poses New Threat to Equal Employment Opportunity
