Photos With Resumes: Legal or Illegal

Question: What is the definitive legality regarding a company asking for an accompany photo with a candidate's resume? Can anyone give a concrete yea or nay reason? I am seeing an increase in job postings asking for candidates to send in a photo along with a resume, and I feel that is just setting up companies for potential discrimination lawsuits.

Answer: Here is some content from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) office of legal counsel that sheds some light on this topic:

"Under Title VII, it is not illegal for an employer to learn the race, gender or ethnicity of an individual prior to an interview. Of course, Title VII requires that all individuals be provided equal, nondiscriminatory treatment throughout the hiring process. If an employer representative observes a job seeker in a video clip, and either learns or surmises the person's gender, race, or ethnicity, such knowledge could increase the risk of discrimination or the appearance of discrimination. Employers need to take care in training hiring officials and human resources staff about the appropriate responses when gender, race, or ethnicity are disclosed during recruitment. Video clips might be analogized to information on a resume that clearly tells an individuals race, such as, "President, Black Law Students Association." In this situation, as with the video clip, the employer needs to focus on the person's qualifications for the job."