The most recent batch of BALCA decisions was not terribly interesting, but I did come across the ViewSoft, Inc. case that features an issue that comes up regularly and deserves a bit of consideration. In this case, the job requirements were either to hold: 1) master’s degree in the relevant field, or 2) a bachelor’s degree in the same field as well as having a few years of experience. (I’m being deliberately vague here because the actual requirements for the position are not the point).

Anyway, the ViewSoft, Inc. application was initially denied because the job posting on the State Workforce Agency (or “SWA,” which in this case was the Virginia Workforce Connection) officially listed only the master’s degree requirement. The conclusion of the DOL officer was that failing to list the alternative potential minimum qualifications could have improperly dissuaded potential US applicants.

The critical issue here, though, is that the “education level” here was selected from a drop-down menu where the options were only education levels (and not “education, plus experience”). This is an issue that comes up regularly in the recruitment process for PERM cases. Virginia is one of many states where the SWA job posting system is made from the same template. Virginia and Maryland, for example, are basically identical interfaces where the only difference is color scheme. I’d bet at least half and maybe 2/3rds of states are on the same system and it’s really not at all user-friendly. It feels like it was designed in like maybe 2000 and, especially compared to the customization options on Indeed or Monster.com or LinkedIn or wherever else ads might be placed in 2019, it can be a clunky experience and somewhat frustrating.

Ultimately here, the Board sided with the employer and concluded that “[w]hile the Employer could have put the alternate requirement in the duties section of the job order, that is not how the job order was designed to be completed and we hold that an application cannot be denied because the Employer followed the job order instructions.” The DOL officer had suggested that the employer should have listed the alternative qualifications in one of the boxes were job duties are described, but, as you can see from the above, the Board thought that was a step too far.

Originally published here: https://www.permlabor.com/blog/problems-caused-by-clunky-job-posting-websites