Getting off on the right foot – hiring right

One way to avoid unhappy situations is to begin on the right foot.  And in personnel matters, that means hiring right.  Churches should follow prudent steps in hiring their employees.  For starters, a church must know what it is looking for in a new employee.  That means that job descriptions should be prepared prior to the interviewing process. 

Once that is done, a church can then begin recruiting and evaluating potential employees.  Here are a few tips to guide churches in the recruiting process:

• Maintain a record, in writing, of all job openings.
• Keep a file of the various advertisements it has placed to recruit applicants.
•  Utilize a standardized applicant screening and interviewing process, making sure that managers are properly trained in the conducting of effective and legal interviews.
• Utilize a standard application form which informs applicants of the terms and conditions of employment. (Particularly the right to consider their religious affiliation.)
  • The application should avoid unlawful pre-employment inquiries. (Age, race, sex,. etc)

KEY: The application should be reviewed by the church’s legal counsel prior to being used in the hiring process.