Creating a job advertisement starts with knowing what the tasks and responsibilities of the job is, and the skills, abilities, experiences and qualifications needed to perform the job. The job advertisement should not give others the perception that it is discriminatory in any way, as this could create an unfavourable impression or even cause public displeasure towards the organisation.

As a general principle, employers should avoid stating a preference for age, race, language, gender, marital status and religion. If a position requires a specific attribute that may be viewed as discriminatory, state the reason for the requirement in the advertisement. If a job requires proficiency in a particular language, the job advertisement should spell out the need for the requirement. This would reduce ambiguity and minimise incidence of misunderstanding between the job seekers and the employer.

The Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices are used by Human Resource experts and hiring managers to help them develop fair and merit-based employment practices. You can refer to the Recruitment and Job Advertisements Section of the guidelines when you are creating job ads.

Some practical tips for creating job advertisements :

• Use “No Experience Required” if you are advertising for entry-level positions. This will allow qualified mature job-seekers who are willing to take on entry-level jobs to also apply. Avoid phrases like “fresh graduates only” as it can be perceived as discriminatory towards older workers.
  
  
• If frequent travelling is required, state so in the advertisement, rather than excluding people with family responsibilities by stating “Only Singles Need Apply”. This will help ensure that qualified persons with family commitments and are willing to travel can also apply. 
   
• If the job involves certain functions that might not be welcomed by a certain gender, state the function in the job advertisement rather than a preference for applicants from a particular gender. Example : "Delivery personnel required. Job involves night assignments to remote areas." 
   
• If the job requires the candidate to perform religious functions or involves certain religious sensitivities, state so in the advertisement. Example : "Cook/Helper required for Muslim kitchen, familiarity with Halal food preparation required."
  
  
• If the nature of the job is physically demanding, state the required physical attributes clearly rather than indicating an age cut-off. Example : "Candidates are required to load and unload sacks of rice of at least 10kg each."
  
  
• If the job nature requires proficiency in a particular language, state the reason. Example : "Chinese language teacher for pre-school centre. Good credit in ‘O’ Level Chinese required. "

If you spot a discriminatory job advertisement, you can bring the advertisement to our attention by providing details below.