Twenty Questions about Employment Testing Bias and Unfairness in Australia

doi:10.1017/9781009448949.002

Chapter 2 - Twenty Questions about Employment Testing Bias and Unfairness in Australia

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 November 2025

Jaymon D. Kirk ,

Serena Wee ,

Patrick D. Dunlop and

Peter Macqueen

Edited by

Winfred Arthur, Jr. ,

Dennis Doverspike and

Benjamin D. Schulte

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Winfred Arthur, Jr.: Affiliation:
Texas A & M University
Dennis Doverspike: Affiliation:
George Mason University
Benjamin D. Schulte: Affiliation:
Texas A & M University

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Summary

This chapter explores the legal frameworks that govern employment testing in Australia, including federal and state anti-discrimination legislation, and evaluates their impact on employment testing in the country. Overall, despite the existence of legal protections for individuals from diverse demographic groups (e.g., culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, sex/gender, age), judicial scrutiny of discrimination in employment testing remains limited. Practical challenges, such as difficulties in gathering evidence of discrimination, and the prospect of limited financial compensation, may discourage legal action. Moreover, statistical evidence is neither widely used nor required to demonstrate discrimination, resulting in a regulatory environment where employment testing practices are often guided more by organizational discretion and international perspectives than by legal mandates. However, as hiring technologies continue to evolve, this chapter highlights the opportunity for stronger regulatory oversight and empirical rigor to ensure employment testing remains both equitable and legally defensible.

Keywords

Australia employment testing bias fairness discrimination

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Type: Chapter
Information: Global Perspectives on the Definition, Assessment, and Reduction of Bias and Unfairness in Employment Testing , pp. 44 - 64

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009448949.002 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2025

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