What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Hawaii
I am currently employed as a law enforcement officer. About 2 years ago, I traveled at great distance and expense to apply for a job (for another law enforcement agency in Washington State) I thought I was more than qualified for. There are several phases applicants must complete before being considered for a job.
Phase 1: Written Test: Out of all applicants, I scored #3 on the written test.
Phase 2: Oral Board (Pass or Fail): Pass
Phase 3: Meet with background detective.
This is where I have issue. During the one on one interview the background detective drills you in almost every aspect of your past. I answered everything completely honestly to the best of my recollection.
In the middle of the interview, the detective asks me if I have a Facebook account. I answered yes. He asked me if it would be okay to look at my page. Feeling that the interview would be over if I refused, but feeling a bit strange, I logged in providing my login and password. The background detective then asked me to move away from the computer and he spent several minutes looking at posts, photos, videos and what ever else I had up. I did not have anything to hide (except for maybe some less-than-flattering photos of myself) but I could not help feeling somewhat violated. Anyway, the background interview concluded, I flew home and several weeks later got a letter stating that I was a "less than competitive candidate" and the agency per policy could not tell me why I would not be further considered for the position.
I could not help but wonder if the detective may have seen something on Facebook that maybe he did not like or personally agree with. The whole snooping around my Facebook profile left a bad taste in my mouth.
Anyway, flash forward one year. Again, knowing that I am qualified for the job, I went through the same process again. I applied, flew at my own expense, aced the written exam, the oral board and waited for the background interview.
As luck would have it, I ended up with the SAME background detective. I had deactivated my Facebook account several months earlier, but he asked me again if I had a Facebook account. I told him no. He then asked me if I belonged to any other "online" services. I told him I have a pro account on Vimeo (My hobby is shooting and editing video). All my videos require a password to watch. He asked if he could look at my videos. I told him he could, but again I had that uneasy feeling that he was going too far into my personal affairs. He clicked on a couple of my videos and asked me to enter my password and watched some boring home videos of my kids at school.
Needless to say, same result. I got the rejection letter a few weeks later and again no explanation.
While I voluntarily provided my passwords to the detective on both occasions, I felt that if I refused he would think I was hiding something. Did this detective overstep his boundaries during the interview?
Please comment.
I am currently employed as a law enforcement officer. About 2 years ago, I traveled at great distance and expense to apply for a job (for another law enforcement agency in Washington State) I thought I was more than qualified for. There are several phases applicants must complete before being considered for a job.
Phase 1: Written Test: Out of all applicants, I scored #3 on the written test.
Phase 2: Oral Board (Pass or Fail): Pass
Phase 3: Meet with background detective.
This is where I have issue. During the one on one interview the background detective drills you in almost every aspect of your past. I answered everything completely honestly to the best of my recollection.
In the middle of the interview, the detective asks me if I have a Facebook account. I answered yes. He asked me if it would be okay to look at my page. Feeling that the interview would be over if I refused, but feeling a bit strange, I logged in providing my login and password. The background detective then asked me to move away from the computer and he spent several minutes looking at posts, photos, videos and what ever else I had up. I did not have anything to hide (except for maybe some less-than-flattering photos of myself) but I could not help feeling somewhat violated. Anyway, the background interview concluded, I flew home and several weeks later got a letter stating that I was a "less than competitive candidate" and the agency per policy could not tell me why I would not be further considered for the position.
I could not help but wonder if the detective may have seen something on Facebook that maybe he did not like or personally agree with. The whole snooping around my Facebook profile left a bad taste in my mouth.
Anyway, flash forward one year. Again, knowing that I am qualified for the job, I went through the same process again. I applied, flew at my own expense, aced the written exam, the oral board and waited for the background interview.
As luck would have it, I ended up with the SAME background detective. I had deactivated my Facebook account several months earlier, but he asked me again if I had a Facebook account. I told him no. He then asked me if I belonged to any other "online" services. I told him I have a pro account on Vimeo (My hobby is shooting and editing video). All my videos require a password to watch. He asked if he could look at my videos. I told him he could, but again I had that uneasy feeling that he was going too far into my personal affairs. He clicked on a couple of my videos and asked me to enter my password and watched some boring home videos of my kids at school.
Needless to say, same result. I got the rejection letter a few weeks later and again no explanation.
While I voluntarily provided my passwords to the detective on both occasions, I felt that if I refused he would think I was hiding something. Did this detective overstep his boundaries during the interview?
Please comment.
