A new report has found that 63% of UK jobseekers have faced discriminatory or biased interview questions.

The Greenhouse study of 2,500 workers across the UK, US and Germany highlighted the prevalence of discrimination in the job market.

These questions primarily involved age, gender or race.

Specifically, 48% of candidates were asked questions about their age, 25% about their gender and 23% about their race.

This rise in biased questioning, along with issues including hiring managers mispronouncing candidates’ names, is particularly affecting jobseekers from historically underrepresented groups.

The report revealed that 74% of those in these groups have faced name mispronunciation, compared to 56% of other candidates.

Danielle McConville, vice president of EMEA at Greenhouse, said:

“The hiring landscape is riddled with systemic inefficiencies and a lack of consideration for the candidate experience.

“Discriminatory practices, communication breakdowns and short-sighted strategies have become all too common.”

Stating that companies must understand how candidate experience significantly impacts talent acquisition, she added:

“A business’ ability to attract and retain top talent can be a determining factor of long-term organisational success.”

‘Ghosting’ has also been a problem for jobseekers and it is only getting worse.

61% of jobseekers have been ghosted after a job interview, marking a 19 percentage point increase since April 2024.

This is particularly damaging to candidates who already face an incredibly selective hiring process.

In addition to ghosting, ‘ghost jobs’ – positions that are posted without any real intention to hire – remain a significant issue.

60% of jobseekers suspected they had encountered a ghost job, with 27% still applying despite their reservations.

Greenhouse’s internal data showed that 18-22% of roles posted on its platform in any given quarter were ghost jobs.

This disillusionment with the hiring process was compounded by a rising number of scam and spam job listings.

According to the report, 69% of jobseekers had encountered these deceptive listings.

Jon Stross, president and co-founder of Greenhouse, said:

“The data highlights a troubling reality – the job market has become more soul-crushing than ever.

“Candidates are trapped in a cycle of despair and have no idea what’s going on.”

He also pointed out the long-term effects of poor candidate experience, stating that “every unanswered email and every vanishing hiring manager isn’t just a minor inconvenience to candidates, it’s costly and can damage a company’s reputation, making it harder to attract top talent in the long term”.

Another key finding was that jobseekers were frustrated with the lack of communication throughout the hiring process.

84% said they were more likely to reapply to companies that took the time to provide feedback after an interview.

Post-application ghosting is still a major issue, with the highest rates of ghosting occurring after initial conversations with recruiters (45%) and hiring managers (42%).

Many candidates (33%) were willing to provide feedback on a company’s hiring process but had never been asked.

Lucy Fitzgerald, CEO and founder of Fitzgerald HR, said:

“In this day and age, we simply cannot allow discriminatory practices to continue.”

“As HR professionals, it’s our responsibility to ensure that hiring managers are properly trained to conduct interviews fairly and know exactly what questions are appropriate to ask.

“Offering constructive feedback to candidates who take time out of their busy lives to go through our hiring processes is another crucial step.”

Fitzgerald added that these actions were not just about practicality but about respect.

“These small gestures show appreciation, enhance our employer brand, and demonstrate a genuine commitment to treating candidates with respect.

“Ultimately, this isn’t just about having strategies in place – it’s about making sure those strategies lead to real, positive change in the hiring experience.”