Wanted – ‘Candidates who are Anglo-Saxon’: Optus launches investigation after telco posts ‘completely unacceptable’ job ad
- A job ad called for Anglo Saxon applicants living near Neutral Bay in Sydney
- Optus labelled the ad ‘completely unacceptable’ and a breach of their values
- The racism and legality of the ad has been questioned by lawyers and the public
- The median price for rent is $1,100 and buying in Neutral Bay is $2.2 million
By Monica O’shea For Daily Mail Australia
Published: 23:06 AEST, 13 April 2018 | Updated: 01:13 AEST, 14 April 2018
A job ad calling for applicants who are ‘Anglo Saxon’ and live near ‘Neutral Bay’ on Sydney’s affluent North Shore has outraged politicians, lawyers and the public.
The advert for a retail consultant with telecommunications giant Optus, which has now been taken down – appeared on Seek on Thursday afternoon.
Lawyers, politicians and community leaders condemned the ad on Friday, with some commenting on its legality.
A job ad calling for applicants who are ‘Anglo Saxon’ and live near ‘Neutral Bay’ on Sydney’s affluent North Shore has been described as illegal and racist
The median price for rent in Neutral Bay is $1,100 per week and it costs $2.2 million to buy in the exclusive suburb.
Optus labelled the job advert as ‘completely unacceptable’ and expressed its commitment to ‘diversity and inclusion’ in a post to social media.
‘A job advert posted on a website today is a clear breach of Optus values and our commitment to equal opportunity employment,’ the company stated.
‘We’ve removed the advert and are investigating how this occurred and offer an unreserved apology.’ ‘
The median price for rent in Neutral Bay is $1,100 per week and it costs $2.2 million to buy in the exclusive suburb. The suburb has views of Sydney harbour (pictured)
Race Discrimination Commissioner Dr Tim Soutphommasane described the post as illegal in a post to twitter on Friday.
‘Under the Racial Discrimination Act, it is unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of race in employment,’ he said.
Sydney lawyer Michael Tiyce said he could not see how the ad was permitted without an ‘authorised exemption’.
‘Without an authorised exemption I cannot see how this is permitted – it is certainly not justifiable on a subjective basis,’ he said.
The ad was posted by the Optus Neutral Bay store, according to the company (stock photo of an Optus store)
Social media users reacted with anger on twitter and Facebook, with some describing the ad as ‘racist’, while others threatened to switch phone companies.
‘I’ve been a loyal customer for 14 years and so have other thousands of non Anglo-Saxon Australians,’ one person said.
‘I’ll now switch to another network provider.’
Optus labelled the job advert as ‘completely unacceptable’ and has now taken it down, but the ad (pictured) was still appearing online on social media Friday.
Anti-Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich said he was pleased Optus ‘removed the hurtful and outrageous ad’, which he said ‘clearly violates the Australian values of fair go, equal opportunity and inclusivity’.
‘People should be employed based on their skills, merit and CV, not because of their background, culture or skin colour,’ he said.
‘This kind of ugly exclusion and discrimination must never find a home in our nation, and we hope that Optus is vigilant in ensuring that such a prejudicial hiring practise is never allowed to form any part of their corporate culture.’
Former politician Bronwyn Bishop told Sky News she couldn’t understand why the ad appeared and observed: ‘It looked to me like someone was trying to test the law’.
‘There must have been something behind it because otherwise it makes no sense,’ she said.