Interviewing and Selecting Job Candidates: Maine

Federal law and guidance on this subject should be reviewed together with this section.

Author: Matthew Tarasevich, Bernstein Shur Sawyer & Nelson

Summary

• The Maine Human Rights Act applies to all employers, and protects more categories than federal law. See Maine Human Rights Act.
• Maine offers more protections to job applicants and employees than the Americans with Disabilities Act. See Disability Issues.
• Maine has a ban the box law that limits preemployment criminal background inquiries. See Ban the Box.
• The Maine Preemployment Inquiry Guide includes many examples of questions employers should avoid on job applications as well as during the interview process. See Application Forms.
• During interviews, employers should be consistent and avoid questions that relate to protected characteristics or categories. See Interviewing Applicants.
• Maine prohibits employers from asking job applicants to disclose the usernames or passwords to their personal social media accounts. See Social Media Privacy.
• Employers must carefully check a candidate's employment history, criminal history and references to avoid potential negligent hiring lawsuits, while still respecting the candidate's constitutionally-protected right to privacy. See Reference Checks.