A practical guide for early childhood employers in Australia
Hiring in early childhood education is already complex — but asking the wrong question can quietly expose your service to legal risk, reputational damage, and poor hiring decisions. Knowing what you cannot ask in an early childhood interview is essential for compliant and effective hiring in Australia.
Many well-meaning Centre Directors and Approved Providers unintentionally cross the line during interviews. Not out of bad intent — but because the boundaries are not always obvious.
This guide outlines:
What you cannot ask in an interview
Why it matters
What to ask instead to still get the insight you need
Why this matters more in early childhood
4Early childhood sits in a high-compliance, high-trust environment:
You are responsible for children’s safety and well-being
You are employing within a heavily regulated framework
You are often hiring under pressure
That combination leads to one risk:
Shortcuts in interviews
And shortcuts are where non-compliant or discriminatory questions creep in.
For services wanting a more structured and defensible approach, our permanent recruitment process is designed to reduce these risks before you even meet a candidate.
Questions you cannot ask (and why)
1. Age
Do not ask:
“How old are you?”
“What year did you finish school?”
Why: Age discrimination is unlawful under Australian law.
Ask instead: “Can you meet the physical and regulatory requirements of this role?”
2. Family plans or pregnancy
Do not ask:
“Are you planning to have children?”
“Do you have childcare commitments?”
Why: This is considered discriminatory and irrelevant to capability.
Ask instead: “This role requires consistent attendance across these hours — can you meet that requirement?”
3. Relationship status
Do not ask:
“Are you married?”
“Do you live with your partner?”
Why: No relevance to job performance. These restrictions are outlined under Australian workplace law and guidance from the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Ask instead: Nothing. Remove entirely.
4. Religion or cultural beliefs
Do not ask:
“What religion are you?”
“Do you celebrate certain holidays?”
Why: Protected attribute under discrimination law.
Ask instead: “Are you available to work within the required roster?”
5. Health and disability (without relevance)
Do not ask:
“Do you have any medical conditions?”
Why: Unlawful unless directly relevant to inherent job requirements.
Ask instead: “Are you able to perform the inherent requirements of the role safely?”
6. Nationality or visa assumptions
Do not ask:
“Where are you really from?”
Why: Discriminatory and inappropriate.
Ask instead: “Do you have the legal right to work in Australia?”
Where this goes wrong in real hiring scenarios
Most non-compliant questions are not asked intentionally. They show up when:
- Interviews are unstructured
- Hiring is rushed
- Centre Directors are covering multiple roles
- There is pressure to “just find someone
This is exactly where hiring risk increases — not at the policy level, but in day-to-day conversations.
The real issue: these questions do not even help you hire better
Most of these questions are asked to reduce perceived risk. In reality, they do the opposite — increasing legal exposure, reducing hiring accuracy, and pushing away high-quality candidates.
They tell you nothing about how someone will actually perform in your service — their practice, their judgement, or their ability to contribute to your team This is where many hiring processes quietly break down.
What high-quality interviews focus on instead
If you want better hires, shift the conversation to:
Practice-based questions
“Walk me through how you would support a child experiencing separation anxiety.”
Behavioural insight
“Tell me about a time you disagreed with a colleague — what did you do?”
Values alignment
“What does children’s agency look like in your daily practice?”
Real-world judgement
“What would you do if ratios were under pressure and a child needed one-on-one support?”
This is also why structured screening, verification, and consistent interview frameworks sit at the core of our recruitment approach — backed by a six-month placement guarantee.
Red flags to watch for (employer-side)
Even when staying compliant, there are still risks in interviews:
Candidates giving overly polished or scripted answers
Inconsistencies between resume and verbal responses
Vague examples with no detail
Reluctance to provide referee context
And one big one:
References that only exist on mobile numbers with no verifiable workplace link
A better approach: structured, defensible hiring
The strongest services do three things:
Use structured interview frameworks
(same questions, same scoring, less bias)
Verify before offer
(qualifications, references, compliance)
Test real-world capability
(trials, scenario-based discussion, practical observation)
For a broader overview of unlawful interview questions across industries, refer to this SEEK guide.
This is not about restricting your hiring process, it is about upgrading it.
Because the goal is not just to avoid illegal questions..
The goal is to make better hiring decisions with less risk.