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A recruiter in the U.K. is blaming the lack of gay job candidates in the financial industry on the credit crunch.  Yup, I could just stop writing right there.

According to the Financial Times, a study conducted by Joslin Rowe Associates attributes a drop in openly gay applicants for city jobs in London to the fact that the credit crisis makes job seekers less confident overall, and therefore less likely to disclose their homosexuality during the recruitment process.

I don’t know how they do it in the U.K., but stateside, disclosure of one’s sexual preference is not usually prerequisite for candidacy.  It’s certainly not something that employers can ask about during the recruitment process.

It seems feasible to suggest that one’s self-confidence might take a blow during times of personal financial crisis. And certainly if, as a candidate, you believe you have a better chance of landing a job by not disclosing your sexual preference, you’re just not going to bring it up.  But it’s stretch to conclude therefore that the financial crisis is broadly forcing individuals, especially younger generations entering the workforce, back into the closet.

Being yourself and openly gay doesn’t mean offering your interviewer a hummer in order to get the job.   Is the real story a growing or maintained status quo that favors heterosexuals and disfavors individuals from being openly gay in the financial industry?  Is there a deep-seated prejudice that exists in the workforce, or does sexuality become a non-issue for individuals who are already in the workforce?  The article suggests the latter, but sadly, does not say enough to make this so-called study anything more than a punchline.

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