A LinkedIn job posting has received plenty of responses, but not out of interest for the job.
Vestra Inet, an Ont.-based web development company, published a job advertisement two weeks ago for a content writer and SEO specialist with one stipulation at the end:
“Please note that the Position requires filling in the responsibilities of a receptionist, so female candidates are preferred.”
Their profile is now filled with comments outraged at the gender preference — and the job is currently listed as “no longer accepting applications.”
Jessica Oman, a business plan adviser on LinkedIn, called the post “disgusting,” “outdated,” and “illegal.” Many are upset with the gendered stereotype that it’s mainly women who do receptionist work, as opposed to other genders.
As one commenter put it on the company's Facebook page, "And do I have to know how to make coffee, too, or will I just be picking up the coffee orders for the menfolk?"
The Ontario Human Rights Commission states that it is illegal to discriminate against groups either directly, or indirectly in job advertisements.
This comes weeks after Justin Trudeau selected a gender-balanced cabinet, and reasoned “Because it’s 2015,” when asked why it was a priority.
In recent years, there has been an increase in men doing so-called pink-collar jobs. According to the New York Times, there were more than twice as many male receptionists in 2010 than there were a decade earlier. Other professions men are now filling that were traditionally dominated by women include preschool and kindergarten teachers, nurses and bank tellers.
At the same time, more and more women are being found in professions that were once thought to be men’s careers, including accountants, tax examiners, medical scientists and education administrators, according to Forbes.com.
The Huffington Post Canada contacted Vestra Inet, but they declined to comment on the story.
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