Ich bin derzeit Student und bewerbe mich für Stellen im Bereich Automatisierungstechnik. Nach einigen Versuchen habe ich nur ein Vorstellungsgespräch bekommen. Ich muss zugeben, dass ich weder viel Berufserfahrung noch einen höheren Abschluss habe, also weiß ich, dass das einer der Gründe dafür ist. Aber ich habe gesehen, dass einige meiner finnischen Freunde Jobs mit weniger Erfahrung bekamen.
Nun habe ich gehört, dass manche Arbeitgeber in der ersten Bewerbungsphase einfach alle nicht-finnischen Namen herausfiltern. Ich kann das einigermaßen verstehen, aber es ist trotzdem entmutigend.
Ich frage mich also, ob es beim Rückruf einen Unterschied macht, wenn ich einen finnischen Namen anstelle meines eigenen Namens verwende. Oder mich zumindest in die Interviewphase bringen? Ich werde weiterhin denselben Lebenslaufinhalt verwenden. Ich bin nur neugierig, ob dies als Betrug oder als ernstes Problem angesehen wird.
Um es klarzustellen: Ich kann kein Finnisch, was meiner Meinung nach auch ein Hauptgrund für diese Ablehnungen ist. Ich versuche nicht, so zu tun, als wäre ich ein Finne, ich hoffe nur, dass ich in diesem Land irgendwie fair gehandelt werde. Und auch hier verstehe ich es, wenn manche Unternehmen nur Finnen einstellen wollen.
Bearbeiten: Ich bin mit einem neuen Namen völlig einverstanden, und im Grunde kann hier sowieso nicht jeder meinen ursprünglichen Namen aussprechen. Was bringt es also, daran festzuhalten? Ich denke nur darüber nach, wie ich den Arbeitgebern zeigen kann, dass ich ein gut benehmender, normaler Mensch und kein seltsamer Einwanderer-Terrorist bin, wenn sie meine Bewerbung nicht einmal öffnen.
Siehe auch in diesen Berichtwie können wir in diesem Land respektiert werden, wenn die Diskriminierung beginnt, wenn sie meinen Namen sehen?
Und wieder mag ich Finnland, alle Menschen um mich herum sind nett und freundlich, ich greife weder das Land noch irgendjemanden persönlich an, ich hoffe, wir können diese Angelegenheit friedlich besprechen.
Is it ethical/legal to put a Finnish name on my job application instead of my own foreign name?
byu/bobiestan inFinland
Von bobiestan
12 Kommentare
Do you really think using false identification and lying on your application is a good strategy?
Nickname.
„I understand if some companies only want to hire Fins.“ uh. This is very illegal. „Finland’s Non-Discrimination Act“ says so. However, if they were doing it, they will interview you and they’ll find out.
If you start getting a lot more interviews than normal then you know the culprit -> you’re not white enough
Would maybe increase your chances of getting an interview but strongly decrease your chance of actually getting a job
It’s a breach of trust in a trust based society and you’re asking if it’s a good idea?
Also, most likely a breach of contract if you were to be hired and grounds for nullifying the contract, i.e. getting fired.
Don’t do this
Theres over 300k people looking jobs… Its not easy for anyone.
Imagine coming from a culture where lying and cheating is seen as the same thing as being clever and wondering why you are not getting hired
Even if that somehow got you a job, would you really want to work for a company that filters out foreign applicants?
In all honesty they filter out non-Finnish names because it’s not unreasonable to require at least basic Finnish fluency… in Finland. You don‘ t need to be a foaming bigot to say that, though obviously it depends on your field.
The thing you try to pull would be obvious from the start, and immediately dissolve all trust.
Also it baffles me why would you expect to be employed without speaking the language at all? Like what was your plan? I wouldn’t presume to migrate to Japan and the rest of the work community to conform to me.
By all means, pick a Finnish (or common international) first name and start using it. First get used to the name with some friends. Only do this if you are willing to be called by that name for the rest of your life. If asked for the reason, you like the name, and it is easier for your Finnish friends to pronounce and remember. Not a lie, just your way of assimilating into the Finnish society.
Oh come on, all these people with the “it’s lying this is trust based society bullshit” can get the hell out. I’m a 100% Finnish woman and I say do it. It’s entirely fine!
A CV and a job application is not an official document so you don’t have to put down your legal name on it. Now a job contract, you have to. But at that point the person who has hired you has looked past their biases and prejudices and decided to like and trust you enough to hire you anyway, so giving your legal name then is fine. When putting out your CV, using a “white name” or Finnish name is entirely fine, but be ready to be called that then all the time and adopt it as your new nickname. People do this all the time, even Finnish people, who have a preferred name over their legal names. Are they lying and getting caught in a trust based society? No they aren’t, because that’s ridiculous. It sounds ridiculous because it IS ridiculous.
My husband has also adopted a different name, because people just giving him services or talking to him are less wary of him by default when he uses it. He’s not a Finn. His legal name is entirely different and he uses it in his legal documents only. Nobody is yet to shit on him and call him a liar for it, because he isn’t and that’s his chosen name. I have also a friend over in America who adopted a “white name” just for work, so he’d face less racism. Now he’s just an affable Freddie, because people over there for some reason are extra dumb against non-whites.
However, while this might mean employers will look at your CV more, it’ll be still important to tell them about your language skills. A non-Finnish speaker will always be hired less likely, since the language is needed in many jobs in many ways. So if you want to get employed, you’ll need to apply to jobs where you’ll be fine with just English alone or start learning Finnish. If you mean to stay here, learning the language will be beneficial for you in many ways, not just job applications. So I highly recommend at least trying to pick it up, as hard as it can be.
I’ve not heard of taking out non-finnish names. You do realize that people have a million different reasons to have a name that is not Virtanen, it doesn’t tell anything about their language skills or degree, nationality or ancestry. Neither does a common finnish sounding name.
You’ve surely noticed that the employment situation is horrendous.
I’d guess they start with language proficiency. It should be obvious that if the Finnish employer has a choice of 200 applicants for one job, it’s way more reasonable for them to choose one who knows the language fluently. Even if they are slightly less experienced otherwise. Most people who are fluent in english in conversation, cannot do the same with professional accuracy. Not your colleagues, your boss, your clients, their clients. It’s delusional to expect it. Even if one colleague and boss are professionally fluent in english, they aren’t the only people who you’re supposed to communicate with. The employer doesn’t prefer someone who needs a translator for every email.