Ohio Energy Company Takes Back A Man’s Job Offer, And You Won’t Believe Why
An Ohio energy company took back a young man’s job offer after learning about his education. The Ohio education system could be to blame or it could be NiSource.
When most of us think of job related education, we think of technical schools and other specialized fields. However, most of those specialized fields require at least one element for employment, and because of the way a young man in Ohio was taught, he allegedly didn’t meet the minimum requirement. He had a high school level education, but he was home-schooled.
Sadly in the state of Ohio, being home-schooled means that the State Board of Education doesn’t recognize you as a high school graduate. They only give diplomas to those who learn in the public systems, including regular schools and online courses, with trained teachers in a public (or virtual) environment. Earning a GED outside high school is stigmatized for meaning you dropped out, but that wasn’t the case here.
WORLD’s coverage of NiSource and the Ohio homeschooler denied a job: http://t.co/TfwFtO0wgH
— Daniel James Devine (@DanJamDevine) May 8, 2014
According to their website, the Ohio State Board of Education clearly states their qualifications:
“Home-schooled students do not receive an Ohio high school diploma recognized by the State Board of Education. When pursuing employment or advanced education, home-schooled students may need to complete the GED to show equivalence to a state recognized high school diploma.”
In order to work for the Ohio energy company, the young man (who remains nameless) will allegedly need to qualify for a GED with an accredited school. NiSource, the company in question, allegedly decided not to recognize a home-schooled GED.
Ohio energy company NiSource countered the accusations of discrimination against the home-schooled, saying that wasn’t the case:
“In fact, among our 8,000 [plus] current employees, we are proud to have colleagues and coworkers who were home schooled or received other non-traditional educations. We value them as strong, skilled contributors to our organization.”
So why didn’t they give the young man in Ohio the job they initially promised?
Michael Donnelly, an attorney for Home School Legal Defense Association, wonders the same thing as he represents the young man. The way he sees it, NiSource is discriminating against the young man based on his education:
“You’ve got a highly qualified young man who has years of relevant experience and was offered a job based on those qualifications. Because he has a home-schooled diploma, this company rescinded the offer. The people at the lower level wanted him for the job. They then hired a background check company, which found it [the diploma] wasn’t a publicly recognized credential.”
“He was obviously qualified because they offered him the job. We’re not saying that they did anything illegal. They can do this. It’s just unethical and immoral. You’ve got this company excluding an entire class of people from employment. It’s discrimination against [home-schoolers].”
What do you think of Ohio energy company NiSource allegedly rescinding the young man’s job offer because he was home-schooled?
