• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, December 13, 2015

It all began perfectly fine. With the usual "We are a full service web design company specializing in industrial and commercial clientele. We are currently looking for a Content Writer/SEO Specialist to join our dynamic team at...blah, blah, blah." You know, the usual excruciatingly boring and non-creative crap we see all too much of in recruitment ads. Actually in all ads, for that matter. 

The ad, for Concord, Ontario-based Vestra Inet, goes on to spell out the details of the job and then, in closing, takes a hairpin turn back to the fifties and closes with: "Please note that the position requires filling in the responsibilities of a receptionist, so female candidates are preferred." Yup, they actually wrote that. 

In 2015! 

In Canada!  

Where the new Prime Minister just explained why his cabinet is half women by saying "because it's 2015"!  

Predictably, Twitter exploded lambasting the agency for its shockingly anachronistic and just plain illogically dumb wording.  

In a now-deleted tweet, the agency responded to complaints, saying: “Vestra Inet did not mean to discriminate against any particular gender or group in our job ad. We believe in promoting diversity.”  

Well, in one very twisted way, perhaps the ad does promote diversity. At least the agency is looking to hire more women.