Bona fide occupational qualifications

Bona fide occupational qualifications are reasons that a company can use to decide who to hire. The company might look at a person's qualifications like their education, job experience, or skills and then decide if they are the right person for the job. The company might also use something called a 'bona fide occupational qualification' (BFOQ) to decide if someone is really right for the job. A BFOQ is something that the law says a company can use to decide who to hire. For example, if you are applying for a job as a lifeguard, the company might want to make sure you can swim. That would mean that the company could use a BFOQ requirement that you have to be able to swim in order to be hired.