Anti-Semitism: shock at French 'no Jews' job advert

An online job advert which specified candidates should "if possible not be Jewish" has provoked outrage in France, adding to fears that anti-Semitism is on the rise there. But the company that posted the advert claims it was hacked, says The Independent.

The advert appeared on a specialist graphic design job site, Graphic-Jobs.com, on Monday. It was for an online graphic design job with an agency called NSL.

The advert listed the profile of the ideal candidate, including a bulleted list of the usual qualities – "You are: rigorous, well-organised, diligent" – and one startling entry: "If possible, not Jewish."

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The advert was taken down within minutes, but French media jumped on it as another example of anti-Semitism in the wake of the massacre of Jews at a Kosher delicatessen by Amedy Coulibaly.

Graphic-Jobs.com issued a statement apologising: "Following the job advert posted yesterday, we strongly condemn the nature of the content published by agency NSL Studio. It is in stark contrast with the values we stand for. We have a team of moderators who read, check and validate more than 300 ads every day… this sadly slipped through the controls."

An employee at NSL initially told French website Les Inrocks that the demands of the job, including long working hours, meant it was not suitable for someone restricted by "cultural or religious concerns".

However, NSL later dismissed those comments and insisted the line had been inserted as the result of a "hack". The agency said it had asked Paris's public prosecutor to find out who was responsible.

NSL said in a statement: "NSL Studio is an inclusive agency that does not discriminate."

Anti-racist group SOS Racisme said it was initiating legal action over the posting. "It is illegal under French anti-discrimination laws to refer to candidates' faith, gender, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, nationality, marital status or political opinion in job adverts," The Independent notes.