Reply to comment

LinuxInsider has a nice two part article on the Virtual World Workforce, which is not something that has been on my radar because... I've been an independent contractor too long, perhaps. Part one, Virtual World Workforce, Part 1: Promising the World covers the more well known aspects, such as the learning curve. Of course, everyone fails to recognize that everyone already inworld consistently raises the bar of what one has to know to interact.

Part two, Virtual World Workforce Part 2: Real-Life Pitfalls really presses a few things home that I had not considered. Consider this:

...Real-World Laws

In addition, employee recruiting and management professionals know all too well that theirs is a highly regulated field, and for good reason. What they may not know is that the laws on the books designed to prevent employment discrimination can present some unique challenges in virtual worlds, Charles Handler, CEO and founder of employee assessment and screening company Rocket-Hire.com, told LinuxInsider.

Legally, the cloak of an avatar can cut both ways, Handler noted. For example, people can choose the physical appearance, body type and clothing of their Second Life personas to reflect their real-life existence or not. So, the appearance of an avatar might not reflect that the person behind it is a member of a class protected in employment interactions, he explained. A person doesn't need to divulge age or race information in an employment interview, and an avatar might make it more possible to keep that irrelevant information out of the situation altogether.

On the other hand, employers have a responsibility to keep interactions with prospective employees consistent, Handler noted. That's not always possible when moving from real-world rooms to virtual-world ones, he explained. For instance, an assessment that attempts to measure a candidate's skills in a particular area might not be the same when offered on paper as it is when administered in a virtual world...

So, in this way there is greater potential for 'equal opportunity' related initiatives - but it also comes with the pitfalls of not being truly able to assess someone's abilities. And what Laws apply to these things? It would be part of the Law of the country that the person was being hired in, or for? I'm not sure.

Since I deal exclusively with contracts and subcontracting, employment issues aren't at the top of my stack of things to look into- but for those who are involved with hiring or being hired, this is a rich topic worth exploring. But then, using Voice in an interview instead of text chat could be considered a way to reveal a handicap such as (but not limited to) hearing impairment. Suddenly, alot of accessibility Laws become more relevant outside of Federal employment.