In the letters section of 'The Skeptic' (Vol 4. No. 6) amateur astrologer Val Dobson seemed to doubt Anthony Garrett's statement in an earlier edition that 'companies are increasingly looking at birth charts'. 'Which companies?' she asked, 'and can this be proven to be a bad thing?'.
Astrologers have been claiming for years that they advise companies on prospective employees. Are these claims bogus? Are astrologers not only misguided but outright liars? In the main, the question of which companies use astrology is going to be a closely kept secret. Who is going to admit to such a 'stupidstition', and which astrologer is going to reveal the names of clients? But there is certainly some evidence, other than astrologers' claims, that companies do use astrology.
In an edition of 'Tit-Bits' published some eight or ten years ago Jill Frankham reported on 'British bosses who are hiring staff by the Zodiac'. The first paragraph of her article claimed that 'more and more British firms are checking people's Zodiac signs before taking them on or promoting them'. She also names names.
The investment broking firm, City and Provincial, from Wakefield had apparently checked the star sign of their salesmen and found that Scorpios were the best. They subsequently advertised for more Scorpios to join them.
The boss of a West Country mail order company J. T. Cassettes got well known astrologer Roger Elliot to help him find a secretary; a Piscean. He was then considering going into partnership with another Piscean. The editor of the juvenile magazine '19' also believed that astrology was responsible for her office staff being compatible.
Roger Elliot was reported to have been approached by about 30 firms. He told 'Tit-Bits' that businesses in America use astrology quite openly. In addition to giving advice on potential employees, Elliot gave advice on business ventures.
One owner of a management selection business was himself an astrologer whose final selection technique was the comparing of applicants' astrological charts with that of their potential boss. The last astrologer quoted claimed to do a lot of trouble-shooting in unhappy London offices. If the people involved knew that astrology was being used, no wonder they were unhappy.
In 1986 another firm using astrology came to light. Canterbury Life Assurance Company in Nottingham placed advertisements for salesmen, but specified that only Geminis, Leos and Sagittarians should apply. The man responsible for the advertisement told the 'Daily Mirror' that they had looked at their records and had found that the common factor of those who did better sales than average was these three star signs.
Lewis Jones and I tried to ascertain from the company how scientific they were in their research; perhaps they were on to something. However we were unable to obtain answers to our questions. The only thing we did find out (from his secretary) is that the man who placed the advertisements had a copy of Linda Goodman's 'Sun Signs' on his desk.
In September of 1988 it was mentioned on the Brian Hayes Programme on London Broadcasting radio that film production company Berry & Coutts used astrology to select employees. All of these companies are only the tip of the iceberg and we will probably never know just how many there are below the surface. But does the use of astrology in employment selection really do any harm? Of course it does. If astrology dictates that, for example, only three star signs have the right characteristics then an employer is limiting the choice of applicants by seventy-five percent. And it could be worse; maybe only one star sign is compatible. That means that eleven applicants out of twelve are going to be rejected. Okay, if an employer wants to be stupid, that's his or her prerogative. But what about those looking for employment? Would you like to be one of those eleven? A victim of superstitious discrimination? This reminds me of those who look for romance using astrological recommendations. It seems to me that it's difficult enough to find someone you can live with (or would want to live with you) without cutting down your options quite dramatically. Yes, all of this is harmful and I have nothing but contempt for anyone who encourages it.
When in January last year the 'Daily Mirror' had a half page feature promoting crystal power I wrote to the editor pointing out what a disservice they were doing to their readers. I received a surprising reply from editor Roy Greenslade in which he told me 'I agree with you. Let's hope it doesn't happen again'. Well, ten months later it did, only twice as large. I therefore thought that it would be worth writing to Greenslade again to get his reaction.
How time changes people. Now Greenslade says how naive he must have been in his first month as editor. He tells me - as if I didn't already know - that 'crystal power, astrology and tarot cards seem to attract vast numbers of readers. If one is going to have a mass audience then pleasing most of the people most of the time is obviously paramount - as long as one maintains some standards. In the case of this superstitious nonsense I now take the view that right-thinking people cannot possibly be harmed.' In response to a question I asked him about money being more important to him than discouraging superstition he ended his letter with the claim 'It is not a case of money. It is a case of good sense.' That too, I am sure, would be the response of the editor of 'Radio Times' which has just introduced an astrology column. Could this move have anything to do with fact that 'TV Times' contains horoscopes and that a circulation war between the two weeklies has just started? You bet it has!