Worst-ever interviews: ‘They told us to crawl and moo’

Many people also told the BBC they had been discriminated against during hiring based on their gender.

According to data from hiring platform Applied, nearly one in five women have been asked whether they have children, or plan to have children, during hiring processes.

One of those is Applied’s chief executive Khyati Sundaram, who says she has been asked “more times than I can count”.

It is illegal for employers to ask candidates about their marital status, whether they have children, or whether they plan to have children.

Despite this, Applied found the problem is even worse for women applying for senior roles, where two-fifths of women had been asked the same question.

Ms Sundaram says one of the reasons for this is the perceived “economic lability” of pregnancy. “The higher the pay, the more maternity you have to pay while finding a cover, and they don’t want the hassle.”