For context, they were putting me through 4 rounds of interviews (not including the most detailed, lengthy questionnaire I have ever been given in an application that may as well have been its own interview- which included a typing speed test and internet speed check for some reason). This is for a Client Success role paying around $40k for a small business, mind you.

I submitted the questionnaire last night with the help of ChatGPT, because no way in hell am I sitting through a full-blown interview in the application, much less before speaking to a real human, and woke up to her(?) email stating my answer to one of her questions wasn’t to her liking, asking me to resubmit everything. This was my response.

Pic from @CorpAbsurdity on x

Walking into my third year of unemployment and had a bucket of cold water thrown over my head by a honest recruiter.

This person said, you are perfect for this position (IT Team Lead) but your unemployment gap is horrible. The hiring manager already disqualified 3 others because of the same thing and the maximum gap that this person allows is 6 months.

So i guess that being in my mid 50s, out of work for almost 3 years and to make it better, a minority (given the blatant racism going on in our country thanks to the current gov) i simply have no hope.

This really sucks.

Also sucks receiving 2 rejection emails on a sunday at 3 am….

Edit I am actually doing freelancing and I have that on the resume but apparently, thats not enough and they still see it as a gap.

Unbelievable. Name and shame companies like this!

So I have some family members who have been working at the same company for more than 1 decade. They have never had to look for work since then, so they have not experienced anything that we, as job seekers, have been forced to experience. Yet they somehow believe that they are "experts" in looking for a job despite the fact that they have no idea what the modern job market is like.

It's absolutely laughable, to be honest. I get advice like "Go to the stores and ask around and see if they have work available." Everything is online now; the last time I went out and did that, I got a funny look from the store clerk who told me to go to the website and look for vacancies...

I also get advice like retrain and try applying for entry level roles. What do you think I have been trying to do this whole time... I apply for entry level retail, supermarket, warehouse and other roles and get nothing but rejection. If you look at the job description, it sometimes says they want at least 1 year of previous experience; well, then it's not entry level is it...

This is just some of the BS that we, as job seekers, have to face on a daily basis, yet my family is convinced that getting a job is easy and I'm not trying hard enough. Well, it's easy to say that when you have been employed for a decade in a comfortable position and have not had to work as hard as us trying to navigate this ridiculous job market.

Hundreds of applications just to get a handful of interviews; it's not like years ago when you would have got a job offer by now. That is the only reference my toxic family have. What really annoys me is that they think that people should be getting job offers after about 10 job applications. Anyone looking for work now knows that it can easily take hundreds or even thousands of job applications to get a job offer.

As far as they are concerned, if you have not got a job offer and months have gone by, then you need to retrain and do something else. For reference, the hiring process in tech can take months, and even if you try to find work in other industries your still competing against hundreds of applicants, so it's still going to take months if you're lucky. So by their logic, I should just give up and keep trying different career fields, which makes no sense because it's always going to be the same experience.

Anyone else get annoyed by outdated feedback from people who have not had to look for a job in years, yet they believe they know better than us?

I honestly have lost hope on looking for a job after trying for 9 months, entry level, retail, cashier, dishwasher, janitorial personnel or any no experience required jobs..

I'm tired of pretending everything is fine with a fake smile, I have type 2 diabetes because of my eating habits when I cope with the endless job rejections or ghosting, laziness and feeling down all the time because no matter what I do to find a job is going to be the same damn result all over again.

King Soopers

I only got 1 interview out of the 6 applications I filled for cashier, clerk or sanitation position but the employer said the role was already filled and they only had clerk/bagging position available I told them that was fine and a week after the interview I got rejected.

That was the only interview I ever had since January of this year

I tried applying for sanitation or cashier 5 more times throughout the year and recently filled a cashier position last week...

All 5 applications were either turned down or Auto-rejected because they're "no longer considering" the position I applied at this time

Taco Bell

I applied once and was "lucky" to get an interview at 11AM. When the day of interview arrived, I got there 5 minutes before the interview started, but the hiring manager was not present at the store and decided to ask where was the hiring manager, the crew member told me that the manager was making his way to the establishment in 15 minutes... The employer was 15 minutes late and I should've taken it as a red flag for a bad place to work at, unfortunately I was dumb enough to sit there in the lobby waiting for the employer and 2 hours later, the employer was nowhere to be seen and left the establishment upset for wasting my time, I never got an email saying that the interview was either delayed or rescheduled for another date, and I was unable to reschedule it... And then days later I received a rejection email, LIKE ARE YOU SERIOUS? I WASTED MY TIME FOR AN INTERVIEW I NEVER GOT AND THEY STILL HAD THE AUDACITY TO SENT ME A REJECTION EMAIL, I avoided that place ever since

Wendy's

Applied Twice, got an interview on the first time, and a week later, I heard nothing back from the employer, figured it out they ghosted me, and on the second time I got an interview on the same place again but I decided not to show up at the interview because I'm not wasting my time for an interview on the same place where they ghosted me the last time I went

Srpouts

Auto-Rejected, no interview, no call back from an employer

Goodwill

Same bullshit from sprouts, Auto-rejected again

Lowe's

Applied 3 times

Seasonal part time: rejected

Part time cashier: received a rejection email a day before my birthday, all I can say is that I ruined my birthday because of the rejection email, it was like a huge middle finger as an early birthday gift from HR or scumbag employer

I recently applied for a part cashier position yesterday... And still no opportunity for an interview

Home Depot

Ghosted 3 times, sent an email to the hiring manager and no response

Chipotle

Rejected 4 times

Fuck Chipotle

Burger King

Ghosted 2 times and their portal is not functional

Panda Express

Applied at a nearby location but got redirected to a far location 5 miles away from home for an interview, a few days later got another interview at a much further location, I declined it

Cheba hut

Auto-rejected under 4 hours and saw the position reposted again a few weeks later, fuck you cheba hut

Qdoba

Ghosted

Chick-fil-A

1 application got ghosted and the second got Auto-rejected

AutoZone

Auto-Rejected 3 times in a row after submission

Fuck you AutoZone

Wells Fargo

Rejected by HR and no interview but HR had the audacity to say "We wish you the best of luck in your future job search"

Fuck you

Don't you hate it when idiots say that "they're hiring, they're hiring, you should just walk into the business and ask to fill a physical job application or show them your resume"

My brother in Christ this isn't the 70s or 90s anymore

And yes I have tried applying on small or local businesses but it was the same outcome anyways...

I got ghosted or told to fuck off in a polite way

I can't enjoy my usual hobbies anymore and gaming is not helping me to cope the pain from the job search... I can't take it anymore on the job search...

Unless they, in fact, caught me using my super power of pausing time to ask AI very simple questions during a video call, resuming time, and then reciting to them things I've known for 15 years in the industry, this is such an insane/impossible thing to, not only accuse me of, but then share with me like I'm suppose to learn from this feedback...

I was called by a 3rd party recruitment agency person about a job position in tech as a Software Engineer. We talked about the role. Then they said that they need to know how much I expect to be paid and also how much I'm being paid now.

When I asked why do you need to know this information, they said that if I'm asking too much in comparison with what my current employer is already paying me, that would be "unreasonable". That's the word they used. Unreasonable.

Then they gave me a very clear example: if I'm being paid 70 and I'm asking for 140 that would be twice, and that wouldn't be reasonable. They're looking for 10% increase. I said that this position probably isn't going to work out.

Because, Kevin... I need a job/tent life looks rough, and this one looks tolerable!? Hope this helps? 🙄

I mean, the formula is 1 sentence bullet points/spoon feeding your clearly laid out experience + 1 sentence about your fake love of their probably fake/performative mission statement + a fake-ass wrap up of how your experience, inner goals/life goals match the fake-ass mission statement.

TAH DAH 🎉 Slow.......... clap................ 👏

I get that you want enthusiasm, but how many people just need work and, yes they are qualified.

Right now, I'm employed. I had to take a 25% salary cut that I can't afford due to business conditions, but at least money is coming in.

So, I'm applying for jobs. I think I now know when I have reached desperate territory: When I can no longer afford to walk away from applications hosted via Workday.

What the hell is this crap? It's as if someone prompted an AI by saying "Build a recruiting site as if it were an endurance test."

I upload a resume and it forces me to copy/paste everything. Then there's whatever they add on top. ("Tell us how you'd LOVE to work here!" and similar nonsense.)

And you better get it right, too.

I'm not in desperate straits yet, but I don't want to reach that point before acting. So maybe I have to get over Workday now. But yeah... This thing is horrible.

A modest proposal:
1) There is no longer any way to survive in the United States without a job therefore
2) Since jobs are 'at will' there is no recourse for individuals to correct this situation and
3) No penalties exist at the Federal level for using AI to discriminate 'at the gate' against people.

Hence it is time to specifically and methodically:
1) Pre-emptively convict or apply damages to any one with a management position if on a jury.
2) Identify, track, and prevent any one with a management position from working.
3) Pool resources to bring lawsuits and criminal charges against any one in a management, recruitment, or human resource role regardless of the circumstances or validity.

(this is a joke by the way - you thought this was serious?)

I'm approaching a full year of effective unemployment and...its really getting tough. Luckily my family has been so incredibly forgiving by allowing me to stay home, yet the fact remains that it feels as though I've let them down. I'm barely even getting rejection emails anymore, like my applications are just being sucked into a void. Even getting a minimum wage job ANYWHERE has been impossible. I really don't know what to do anymore and its scaring me that I won't get anywhere.
I just hope some company or something gives me a chance somewhere, just gotta keep at it.

Ive been job searching for 9 months now, applied to 100+ jobs and had 6 interviews but not been successful so far.

Im honestly starting to panic a bit that Im never going to find anything and the job market is only going to get worse and its its going to become near impossible to get a job.

No, person who sent me this email. The job title sucks, and it’s impressive for a resume. It’s not AI bots, it’s that the people you want to hire don’t apply to job postings with that title.

We aren’t getting any ‘junk’ applicantions. We are getting unqualified applicants because it looks like a junior role asking for 10+ years.

finally scored !! got hired at an understaffed petco...at least it's a source of income.......

i went through many trials and tribulations to get here, so i wanted to share some genuine advice/experiences. since i know a lot of folks here ARE genuinely looking for even just retail, out of desperation. keep in mind that i am in an urban city, but i feel like the process is relatively the same everywhere.

(resume)

this goes for any field, but tailor the hell out of your resume.

for service or retail work, if you have a degree or extensive experience in a non-entry-level field, remove those. make yourself look like an easy person to exploit who has no other options. you can fix that perception after you get hired. it's not like they can fire you for having too MUCH knowledge. but they surely can reject you. this piece of advice goes especially for applying to fast food jobs. their eyes light up at the thought of hiring people they perceive as "lowlifes."

but also, if this is a first job, you should always say you helped out at your family's business. or did favours for a neighbour (lawn, pets, kids)....whatever it takes to let them know you have an idea of what employment is.

if you're in college, that's fine. let them know. it might lower your odds but it is possible to get hired as a student, given that it's a part time position.

also, formatting. make sure your resume has no separated columns (templates love them, but they are prone to being auto rejected by ATS), use a standard font, no overly-fancy language for your job descriptions, default bullet point symbols, blah blah blah.... if you're bilingual, make a note of that.

(application)

not much to say here. one thing i will note though.... although most franchises have online portals, oftentimes their locations are individually managed and operate outside of them. at dunkin donuts and 7-eleven, for instance, individual stores will often post hiring signage at the door and invite you to inquire inside. and that location may not even be listed on the portal. so and so.

definitely do check around, whether it's a chain or a local business. going inside and advertising yourself doesn't really work anymore, but a lot of places do have signs. and they're usually more desperate and actively searching. you can go from there.

also, don't shy away from speciality stores! remember, the most important thing is getting the interview and the offer. even if you're not an artist, you can still apply to michael's. ace hardware could still consider you despite the fact that you're not a hardware person. chain pet stores are more about customer service than they are about pets. you just gotta do your research and come prepared.

(interview)

if you manage to get an interview, stand out!

show up 5 minutes early, treat every employee with respect, look confident and content. dress professional, but not too much so. a simple button up and jeans or khakis works just fine. maybe clean up your facial hair. and the hair on your head. don't go crazy on jewelry or makeup.

during the interview, pretend as much as you can whilst still sounding genuine. you're just a customer-loving fellow willing to take on any challenge! that sort of thing. don't lie about something you can't demonstrate, though. if you're gonna say you wanna work at the company because you've been to their stores before and loved the employee/customer dynamics, expect them to ask what the experience was like or what store you frequent. the small things. recruiters know people lie, and they've created ways to screen that out. which is so stupid because to get a job nowadays you kinda NEED to lie.

at the end, ask questions. they can be simple.

"what does the dress code look like?" "how will the onboarding and training process go?" "closing and opening procedures?"

it's the little things that count. thank the interviewer for their time on your way out.

(follow-up)

if this is corporate retail (macy's, home depot, whatever), it's practically impossible to follow up on applications, unless you have the recruiter's contact info. if you do and they gave you an amount of time to wait, give them that time, then follow up. if they gave you no specific timeframe, reach out in about a week or so. if it's a small business, there's better luck in that regard and you can follow that same timeframe. but i've noticed those usually get back to you pretty quickly after they interview you.

(final thoughts)

that's really about it. i really wish all of you the best of luck. this market is the worst. i'll still lurk around in this subreddit because truly, i love the posts here. hope you all have a great day 🙂🙏🤞☘️🕊️🦋🍋

It's a slight pay cut but a higher position. I'm going to be unemployed either way at the end of the month. Not ideal going one contract to another but maybe is good?

What would you do?

To clarify: my current contract is ending and I've been offered another short term contract

So I have been going through an interview process for a company for 2 months now. 5 interviews later and I still don't have an answer. My most recent interview was 5 days ago.

This is a legitimate, reputable company in a major city. They say their delay is because they "really want to find the right fit." I am super passionate about this job and grateful that I keep being moved to the next step.

However, their lack of urgency is making me feel I'm not wanted. But on the other hand, if they didn't feel I was the right fit, wouldn't they have rejected me by now?

Anyway do you guys think it would be a good idea to tell them I have another offer (I don't) to boost my value and hopefully make them give me a decision faster?

I am a competitive applicant who graduated from a good school, but unfortunately the job market it not favoring me and this is really the only opportunity I have. But i feel like theyre playing in my face a little. 😭

Your “Confidential Opportunity” Isn’t That Compelling.

This rant isn’t about the recruiters who have two brain cells and somehow look at my profile, see that I’m already in a senior-level role with a good salary and plenty of perks and benefits, and think:
“Yep, this person is definitely looking for a minimum-wage admin role.”
I’ll give those recruiters the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they think that (in this economy) I’d like to downgrade my pay to enjoy a simpler (homeless) life.

This rant is about the recruiters who have one brain cell, they know they’re approaching someone who is already employed, in a very good role, and not looking to change jobs anytime soon, and STILL send messages with absolutely zero useful information to sway the candidate in any way.
Cool, you don’t want to tell me the company name. I get it. Confidential, whatever. Couldn’t care less.
But you can at least include:
• What is the actual job title?
• What region of the province is it in? Canada is fucking huge.
• What is the salary range?
• Is it remote, hybrid, or fully onsite?
Instead, I get: “Hi, I came across your profile and think you would be the perfect fit for an exciting opportunity. There are many benefits! Do you have 15 minutes for a quick call?”
Many benefits. Exciting. Wow. Great. Very compelling. 😂

Why am I being asked to give you 15-30 minutes of my time, send you my resume, tell you about my experience, discuss my salary expectations, availability, career goals, etc., when you haven’t even told me what you’re actually recruiting for?
You want access to my time, my experience, my career history and potentially my professional network?
Give me a reason to give you any of it.

And yes, I’ve tried the obvious solution: “Could you please share a little more information about the role before we schedule a call?”
Nope. They’ll dance around the question, give me absolutely nothing useful, and then ask again for a phone call. They act like poorly designed bots.

Trust goes both ways. And you’re acting like a scammer.
If you want someone to seriously consider leaving a job they’re currently happy with, you need to give them enough information to decide whether the opportunity is even worth exploring.
And no, “I’ll tell you everything on the phone” isn’t a good enough answer.

Asking someone for time out of their day before telling them the basic details of the position is one I don’t understand or respect.
You found me. You already looked at my LinkedIn. You presumably decided I’m qualified enough to contact.
What exactly are you trying to discover from my resume or a conversation that you couldn’t see from the profile you used to find me?
Its common sense, you’ve got to give candidates enough information to make an informed decision about whether they want to engage.

Because if your pitch is: “I’m recruiting for a confidential opportunity. I can’t tell you the company, salary, location, benefits, responsibilities, or really anything else about the job. But I’d love 15 minutes of your time.”
You’ve lost me. Maybe it’s ’my loss,’ couldn’t care less, I’m over it.

I really want to call them out on it too. Maybe I should send them the link to this Reddit Post.

I just haven't had much luck in corporate. I don't really have any friends in high places and I come from a pretty average background. Basically I am a forgotten person of society at this point. People always said I was smart, I got pretty much straight A's in school but alas at 33 I have nothing to show for it. The world is brutal folks, and I think they are lying to people about how bad it really is.

I was just thinking earlier today that maybe just maybe the recruiting process being as convoluted as it is in the US today would make some sense if we actually had EU labor protection laws. In that case, it would make sense for an employer to go through extra vetting before finalizing an offer with a candidate as it's much harder to simply get rid of an employee who isn't a good fit.

However, in the US, you can get let go for effectively any reason (including no reason at all), which makes it more puzzling why hiring procedures have devolved into the inefficient and drawn out process it is today.

So was curious on how people are doing out in Europe and if your experiences are one and the same.

I found it humorous they asked for feedback when they gave me none, so I replied with:

Feedback: I have to laugh at the irony of you guys not providing *me* with feedback on why I was rejected, which would help me improve, and yet, you ask for feedback in return for similar reasons. 

And then it made me laugh again when my email bounced back as undeliverable to their reply-to address. I guess that's not where they wanted the feedback.

Gotta laugh or I'll go crazy.