View source for The Unfairness of Job Hunting

Trying to find a job in our modern world has absolutely broken me as a human being. The things put on modern job seekers compared to the old days (where I sent a simple, fact-filled resume, went for an interview, and bam — I got a job) are absolutely unbelievable, and I believe should be criminal.

The expectation to exaggerate the truth and “sell” yourself on a resume and the ridiculousness known as a “cover letter” when you are applying for a job that has nothing to do with sales or marketing is terrible. Suddenly, every single person, regardless of what they are good at doing, must become a genius salesman as well, creating a “resume that pops” (whatever that means) and basically exaggerate to the point of almost lying about their abilities and history, something that is absolutely expected of all applicants. The resume also has to “look good” meaning a person has to become a graphic designer as well — simply listing information in a boring yet information-filled way just doesn't cut it any more. And about that cover letter — exactly what's the point? By the very fact that a person is sending you a resume means that they want a job, and their qualifications are already on that resume, why does someone have to restate that same information in a way that also requires that person to suddenly have a Master's degree in English? It's laughable, unnecessary, and the whole idea of creating a “salesman” resume is dishonest and against what I believe.

Unless a person is applying for a job where they are directly responsible for the financial stability of the company (this does not include handling single transactions, such as a cashier), it should be illegal for a company to do a credit report query on an applicant. Perhaps the very reason someone is applying for a job is that this person lost their previous job, has been unable to pay their bills, and thus has poor credit? Ever think of that? I refuse to allow any company to access my credit history because of privacy concerns and the fact that it is completely unnecessary and weeds out people who have dealt with unfortunate, unavoidable circumstances. Yes, if you're going to be a chief financial officer of a company, make that an exception. But if someone is doing a job where they're not dealing with the finances? Do not look at a credit report.

The interview should be conducted by a person directly involved with whatever part of the company the applicant will be working in. Don't let some HR lackey try to find some excuse to weed out someone who will be working in IT when they don't know anything about IT. Beyond this, don't ask a bunch of irrelevant trivia or hypothetical situation questions that will never come up in a job, nor ask any inane questions like “where do you see yourself in X years” (what am I, a time traveler?), “why did you apply for this job” (same as you: money), “what is your greatest weakness” (pointless questions like this; alternate answer: people who ask questions like this), and so on. And please, don't be so pretentious that you tell the applicant to ask questions about the job at the end and expect some sort of sycophant behavior. The interviewer is supposed to be asking the questions, not you pretending I haven't already figured out what this company does.

Also, the interview — and the job, as well — should not be essentially an application to a social club, which most jobs these days seem to be. It seems like every interview is trying to find some “perfect fit” personality for a group of workers who love long, pointless meetings, “team building exercises”, and other wastes of time that is supposed to be spent actually, you know, working. What a concept. What I do during my free time, what I like and don't like as a person, all of this has nothing to do with a job. I go to work, I do what I'm supposed to do, and I leave. Sure, there can be moments where we socialize — don't stand over people's shoulders and whip them when they dare take a moment to talk to someone; take your underlings out to lunch and pay for it once in a while; let people do what they will, and so on. Just don't force “team building”, “unity”, “mandatory meetings”, or other garbage that befits a social club more than an actual job.

If you're not out interacting with people outside your job in a formal setting, let people wear whatever I want to wear within reason. Nice, clean jeans and a T-shirt with shoes is more than acceptable when your job is sitting at a computer for forty hours a week. Making people wear ties, slacks, Polo shirts, dress shoes, or even worse, a suit, is just absolutely unnecessary. If your job is to regularly interact with outside people and represent your employer, that's fine -- dress up when necessary. Just let people wear their jeans and T-shirts and be comfortable and therefore more productive.

Don't ask people what they expect to make. You're the person that will pay them. You are supposed to tell them what to expect, not the other way around. This is a scummy, underhanded technique to weed people out based on whether they give you the “correct” amount, which can vary wildly from job to job.

If you cannot be fair and realistic in your hiring practices, then you shouldn't hire anyone. Enjoy trying to run your business all by yourself. I refuse to deal with any company that pulls this unfair garbage on me, and if that means I never find a job, so be it. I have rights and boundaries as a human being, and just because I need money to participate in this capitalist nightmare of a society doesn't mean that I should have to give those up.