Annoying Recruitment Agencies

lucy_w86

newmee wrote: »

I don't think agencies are a complete waste of time BUT I do think you should be VERY clear on WHAT an agency is. It isn't a 'service' it is a 'business'. They are salespeople and what they sell is YOU! Simple as that. I work in the Social Care sector and was a Recruitment Consultant for 2 years, but have also been on the other end, as an agency worker and have had HORRIBLE teatment too....at the end of the day, that is down to the fact that the consultants have targets and money hungry gaffers on their backs so their pressure becomes your pressure! Go in with eyes open and don't allow them to pressure you...I know that's easier said than done, because I had a woman reduce me to tears the first experience I had with an agency but remember they want to make money FROM YOU and keep remembering that....use them as they use you and try and make it a 2 way experience, if possible! :rolleyes: :beer:

Great advice...thanks, I have defo learned my lesson.

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

I used to work for a recruitment agency in Mansfield and was never rude - annoyed if people let me down though.

Basically recruitment agencies will charge a company so much - so lets say for instance they charge £8ph for an administrator, they will pay the temp £6 making £2 profit every hour - then they try for repeat business and hopefully the company will take the temp on full time on their books so then the recruitment agency gets in introduction fee (normally 15% - well was at the one i worked for - of annual wage so if the comany take on the temp for £14000 a year they then have to pay the agency £2100 as a finders fee) but then if that same company needs another temp - hopefully its repeat business and so on.

SO when you arrange interviews and send in temps and they let you down - that company will go to another agency and your agency lose out on earnings (with me so far?)

Agencys use the "your letting down a client" as a guilt trip - the same as "will you just do me this one day as a favour" dont fall for it.

If you have two agencys fighting over you - get them to increase the wage! they have a margin - generally if they are offering min wage then they are ripping you off as they will probably be making a decent profit.

Agencys will advertise "make believe" jobs - they need workers to get clients. If they have clients, but no workers then they are deemed a rubbish agency so they will get LOADS of people on their books in case a unexpected client rings up wanting 10 workers. You can normally guess which jobs arent real:

Working 9-5, Based locally, £6 a hour. Succesful candidate to be confident in all aspects . . . etc etc - minimal details!

I dont have problems with agencies though - none will touch me as i stole business from them lol if i was in a HR positiona nd needed to recruit - i DEFINATLEY wouldnt use an agency

Germeze

They are so hit and miss. One time you can use an agency and they will be great. A few years down the line you register again and they aren't interested! I have found that I can describe the exact job I don't want and they still try and badger me into an interview which is annoying as I know my own limitations.

I have two gripes!

1. Advertising jobs that don't seem to exist once you have registered. I have just applied for a job as it matches my skill set perfectly. To their credit this agency actually contacted me to ask me to register so they "can see what they can do for me". Surely putting my CV forward for the actual job is a start but of course I doubt the job exists! In fact I haven't ever been put forward for job advertised by an agency.

2. Name changes. Ok so I had a complete name change as a toddler. I consider this a private and personal matter but if you want to work for some agencies, Royal Mail or local council to name but a few you have to disclose this fact. How would other people feel about been asked to disclose information that is very private about themselves before they have even been considered for a job?

fawd1

I've worked in a recruitment agency and I can completely understand why they get annoyed. if the agency is any good then before they put you forward for a job, they'll check that you think it sounds interesting. Then, if you get an interview, they'll ask you if you still think it sounds interesting. Then, after a second interview, they ask you again, so they can let the company know whether it will be worth their time offering you a job. If you continually say that you would like the job right up until the last minute and then back out once you've been offered it, then I can completely understand why they get annoyed. At the end of the day, you've completely wasted their time, despite numerous opportunities to say you didn't want the job to start off with. And yes, of course it comes down to money, but realistically, they could have spent their time on someone else who could make them some money. Is anyone really naive enough to think that agencies go out and find you jobs because they happen to like you?

hellokitty08

well im ust be the luckiest person in the world. I was seeking a change of a career, not totally different, but wanted to move in to HR, and i have had loads of support from agencies. I registered with about 6, this meant i had to actually go in to all of these places, do the tests etc, but they were all really good. I was straight from the start that i only wanted a particular type of work, and even when i was offered roles that i felt were not suitable they were understanding. I finally got offered my ideal job a couple of weeks ago, through an agency. I must admit, there were a few that i e-mailed my CV to for jobs i saw advertised, and got no reply, but most of the big names were great. The contacted me regularly to see if i was still looking, provided updates of what was available, only sending me for jobs that were actually suitable. I think i was very lucky.

Beancounter

mommyme wrote: »

SO when you arrange interviews and send in temps and they let you down - that company will go to another agency and your agency lose out on earnings (with me so far?)

Having just been for an interview (not so much an interview actually, the guy just wanted to check me out before offering me the job) and having decided to pass as it just didn't feel right, I would rather "let the agency down" now than take the job and leave after a week.

windswept

You should be able to sue agencies for false advertising!
My hubby has been to every agency in 2 towns today - all he wants is some temporary work as he is in the middle of job applications with BAE and another company, and it could take a few weeks yet.
He quit his permanent position yesterday over the way he has been treated and will take anything just for a few weeks - every single agency "vacancy "(approx. 15) was ficticious - they are advertised on the agency websites as "start immediately" etc. and on the boards in the actual offices - not ONE was available - how is that even legal?
All they wanted after taking one look at his CV, was to push him for permanent positions, even after him patiently explaining time and time again, all he wants is warehouse work etc. He doesn't feel it would be fair to go for a permanent job when he is very nearly there with the two jobs he has applied for, as he is 99% sure that he will get one or the other - they are just taking longer than anticipated.
It's getting to the point though that he will apply for permanent jobs just to get money coming in - he will feel bad about leaving shortly but our bills need paying and if that's the only way then so be it.
He couldn't face signing on as unemployed - we would be entitiled to nothing probably, don't even get me started on the fact that if we lived in rented accomodation we would get everything paid for but as we have a mortgage (not a huge one thank goodness), we are on our own!
He has never, ever, been unemployed in over 25 years and the shoddy practices by the agencies today have really demoralised him.

Dill

It's interesting, too, how many employers won't touch agencies. OH often sees job ads from companies with 'strictly no agencies' written at the bottom of the ad.
They must be persistent (read: pushy!), as one job ad even stated:
Strictly NO AGENCIES. Please DO NOT ring us if you are an agency. Not even 'just for a chat'
:rotfl:

Personally I'd rather go straight to the employer than thru an agency, as I think, would many people..

littlestar1981

I definitely agree with the 'hit and miss' comments. I think I have had agencies from all angles.. I tried to find work through them, but generally the jobs I wanted were all conveniently gone when I enquired... yet the large company I work for use an agency quite a bit at the moment and their 2 account managers who are permanently on site are the nicest people in the building.... on another note my employer used agencies to recruit team leaders on ONE occasion, and 12 months later they're still ringing persistently to see if we need anything else, despite telling them no several times!!!

At the end of the day, no matter how much it might pee an agency off, you always have to do what is best for you, in the same way they will always do what is best for them.

Mimi_Arc_en_ciel

Beancounter wrote: »

Having just been for an interview (not so much an interview actually, the guy just wanted to check me out before offering me the job) and having decided to pass as it just didn't feel right, I would rather "let the agency down" now than take the job and leave after a week.

thats completely understandable, but you told them. By letting down i mean when they seem REALLY keen or they say "yes 110% i want that position" and dont turn up.

We did the concert contracts for Sherwood Pines and the temps had to assist with car parking and then they got to go into the concert for FREE as long as they were back in the car park before everyone started leaving. I had LOADS of people wanting these position but we only had limited spaces. Anyway, long story short - I took everyone to the concert and arranged to pick them all back up and take them home after their shift (i didnt have to but we wanted the contract and i lived really close so it wasnt a problem.) I dropped everyone off, checked everyone was ok then left. Half an hour later i got a phone call, One of the girls had called her mate and gone home without telling anyone. The girl wouldnt answer her phone so i could see if there was a problem or if she was ok, The concert organisers were going mad. If the girl had only turned round and said "well actually i dont want to do that" i could of put another temp in that would of really apprechiated it and who probably needed the mone7y a lot more than she did.