Candidates - Things To Be Aware Of When Using A Recruitment Agency

Sammyantha

liney wrote: »

What I can say is we do not have threads that state "All Hairdressers are sh1te because I had one dodgy haircut"

Generalisation attached to this line of business is rediculous, and if anyone actually knows what they are talking about the automatic answer is " Well you must be the only one, because everywhere else does X"

Agreed. ..

dickydonkin

Making a point is one thing - dredging up posts from the past that is totally irrelevant to this thread is another - and pretty sad really and suggests more about the person doing it as opposed the the party it is directed at!

I am finding it difficult to comprehend as to why Lily's original post informing everyone to be cautious about what information to divulge to agencies has resulted into this thread becoming a battlefield.

I would suggest that if there is any ambiguity about how the majority of contributors to the employment threads who have an opinion of agencies feel, then if delving into the past is a means to justify ones argument, perhaps a search into previous posts on the subject will indicate how many candidates have been treat with contempt in contrast to those who have had positive experiences.

I know where I would place my money!

danothy

1984ReturnsForReal wrote: »

Now danothy.


Can you please find the quote by anyone that said that & post it below?

I eagerly await that post.

I will be waiting a very long time because it quite simply wasn't said.


However, what I said was that I would think it absolutely fine for a consultant to refuse to deal with a member of the public that refused to answer questions.

In fact, I have done it on a few occasions myself & I would applaud any consultant with enough intelligence to kick someone out the door that they would be wasting days worth of work on for absolutely nothing.

No you're right, it hasn't been said and I have expressed myself badly. I've interpreted a number of the comments in this thread as implications that this is the case, mainly because I can't think of another reason why the quality of the candidates or the credibility of the posters would be relevant other than to deflect from the issue at hand - that of the reported behaviour of the agents is less than acceptable - or to justify it.

As such I retract my assertion that this attitude has been expressed, however I still find the implication (as I have perceived it) to be distasteful.

To be honest I support your attitude regarding not dealing with people you find time wasting (something I mentioned in an earlier post). I wish more people would do that in general as it would teach those in question not to waste others time and eliminate the potential for unpleasantness to occur in an undesired professional relationship.

1984ReturnsForReal_2

danothy wrote: »

No you're right, it hasn't been said and I have expressed myself badly. I've interpreted a number of the comments in this thread as implications that this is the case, mainly because I can't think of another reason why the quality of the candidates or the credibility of the posters would be relevant other than to deflect from the issue at hand - that of the reported behaviour of the agents is less than acceptable - or to justify it.

As such I retract my assertion that this attitude has been expressed, however I still find the implication (as I have perceived it) to be distasteful.

To be honest I support your attitude regarding not dealing with people you find time wasting (something I mentioned in an earlier post). I wish more people would do that in general as it would teach those in question not to waste others time and eliminate the potential for unpleasantness to occur in an undesired professional relationship.

It is my experience, & I do have a lot of it, that once a relationship of mistrust is established by consultant & candidate it is best to end the relationship because it does tend to go downhill from that point on very fast.

Thanks for the reply.

Schmintpeep

I agree with the OP. My personal experience has also led me to distrust recruitment agencies. They hound you for your CV, but jobs are never forthcoming. Better off without them, imo.

RedSoleShoes

I would like to thank all the genuine people who have taken the time to post on here and highlight the issues they have had with recruitment agencies. It is also good to hear the success stories (although they are few and far between!).

It is disappointing that most of the RCs that have posted have sunk to the levels of the gutter with some responses. Rather than trying to give us hope in agencies, they have actually strengthened our doubt in them.

I'm not saying that people should not use agencies, but please, for your own sake, treat them with caution and be very careful what you tell them when they ask you about your other job applications. The RCs other candidates will become your competition for the role that you found yourself or, at worst, an unscrupulous RC could even try and put the company off hiring you before you even get the chance of an interview.

jay_1978

Agencies also stop calling you if you can't happen to do a certain day for them, They will ask you do do a job that you never signed up for ie in my instance I worked on a building site for a day for them which was a favour from me to them has the other agency staff didn't turn up, However If you happen to say no to them just once then your name will be at the bottom of pile which should be illegal, If you work out how many company's that are under one agency then that means If I see a job advertised and I go for it and it just happens to be through the agency I has used previous then what do you think will happen ? They will not take your application which in my eyes is bang out of order, So basically if you have bad experiences with 2 or 3 agencies then your chance of employment is virtually nil,

RacyRed

Sammyantha wrote: »

The reason that people keep posting is that your thread is a direct and (as evidenced here), misinformed attack on the entire recruitment profession.

Saying that you have had a bad experience is one thing, insisting that because of that, all recruitment agents are useless is another. To then endorse the abuse posted here by other users (most recent examples being that recruitment advisors are the same as child abusers, the scum of the earth, and other choice references...), is inexcusable.

No one here is doing themselves any favours.

Sammyantha, this is NOT what is being said. What is being said is that:

1. There are good and bad recruitment agents and agencies.
2. Some of the morally challenged agents can seriously damage your work prospects.
3. A recruit signing up with a new agent may find it difficult to know if their new agent is unscrupulous or not.
4. It is best to be cautious about providing information about other jobs being sought, or providing full reference details with your CV in case this information is used to a candidate's detriment.

If you think this approach is misguided, then how would you suggest that RCs and candidates approach each other to ensure both get the best out of their relationship?

dickydonkin

cavework wrote: »

and believe me commision was not the be all and end all at the expense of the people who registered for work .
It was the reputation of the Agency that was first and formost , with repeat business being the second consideration. RR also took into consideration the wellfare of the Consultants.. That is what makes an Agency excellent

Some fair points in your last post (excuse the editing) and I am not going to dispute your comments above as you obviously know the person, however, I am sure you will agree that many consultants are under pressure to achieve targets and that situation alone can change the priorities of the consultant involved.

And I am sure you have seen examples where ethics are thrown out of the window in which the outcome is usually to the detriment of the candidate.

RR also took into consideration the wellfare of the Consultants

Which is good.............provided the same care and consideration was shown to the candidates as well!

Unfortunately, judging by some of the many outrageous comments made by R4R to former candidates, I have my doubts.

cavework

I know I said I wouldn't post again but ..sorry, how can full references be detremental?
and how else is your Consultant able to get a true picture of the candidate they are putting forward.
If you don't give full details of previous employment , how can you then complain if you don't get the job you have been put forward for (they will find out) and how can you blame the Consultant for this?
As for other jobs being sought?
Would you tell someone if you found a great job vacancy and they were in with a chance or better qualified, knowing they were also looking for work?