Job applicants - the other perspective.

elsien

I'm fed up.
I have a couple of jobs I'm trying to fill. Job 1 - one candidate phones to say they can't make the interview can I change it. So I arrange an alternative day and time, which is not easy at short notice as it means finding another manager from a different site who is available when I can get off shift. But we manage it. I phone the candidate who is very grateful and confirms they will definitely be attending. On the day I drive for miles to the interview site. And sit. And wait. And wait. And do they turn up? Do they hell - no phone call, no apologies, nothing. So I have wasted an afternoon I can ill spare when my backlog of work after annual leave already resembles one of those obsessive hoarder houses.

Job 2- second round of adverts as no suitable applicants at interview first time round. Second bunch of applications even worse - only one of them gives any evidence of having read the job spec, and most don't give any sign of understanding what the role actually involves.

So where are all you serious job hunters when I need you, because you're certainly not in my neck of the woods.

And rant over - just wanted to explain why sometimes employers (or this one anyway) get sick of the process and the timewasters, and making big efforts to accommodate applicants when it gets you nowhere.

Lovelyjoolz

You have my sympathies. Been there, done that and it's frustrating at any time, but particularly so when unemploment figures are so high.

What do the jobs entail and where are you?

Wellery82

I can relate from when i worked in recruitment. What would seem a simple case of a few interviews to fill a job often ended in rearranging interviews on multiple occasions, no shows meaning time and effort wasted, hundreds of CVs to sift through and review including many totally unsuitable ones, huge volumes of queries asking for more detailed feedback after rejection etc, people accepting offers and then not starting as they had accepted elsewhere.

It would be a far more time consuming task than people imagine. All of these things were situations i couldn't particularly blame people for, but all caused a lot of time and effort

elsien

I think it's the sheer bad manners that got to me today.
What would make anyone think it was ok to ask to have everything rearranged for them, then not even have the courtesy to pick up a phone. Ok, circumstances change, but at least have the manners to let us know.

I do know one of the reasons there aren't many applicants - it's for support work for adults with learning disabilities and unsocial hours in an industrial area where you can get paid more doing a day shift in a factory. The pay isn't great, but it is above minimum wage and for the right person it's a personally rewarding job, and a good stepping stone for anyone wanting experience for social work etc.
Only no-one wants to work for me.:(

LadyMissA

elsien wrote: »

I'm fed up.
I have a couple of jobs I'm trying to fill. Job 1 - one candidate phones to say they can't make the interview can I change it. So I arrange an alternative day and time, which is not easy at short notice as it means finding another manager from a different site who is available when I can get off shift. But we manage it. I phone the candidate who is very grateful and confirms they will definitely be attending. On the day I drive for miles to the interview site. And sit. And wait. And wait. And do they turn up? Do they hell - no phone call, no apologies, nothing. So I have wasted an afternoon I can ill spare when my backlog of work after annual leave already resembles one of those obsessive hoarder houses.

Job 2- second round of adverts as no suitable applicants at interview first time round. Second bunch of applications even worse - only one of them gives any evidence of having read the job spec, and most don't give any sign of understanding what the role actually involves.

So where are all you serious job hunters when I need you, because you're certainly not in my neck of the woods.

And rant over - just wanted to explain why sometimes employers (or this one anyway) get sick of the process and the timewasters, and making big efforts to accommodate applicants when it gets you nowhere.

We aren't all like that. Some employers are time wasters too.

KevInChester

elsien wrote: »

I think it's the sheer bad manners that got to me today.
What would make anyone think it was ok to ask to have everything rearranged for them, then not even have the courtesy to pick up a phone. Ok, circumstances change, but at least have the manners to let us know.

I do know one of the reasons there aren't many applicants - it's for support work for adults with learning disabilities and unsocial hours in an industrial area where you can get paid more doing a day shift in a factory. The pay isn't great, but it is above minimum wage and for the right person it's a personally rewarding job, and a good stepping stone for anyone wanting experience for social work etc.
Only no-one wants to work for me.:(

Oddly enough I applied for a job as a support worker for adults with learning disabilities today. I read the job spec and ensured that I tailored my CV and cover letter so that it was relevant... I just hope that this vacancy has the same sort of applicants as your one!

elsien

Good luck - it's well worth it when you get into it. I couldn't be fully office based ever again, having done this.

hcb42

we mass recruited last year. I know I only had 8 potential applicant who fitted the spec out of the 100 or so I received, so I interviewed all

thankfully all mine turned up on time, and I could have offered to 2-3 of them so a good process. However i lost count of times I was giving directions over the telephone to people who were lost and late for other roles we were looking to fill, one being nearly an hour late after receiving directions from us via phone (not displaying the appropriate listening skills as panicked!!) and being on the same business park at the time....


We even had a joke in the office in the end, if you could find your way to the office you must have passed the aptitude test. Scary but true.

Amanita_2

hcb42 wrote: »

we mass recruited last year. I know I only had 8 potential applicant who fitted the spec out of the 100 or so I received, so I interviewed all

.

You did better than I did - I only had 3 that fitted the job spec closely enough to be interviewed out of almost 300 applications. They did all find thir way in though and on time.

bungle4by4

im currently recruiting, and im glad to hear its not just me wading through piles and piles of totally irrelevant cv's.

LadyMissA

bungle4by4 wrote: »

im currently recruiting, and im glad to hear its not just me wading through piles and piles of totally irrelevant cv's.

What's the job and where?