Job applicants - the other perspective.

Caroline_a

I agree about the irrelevant ones - I had the same experience last year when I was recruiting, but I do think that the Jobcentre's rules of 3 job applications lends itself to this. I even had a couple of applications that were from people who lived over 400 miles away! Some commute, eh?

LadyMissA

Caroline_a wrote: »

I agree about the irrelevant ones - I had the same experience last year when I was recruiting, but I do think that the Jobcentre's rules of 3 job applications lends itself to this. I even had a couple of applications that were from people who lived over 400 miles away! Some commute, eh?

JC rule of 3 jobs? What is that? Maybe those people were going to relocate or stay where the job was in the week and go home at weekends

Voyager2002

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.

There can be no excuse for the bad manners shown by the person who rearranged the interview and then failed to turn up.

Your other problems suggest that you are advertising in the wrong place; your advertisements are failing to spell out what you are looking for; and of course the salary you are offering is out of line with the education and intelligence that you require.

dawyldthing

my job is in support work and they have had 3 rounds of interviews since i've been here that i've been aware of. I know when i applied it took nearly 2 months to get interviewed, then another 6 weeks for the references and crb to come back so was over 3 months before I started properly shadowing.

I know of the last few rounds of interviews they have offered some bank roles out and people have accepted, but then gradually people have dropped out as its took so long for them to get started. There actually advertising for the 4th time in 6 months (that i am aware of like i say), so can believe it is hard work to get people and then when you do to keep them.

I must say that it would be far easier if you gave a specific date for getting applications in for then a specific date/dates for interview so people know if they aren't contacted then they haven't been successful in that time, plus may mean that a timescale is kept to.

heretolearn_2

It is irritating when you get a no-show without explanation as I always think of the other people who didn't get an interview space because of them. I just keep a mental note and wouldn't bother offering them an interview should they apply again in future, not because they changed their mind, but because they were rude not to let us know. How can I trust them not to be rude to clients?

Since coming here I've learned that the totally irrelevant applications are probably down to the Job Centre advisors pushing them on people, so I don't get so annoyed by them now. It only takes a very quick glance to spot them. Also in one case the Job Centre took it upon itself to cut a lot of the ad text I'd input online so it could put it's own standard blah blah text at the start and finish. Unfortunately what they removed was the experience and qualifications required.

What I do still find irritating is people leaving immediately for another job. I know everyone has to think of number one, so on a personal level I know I'd do the same if necessary. But it's such a nightmare to deal with starting all over again. It happened to us 3 times last year so we will no longer consider the over-qualified/over-experienced people with convincing reasons to give as to why they want to move down a bit. For all those people on here looking for jobs and getting nowhere as they are 'overqualified', it's not that employers are stupid and don't appreciate what you could bring, it's that this is what happens when we take that risk. Never mind recruit the best, it's now recruit the person who'll do and stay put for at least a year.

exprog

In the sixties/seventies it was possible for people to start a job in the morning and if they didn't like it to start a different job with a different employer in the afternoon.

'Fortunately' business-friendly governments have ever since been running a policy of mass unemployment to ensure employers are never again inconvenienced.

gibson123

I have persauded a number of employers to take on young unemployed or under-employed people on paid internships in a range of jobs from engineering to financial services. In total we are hoping to do 100 of these internships so that young people can get the experience they require to gain a "proper" job. All the jobs are with well known companies. The pay is at least NMW and goes up to £7.25 per hour depending on what the employer can afford. The hours are 36 per week. no experience required for any of the posts although some have asked for a qualification in Maths or English. Training will be relevant to the post and accredited, bus passes will be supplied for the duration of the internship. Last week we interviewed for 20 of the posts and over 3 days we booked in 60 young people (16 to 19 year olds). The day before the interviews my apprentices volunteered to work late to call every young person who had been sent a letter inviting them to interview between 5pm to 7pm (because in their opinion most YP are at home at that time) and they managed to confirm the attendance of 45 of the interviewees. Only 28 people turned up for interview on the day. My apprentices who have helped us put together the initiative decided that they would call up some of the people they had spoken to previously and find out why they did not turn up - main reasons I forgot or I couldn't be bothered, or I didn't have the bus fare.
Luckily the ones that did turn up were interested, motivated and keen to learn and we managed to fill the posts. But I can personally understand the frustrations of recruiters, it really is a bit of a nightmare.

suze200

gibson123 wrote: »

I have persauded a number of employers to take on young unemployed or under-employed people on paid internships in a range of jobs from engineering to financial services. In total we are hoping to do 100 of these internships so that young people can get the experience they require to gain a "proper" job. All the jobs are with well known companies. The pay is at least NMW and goes up to £7.25 per hour depending on what the employer can afford. The hours are 36 per week. no experience required for any of the posts although some have asked for a qualification in Maths or English. Training will be relevant to the post and accredited, bus passes will be supplied for the duration of the internship. Last week we interviewed for 20 of the posts and over 3 days we booked in 60 young people (16 to 19 year olds). The day before the interviews my apprentices volunteered to work late to call every young person who had been sent a letter inviting them to interview between 5pm to 7pm (because in their opinion most YP are at home at that time) and they managed to confirm the attendance of 45 of the interviewees. Only 28 people turned up for interview on the day. My apprentices who have helped us put together the initiative decided that they would call up some of the people they had spoken to previously and find out why they did not turn up - main reasons I forgot or I couldn't be bothered, or I didn't have the bus fare.
Luckily the ones that did turn up were interested, motivated and keen to learn and we managed to fill the posts. But I can personally understand the frustrations of recruiters, it really is a bit of a nightmare.

WOW that is some achievement. Where are you based?

Googlewhacker

exprog wrote: »

In the sixties/seventies it was possible for people to start a job in the morning and if they didn't like it to start a different job with a different employer in the afternoon.

'Fortunately' business-friendly governments have ever since been running a policy of mass unemployment to ensure employers are never again inconvenienced.

What a load of tosh, governments have made running a business so much harder in the past years!

gibson123

suze200 wrote: »

WOW that is some achievement. Where are you based?

I'd rather not say on the forum, but if you send me a pm I will answer you.