Does Lidl have a policy of rejecting the good job applicants?

AvoidTalktalk

I recently applied for a job of customer assistant in my local Lidl. After a few weeks they rejected me, didn't even get an interview. My CV isn't overly strong for work experience as I have been self employed for many years, though I do have a great deal of experience with customer service. I also have strong grades, my GCSE's are all A's, including Math and English.

I thought perhaps it was my lack of experience in this kind of role, though it's strange because Lidl doesn't have it as a requirement as training is provided.

My partner then applied for a job with Lidl too. She also has A grades in GCSE English and Math, which is pretty great considering she is eastern european and just got those grades this year after moving to England. She also has a great deal of work experience in mostly bottom level jobs such as hotel working, fast food restaurants, and waitressing. That should be a plus, because customer assistant at Lidl is also a bottom level job and her work experience means that she is used to being in a customer facing role.

They rejected her job application too, she too did not even get an interview.

In the meantime, we are reguarly seeing new employees at our local Lidl; around ten in recent weeks. One is polish and one is from elsewhere in europe. Both of them can barely speak English. I actually know the polish guy, he's not really all that intelligent to be honest, and definitely far behind my partner in terms of CV strength. He got the job, yet they wouldn't even give her an interview? Most of the ones working there in the non management positions seem to be this way.

I have the feeling that Lidl are only recruiting people who have no better option for employment elsewhere, because that makes them less likely to leave. I believe this may also be why they started offering £8.20 an hour. Lidl tend to use minimal numbers of staff in their stores. One might guess that they have decided they would rather have experienced staff who are efficient instead of having to constantly recruit new staff who are not. If they receive a CV from someone who has high grades they immediately reject you, because there's a higher chance that you will leave them; at least I suspect this is the case. My partner has since found work with a much better company.

Has anyone else found this kind of thing happening with Lidl?

Takeaway_Addict

Best for the job...

Doesn't mean the most intelligent etc, it means who is going to fit the job the best and stay longest in the job.

AvoidTalktalk

This is what I was thinking. Might they be rejecting anyone who might leave Lidl for a better job? I assume that someone with a stronger CV or good qualifications is more likely to leave for a better job than someone who has little other option.

tomtontom

Maybe the successful applicants have different strengths that make them more attractive applicants - better team players, more friendly perhaps?

It is sad that you assume the worst in the successful candidates. You come across as rather bitter.

Loopy28

My friend got a job in Lidl, he had a history of working on building sites and no customer service experience. He is English btw.

I think it likely depends on demand for jobs in your locality and how many people apply. Sometimes there are so many applications that they cannot begin to even look at them all.

It depends on the manager too on what they are looking for.

dawyldthing

I often shop in lidl and my su does and I can't fault the staff and a lot seem to be there after a few years. I can't blame them wanting to keep people for a while as recruiting, training and the like all takes time and money which is a bad investment if people stay a matter of weeks. If you just want a short term job agencies are often the way to go

asajj

Probably they wouldn't want to recruit someone who is overqualified for the role too. It is not uncommon people will leave such jobs to get something better (and understandable) or just look down on their colleagues as they are less intelligent or not fluent in English.

PasturesNew

There will always be a "face fits" criteria, for most jobs. It's not about being the best, there are lots of hidden criteria too.

It might be "too pretty", "too ugly", "not done it before", "done too much of it before", "doesn't live close enough", "looks bossy", "doesn't look assertive enough (aka mouthy)".....

Every store will have different ideas about the perfect fit for the vacancy ..... being the best isn't the way to get hired; being lucky is the way. Lucky that, for that job, that day, that hiring manager, on their past/recent experiences of recruiting ...... your face fits, today.

Also, I bet they get 50 applications/week or more .... so they'll just reject everybody once they've interviewed enough people to hire enough bodies to fill the jobs .... and that's it. They won't "choose" from everybody, they'll pick "the first X in the queue that meet the criteria"

AvoidTalktalk

Wouldn't you feel a little bitter if you thought you were being rejected due to having better grades? It's a backwards system. You go there to do some shopping, a new foreign woman is working there. She barely speaks English, and she doesn't even say hello or smile at you when you are going through checkout. Why employ her and not even give an interview to my partner?

They rejected someone who came here from eastern europe, has plenty of work experience in similar settings, and has acquired A grades in GCSE English and Math. Meanwhile, they will happily take other polish workers who can barely speak English and definitely have not acquired GCSE's. Regardless, she has now found work with a much better company. It's their loss, because I know she would have stayed with Lidl and would have been a good employee.

I've now had it confirmed that they actually do this. I found out from someone who used to work for them in this very store. He said your A grades are the problem, if you had all F's they'd have taken you.

AvoidTalktalk

asajj wrote: »

Probably they wouldn't want to recruit someone who is overqualified for the role too. It is not uncommon people will leave such jobs to get something better (and understandable) or just look down on their colleagues as they are less intelligent or not fluent in English.

This is what I think it is too. There is an atmosphere in the Lidl store that the employees there are very average at best. You can figure out how they are by watching them when you shop there and talking to them a bit.

I have a feeling it's about trying to retain employees, because recruitment costs money and training new employees all the time is not efficient. Considering Lidl stores run on a very low number of employees they probably would like to keep their employees for as long as possible. Experienced employees will always be more efficient than new ones. They probably have data showing that those who are better educated are more likely to leave the job. So I get the feeling they just reject anyone with good grades who is applying for one of the low level jobs such as customer assistant.

duchy

If it's so average....why do you and your wife want to work there ?

I've worked in recruitment and reading your post it struck me that you as self employed have little checkable employment history - and your wife seems to have had a string of jobs in various roles. Perhaps one of the criteria was a checkable work history and a record for staying in a job for a reasonable length of time rather than leaving after a short time ? Just a thought. I've often employed people less well qualified but with a better work ethic - Why waste resources training someone who isn't going to fit in or who isn't going to stay when other applicants have a record of changing jobs infrequently.