Top 5 Employer No-No's When Hiring

Jobs are scarce. There's no doubt about it. With a national unemployment rate of 8.3% it has become an Employer's Market. For employers across the country, this may seem like paradise. Anyone ever in a position responsible for hiring qualified dependable employees will attest to the fact that hiring such people has become quite a bit easier. However, hiring managers are in danger of becoming too dependent on the glut of potential candidates, forgetting that economic recovery eventually changes the playing field.

Human Resources departments and others responsible for hiring should remember to honor their company's commitment to employees. Wrongfully believing that the high rate of unemployment will continue to serve up the cream of the crop forever could lead employers to accomplishing nothing more than a reputation for poor and abusive practices toward employees. If your company achieves the distinguished honor of being the worst company to work for, what will you do when the shoe is on the other foot? It is much more difficult to change public perception to a positive if you've spent years creating a negative work environment. The best practice is to maintain integrity and remember that those you may be turning away today, will be talking about their experience with you, tomorrow.

Job seekers are becoming more and more frustrated by what they say is nothing short of rudeness and a display of poor manners from those doing the hiring. It's an indication that those accused would not be good choices for employment, and such seekers are verbal about their determination not to ever apply again, no matter what the economy holds. If you or your company are perceived as being rude to applicants, you may find yourself with a massive shortage of employees when economic recovery is accomplished.

At the top of the list is the complaint that applications are not being acknowledged, often even after there has already been an interview. Those looking for jobs put a lot of time into their efforts. Resumes are written and revamped, research is done on the company or industry, and practicing for the interview in an effort to present their best contribution to the workplace. Very often money is spent in travel to and from the interview, as well as taking time off from current jobs.

Then the waiting begins, sometimes never to end except for the applicant giving up any hopes of being offered the job because the employer doesn't bother to contact the seeker again. Silence from the employer after the interview is over shows a complete lack of consideration for the candidate. It isn't that difficult to send an email or form letter to let the interviewee know he is no longer under consideration. Failure to make any kind of contact is rude and won't be forgotten by those on the receiving end of such conduct.

A second complaint in line with with a perception of rudeness and lack of employee appreciation is the frequent occurrence of potential employers having no consideration for the applicant's time while expecting consideration for themselves. Too often, the applicant is asked to arrive for a scheduled interview and then kept waiting well past the designated time. This can cause serious problems for those applicants who may have other appointments scheduled. Not only are they kept waiting, but if they were to display the same lax attitude toward punctuality, they would find themselves with the likelihood of not receiving a job offer. The same goes for telephone interviews. Candidates find themselves waiting anxiously by the telephone for a call that never comes.

There's nothing more frustrating to a job candidate than going through all the steps only to be told they will receive word regarding their continued candidacy within a specific time range. When the end of the period arrives with no forthcoming call or letter, they are left wondering if there has been some unforeseen problem with communication lines, but are even more bewildered when they receive a run-around after attempting to find answers from the would-be employer.

Perhaps the most frustrating requirement for potential job applicants is the need for them to use tortuous and time consuming online application systems. There was a time when online application processes were considered time saving. Candidates using them found the process relatively easy and felt reassured that their application would not become “lost” as so happens when a paper application is filtered through many departments. As more and more employers switch to automated systems, the process has become cumbersome and time consuming for job seekers. Many systems only allow for the candidate to copy and paste small chunks of their resumes in the generic fields provided. This doesn't allow the applicant to present the full picture of their work history or their diligence toward detail and neatness as could be seen on a full view of the original resume.

Employers may feel that time is being saved through the use of their automated system, but they are alienating potential employees before they even meet face to face. Most job seekers want to work for companies that are organized and efficient, but allow for individuality and personal identity. Automated systems may actually be driving away top performers who view such systems as impersonal and an indication that personal attention to detail and neatness isn't a consideration.

Employers engage in the practice of demanding a candidate's salary requirements up front, sometimes even before scheduling an interview. These same employers refuse to give concrete answers about the pay they plan to offer. Most times, questions regarding salaries are waved aside with generic answers about experience being the determining factor. The truth is though they have a definite pay range, such employers are hoping to lowball the applicant. As an employer, you should never forget that candidates are on to you. They know you're hoping to get them for the cheapest cost possible and aren't appreciating that you're willing to settle for cheating a potential employee out of a fair salary. And while the economy is still in the tank, the practice may work for you now, but will surely backfire down the road when excellent employees seek positions with your competition. If you feel the right to demand salary requirements before considering a candidate, you must be up front about the salary pay for the required skills.

If you're one of the employers currently getting away with such abusive and thoughtless behaviors, you may want to acknowledge that a change is in order. Prospective employees have very long memories and the more heinous the behavior, the more likely the word about your behavior will spread among the workforce. When the job market picks back up, the companies noted for treating candidates with respect and appreciation of efforts will be the employers of choice. Will you be one of them?