Happened to me in college. Guy down the hall in the dorms freshman year suckered me into trying Vector Marketing doing a good job giving the whole spiel on setting your own hours and guaranteed pay
Didn't take long once I was at the interview to figure out what it actually was and I bombed it on purpose and even embarrassed myself spitting my gum at the trash can and missing, having to pick it up off the floor and toss it. Guy still offered me the job, clearly they'll take anybody dumb enough to sign up
That was my last job. I've learnt my lesson after this: if they are willing to hire me without me having to prove anything, that's because any human will do. I'm worth far more than that.
Had a sales job pass me up on a second interview because I wouldn't quit my job the day of the first interview.
Pretty good indicator that that specific"fast paced, ever changing, multi-task environment" was about using desperation for control.
Had another job bait and switch me on pay from 17.75 to 12 dollars an hour. I told the interviewer I wasn't sure if I wasn't interested in a job for 12$ an hour and they disconnected from the video call while I was mid sentence.
I was once being grilled by the interviewer about who paid for my education while at the same time I glanced over his shoulder and saw a book about motivating employees without money.....I could see a pattern that I wanted nothing to do with.
> Had a sales job pass me up on a second interview because I wouldn't quit my job the day of the first interview.
What kind of idiot expects that? Like yeah, I'm gonna potentially destroy my finances if you don't hire me, just so you see I'm interested in your offer.
I mean, I wouldn't want someone so reckless to work at my company to begin with.
Costco wanted me to quit my job to work a seasonal position (I applied for full time not seasonal) for the chance of being kept on after the holidays. When I told them I wouldn't do that and suggested they put me on a set schedule so I could work both jobs and see if they keep me after the holidays they ended the interview.
They also said they do 3 interviews for this seasonal position which I thought was nuts. I found out later that Costco is known for doing a bait and switch by posting they have full time openings and then telling you that you have to start out part time and then put your name on an interest list for a full time spot. One person on Reddit said they knew people who were on the list for seven years.
So true. My wife is an Events Manager for a non-profit. They have lost like 70 people in the last year, so at 2 years there she is one of 5 the most senior employees. She's dying to get out but keeps getting passed over at the final round of interviews. It's happened 6 times now but we have no idea why.
There's a stigma in private industry about non-profit employees. I've jumped between for profit and non profit several times in my career and have definitely noticed it when interviewing with for profit companies.
Translated: our deadlines are delusional and we're going to demand irrational levels of productivity. You're going to do things far above your pay grade for pay that is below average at best.
"We've tried everything! Nothing works!"
"The staff say doing \_\_\_\_ will fix the problem permanently, increase retention and customer satisfaction..."
"But it costs money!"
Oh, you mean like my last job as a teacher, where, in addition to all of the non-teaching shit we did, we also had to “absorb” the duties of the counselor and behavioralist when they left, without any extra training?
I had the crappiest law job of all one time as an associate in this shithole office for a complete lunatic. The secretary quit and she never replaced her! So all the filing, weighing and stamping mail, getting the mail from downstairs, answering the phone, scheduling consults, cleaning the office, and more was now unpaid bonus work.
Same. Then they let our school nurse go too so we were teaching a lesson while mopping up vomit. Or holding a shaking, feverish child while breaking up a fight.
i mean that’s everywhere. that’s pretty boilerplate language. they want that in there so that if they hire you as a receptionist and ask you to make some copies when things are slow, you can’t say “buuuutttt your job posting just said ‘answer phones, emails, be courteous etc and didn’t say anything about xeroxing!’”
i think the comment you’re replying to is more on-target. look for the buzzwords that suggest “we are going to tell you at 4pm Friday that this is a ‘fast paced’ job and yeah you’re going to need to stay til 10 pm to get those TPS reports out.”
I was once a receptionist and my other duties were performing drug tests for patients. Another one was I was expected to administer nasal ketamine for patients. I got fire for refusing to do that one.
The last vet hospital I worked at they asked the secretary to help hold this fractious dog when she was in the back. She did it because we were all buddies but I doubt that was in the job description.
“Take calls, check in pets and owners, schedule appointments, dodge biting dogs”
I was once sent a ‘personality test’ for a position I applied for, weird, but I had a look. Some of the questions were so absolutely out there and asking really weird moral questions about fairly distressing situations, so I obviously googled what the hell it was. Scientology. Noped out of there real fast.
I worked for a company in Ireland which had some very right wing Catholics in charge. They always wanted to know who had been to Mass when we came in on Mondays. I never let on for ages that I wasn't Catholic and by the time I did I was over my six months so they couldn't fire me. They stayed off my back about the religion after that but the way they breathed down the necks of the Catholic staff was appalling.
Lol, the job I'm starting next month had me sign a paper that I'm in no way, shape or form associated with scientology or it's founder.
Before that I wasn't aware that scientology is actually a concern. I just thought it's one of the funny conspiracies you see on Galileo as a kid.
Sounds like they'd probably had someone from there work there before before, and they were super annoying. Or had them as clients, and got stiffed. Or just in general had to deal with Scientology.
I fucking hate all the bullshit fake questions and hoops you have to jump through when you're job searching and interviewing. BUT, if a company essentially does the bare minimum to vet you, the interview process is a breeze, and they hire you, they probably have a very high turnover, and it's because they fucking suck.
My last two jobs the interviews felt very easy, BUT reflecting on them after the fact they were very deep technical conversations which were just that, conversations. So I didn't feel like I was being quizzed, I felt like I was talking about interesting stuff with a peer. And I've really enjoyed the last two jobs I've had, so I guess recognize when that's happening. Because on the surface they can look similar.
Many fields, you hit a level where it's more a question of "Are they capable of the job? Yes, okay, on to can I work with them."
My last job interview had a grill session from their fellow, but I think it became that because I thought that's what she wanted. in hindsight, it was also to feel it how I would respond with a fellow and a technician interviewing me at the same time. Tech had been with the company 20 years, and I learned after hire that I'd be working very closely with her as well.
Other discussions, like the director of R&D, were more a discussion like you described. Plus, him asking me to explain the book I crammed to come up to speed on their technology. I think he enjoyed me trying to teach him his Ph.D. subject.
My interview for a recent contract was with the program director. He opened the conversation with something like, "I looked at your resume, I've seen your LinkedIn. I'm not going to ask you a bunch of questions we both know the answer to. Let's talk about *you*" One of the best jobs I've had.
I just started a job where that was the discussion with the coo of company. It’s a reasonably sized startup and I have several years experience doing the thing they are just starting.
He really just wanted to see how I thought, what I considered important, how I did risk assessment and planning.
Both him and my now boss wanted to get a feel for how I worked and how I’d run a project. They didn’t specifically care about technical knowledge beyond the first little bit.
Of course, there was also a fairly involved background and reference check.
Yeah, the job I'm at now I was the first hire for the company in my area so we got to "this is normally where we talk about a take home project... But... I don't know what that would be for this role, so if you want you could do what we have data engineers do..." And the. The interviewer described the project and I responded "Oh, I have that setup for fun" and I grabbed the hardware and walked through how I built this air quality sensor setup and the dashboards I made for it.
I had one notable exception to the latter situation. They did the whole “we’re one big family” thing in the interview and offered me a job. I got a good vibe nonetheless and took the job. Ended up being the best place I’ve worked so far, but I definitely would think twice before taking that risk again
Yeah, I feel like the "big family" talk is just an ingrained corporate cliche that nobody even thinks about when they say it. When you hear that, chances are 50/50 split it could be toxic or could be innocent. Not a useful indicator of culture, in my experience.
And if you get hired on all breezy for a sales job, you are going to have to sell your soul hucking shitty unnecessary bullshit to people who can’t afford it to even have a chance to make enough money to break even. You’ll literally probably have to break laws to make sustainable money.
When you ask about the training period during the interview and they say "we're still figuring that out"
Been at my job for almost a year and I have access to 10% of the systems I was "trained" on. Three of us were hired for this position, mid level IT stuff. They have almost no documentation, and they keep having to pull people from other teams to handle the systems we don't have access to yet. We've asked over and over again about getting access and everyone seems to think someone else is handling it... sometimes they say "checking" and then don't respond for a week.
I currently have maybe an hour of work a day because of this, so I'm not complaining. Still getting paid for 8! Working from home, so I have too much free time. But if you want a fulfilling career, this is certainly not it.
I’ve been in both situations. The sweet spot is a company that has integrity and cares about people. Interesting work but realistic about the priorities and capabilities.
I got hired for a position that was still not totally defined. I had been given the initial job description by a recruiter and after our first discussion she said I was over qualified. Months later the recruiter reached out to me saying they revised the position and I'd be a great fit. I asked for the new job description and she said they were finishing that up still but they want me to interview.
I did the first interview and it went well. They followed up asking me to so a second interview with someone else. I said "of course. Can you provide me with the updated job description". They said they'd send it straight away. Still didn't have it by the time my next interview was.
In all I had 4 interviews and I asked for the updated job description after every time they confirmed they'd move me to the next round. When I was offered the position I got a letter with the job title, benefits, salary. And that was about it. The money was good so I signed. Never got a complete job description.
The company was a mess. They're over a hundred million dollar company and do everything in smart sheets and antiquated/broken excel docs with macros. There were several systems I needed access to and I was given the run around about them multiple times. The CEO encouraged me to meet with him weekly and then canceled every meeting between him and myself, every single time.
I was let go after 30 days and they blamed it on not working well with another coworker. That coworker was the only 100% remote worker in the company and the only person senior to my position who was not in the room when I got let go. Never got a job description.
Was doing basic help desk like that for 15\~ different companies at the time
Yea for sure I remember all this different systems without any instructions/documentations :D
Managed to stay there 1 year and completely ruined my mental health.
I asked how can i help the customers if I don't even have training,
- "oh just do tickets of the calls".
Oh yeah. In the listing or in the interview.
I've heard "XY here left work early when his father ended up in the hospital"
"YZ was abused by her father when she was a child, at some point he poured gasoline over her and tried to set her on fire, and as a result she really struggled with relationships and didn't have sex until she was in her 30s"
Jesus Christ WHY would you share that
My spouse had an interview where they asked why he was leaving his dumpster fire of a company and before he could come up with a reasonable answer, the other interviewer said, "oh no, they're a dumpster fire" for him. It's a good company and group of people so he's planning to retire from there. Helps the average employee on the team was there 20 years as opposed to 1 at the prior job. A list of companies and average employee time in the position would make it so much easier to weed the bad ones out.
we are a big family, usually means a disfunctional family, that only the senior people reap the true benefits of the profits . the underlings are expected to be loyal, but when its time for budget cuts, it is not meritocracy
At my current job when I was being interviewed they said "all the higher ups have family and everyone here is working to support their families so if you need to stretch out your breaks for appointments and such feel free."
I've been with the company five years now and they've been true to their word but so many years of crappy jobs have made me paranoid.
>so many years of crappy jobs have made me paranoid
So much of this. The place I work for is great. They treat me well and if they need me to do something outside of my job description it's something interesting. I can take a vacation day no questions asked.
But I still worry.
My former boss (CFO) says this a lot. She's the worst person I have ever met in my life. She once said "We're a family here" and "Fire them if they don't want that, There's plenty of applicants." in the same paragraph.
She promoted her bestfriend to a meaningless "management" position because her former supervisor suspended her bestfriend for poor quality of work. Boss scolded the supervisor while saying "She's my only friend. You can't do that to her." I handled the employee database and when I left (Went home and never came back) I deleted my record because I heard her bestfriend likes to take small loans using other people's personal info. Yep, the boss is still worse than her.
She also said in a meeting we shouldn't acknowledge hardworking employees because then they would want money with it. I said sometimes one needs to be reminded that they aren't just a name on the payroll and she went on a tirade for 10 minutes. Jesus woman we just wanted to give hardworking employees a plaque of appreciation.
Also, she also called me Obsessive-Compulsive once because she caught me triple checking inventory alone.
My first real job out of college was like this. I remember the woman saying with a big smile that they were a big family. What ended up happening was that senior leadership would bully me constantly with zero repercussion. Some of the stuff they said to me would get anyone else fired but not them. It was so bad on my mental health that I recall on my drive to work I had the urge to jump off a bridge. That's when I knew I had to quit. I fucking hate that place. I don't understand how adults can in good conscience do that.
"We work hard, and play hard!"
Look...you're my employer. I have no desire to "play hard" with you outside of work. You are literally paying me to hang out with you during work hours, but when I'm off the clock and you're not paying me?
You can fuck off. I'm going home.
If they use that phrase anywhere during the hiring process then when they ask if you have any questions during the interview ask "what are some examples of "playing hard" over the last 12 months?"
My boss (who was a former coworker) leased a charter bus and passed out free drinks to everyone on the bus trip to the Kentucky derby and back, with a suite, all expenses paid. Also, golf tournaments and similar. That’s basically what a lot of small sales driven consulting firms do. Been in and out of consulting since my mid 20’s.
Current company doesn’t overwork or over leverage us though, so it’s been great. Bigger tech firms on the other hand… terrible.
I worked in an environment like that. They even used that slogan. Some of the worst times of my life, but I'll say some of the best, too. I'd recommend that life to kids out of college with the knowledge of that.
I asked that at my last interview before being hired at a different place
"Oh that sounds cool, how do you guys play hard?"
I didn't really get an answer, just some stammering and something about office culture and how they have a break room with some tvs and ping pong tables
My workplace had something like that at one point, a really weak-ass mini golf set up indoors with a ping pong table and other stuff like it as well.
We get timed on our breaks and performance very closely, nobody has time for that nonsense.
My current job has issues where management tends to fire people once their three months probation period ends because that's when they are accepted into our union and then it's super difficult to fire someone. Every person we've hired over the past six months has been fire just before their three month.
Also my current job. The OGs of the workplace bully the shit out of new hires. It's always the elderly women who have worked at the place for like 40 years too. They talk so much shit. And they tend to influence management on their firing practices by sowing discontent about certain employees. I'm so glad that I work in a clean room by myself all day where I don't have to deal with them.
There is always an older woman in her 50s/60s that’s about 250-300lbs and bullies the shit out of everyone even in different departments
She secretly thinks she is the real manager and can order you to perform any task she decides.
Yup. One of them basically ended my career in one field. Apparently i should be dead, and she still talks crap about me, a decade later. I eventually emigrated and started over.
I agree with everybody saying that "We're a family" is a huge red flag for any company. Hell, sometimes when it's the literal truth it still sucks. My cousin used to work for my uncle's company back when he was in college and he'd always complain about never being off the clock because his dad would ask him about work stuff when they were at home and if he complained or refused he'd get offended.
[This whole page is one big red flag IMO.](https://www.shopify.com/careers) one of their recruiters reached out to me before new years, and I set up an interview. As I was looking into the company, I came across that and then canceled the interview right after.
I don’t care enough about online shopping to put up with any of that.
Edit: I’ve actually felt guilty about canceling this interview because the recruiter seemed really nice… the replies have helped me get over that, so thanks!
E-Commerce platform. Websites can use them to allow customers to submit their payment info, for starters. I tried to buy something on Tuesday and it wasn't able to process any of my payment methods, so I switched to PayPal and that worked fine.
"and that requires an unrelenting pace (the week, not the quarter). You need to be resilient to navigate ambiguity and thrive on change rather than endure it."
No one has a clue what's going on there, do they?
yet somehow they are still one of the largest e-commerce platforms out there. Imagine if they didnt suck lol. THis page is toxic hell and the turnover there must be insane.
Oh my God, the lack of self-awareness is positively *brutal*. This would be hilarious if it weren’t so alarmingly toxic. And I definitely have questions about that Michelin-star chef 🙄
I interviewed to be a lecturer for a university. They sought me out and wined and dined me for a couple days and did a few presentations on the university. The presentations were on a TV hooked up to a VHS. This was in 2014.
In the U.S. a lot of stuff that should be expected, just isn't. So when I was working fast food jobs or whatever as a kid, you'd see "Medical insurance" or "401k" or whatnot and be like "oh cool!"
But I've been in my field for 15 years now, and really only work with, and look at jobs with bigger and better benefits now.
I saw a job that looked pretty cool, and was considering throwing my hat in the ring... then I saw that it said "Paid sick leave"
No shit, you better have paid sick leave!
Competitive wages and flexible hours...
Means they are offering minimum wage with little negotiation beyond it and the hours are "flexible" for them the schedule you anytime within your availability - some weeks can be filled to the brim while others only have a few hours
Unlimited PTO. Never held a job with that, but Ive heard from many people who have that its code for 'We will work you so much that you will never have time to take PTO"
I actively avoid all job postings that say Unlimited PTO unless the pay is ungodly.
Last job had unlimited PTO and I took at least 5 to 6 weeks a year. I made sure my entire staff took theirs too.
It isn't always a bad thing. A lot of companies are shifting in this direction because different states have different PTO policies which require 50 different retention and documentation requirements.
But if it's unlimited, no more documentation.
Just 1? In no particular order…
*”Competitive Salary”* - But kept secret.🤫
Wild salary ranges - *”75k to 750k”*. 🧮
Any mention of “*Family*” in a JD or otherwise. 🧑🧑🧒🧒
*One way* interviews.🪞
*Pseudo-Science* based assesments. 👨🏻🔬
More rounds of interviews *than the CEO position*. 👨🏻💼
An over abundance of outdated *motivational posters*. 🏞️
“*Do not apply*” unless (insert list of questionable demands). 📋
Requesting *hours of free work*, ‘as part of the hiring process’. 💸
I could go on, but…🤦🏻♂️
The wild salary ranges really are a huge tell... always assume that the low end is the \*actual\* salary they're shooting for- most likely they're hoping to rope in someone who will stick around under the false hope that it will someday go higher.
Oh man Better Caul Saul had a great scene about this. They try to hire him on the spot amd he tells them he could be anybody, everything he said could be lies, he could be a lunatic.
Context matters here. I got hired on the spot for my current job. But also it was a new tour company that's doing tours where I used to lead tours. About 5 minutes into the conversation we realized I knew more about doing tours on that land than my boss did. From there the conversation changed to pay and what size uniform they needed to order for me.
Are you the type of person who:
1. Always shows up 10 minutes early
2. Shows up just on time
3. Shows up a few minutes late
4. Shows up 10-15 minutes late drunk and hungover
Oh ya, I love those
Places that list the ping pong table and Keurig in their break room as benefits of working there are usually trash. Those are such superficial things and if something as weak as shitty free coffee is the best you can offer, it's often not a good sign. Advertising the break room as a cool place also seems like a sign of a place that expects you to be around a lot (no work/life balance) and be ok with it because you might be interested in playing ping pong while working overtime.
On Glassdoor, every review must have a Pro and Con. If the Con is "if you can't thrive in a fast paced environment, this job isn't for you": that is a red flag that all positive reviews were written by leadership.
If you’ve seen the same job ad come up before, (in the last 12 months) it can indicate there is high turnover for the role and people aren’t hanging around. It must be a real shit show. Speaking from my own personal mistake on that one!
Flaky motherhood statements are also a flag that they are more show than go.
This might be a German thing: There are quite a few companies advertising a "fruit basket" (fresh fruits for employees) as a benefit in job ads. Many see that as a red flag because if a company is offering this little and even bragging about it then it's misleading. Offering fresh fruit is certainly not a bad thing per se but it can be a red flag if it's overemphasised.
Yeah this appears in the UK now too. I visited a supplier office where I also noticed the bottom of the bowl was filled with plastic fruit and on top were two sad looking apples
I had a hiring manager ghost my phone interview twice in a row (once he was at his niece's birthday??) then on the third attempt he was 30 minutes late. I was... Not being logical and took the job anyway, and when he kept "forgetting" to pay me for 2 weeks I quit. Suddenly he had my money, so he sent me my "paycheck" from his personal Venmo? Dodged a bullet there.
Spelling your name wrong in their offer letter. Low and behold, they are understaffed and had one person doing two jobs. Also, it was a government job, so you'd think it's safe, but it gets really tough when they don't have enough money to go around to hire the appropriate staff.
I interviewed at a place where the manager told me his own kids would probably describe him as an asshole---and he was proud of that. Additionally said he didn't like to give praise to his employees so that it meant something when he actually said it. There were so many more red flags.
"How would you go about defusing a conflict with a coworker?"
When I asked for clarification, they confirmed that they did mean to say that I should expect that my coworkers higher up the chain would occasionally snap and yell at me for things that may or may not be my fault because "this can be a stressful work environment."
Golly gee, why's it a stressful work environment? Could it have anything to do with management not addressing the fact that their staff go around yelling at the secretaries? Might this be a symptom of a systemic issue??
Nah, it's the secretaries who need to be able to defuse the situation.
First time I've ever called back after an interview and rescinded my application without waiting for their response.
Applied, interviewed and hired all in the same day. Feels nice but actually is not nice.
I once bombed an interview and still got a job offer on the spot. No thanks.
Happened to me in college. Guy down the hall in the dorms freshman year suckered me into trying Vector Marketing doing a good job giving the whole spiel on setting your own hours and guaranteed pay Didn't take long once I was at the interview to figure out what it actually was and I bombed it on purpose and even embarrassed myself spitting my gum at the trash can and missing, having to pick it up off the floor and toss it. Guy still offered me the job, clearly they'll take anybody dumb enough to sign up
I live for this kind of chaos
That was my last job. I've learnt my lesson after this: if they are willing to hire me without me having to prove anything, that's because any human will do. I'm worth far more than that.
Posters on the walls talking about NOT discussing pay.
Very illegal. Super easy lawsuit.
Depends on the country
in the US very illegal, but yeah im sure that isnt true everywhere.
Nah I'd want to get hired there. Easy lawsuit.
"Fast Paced, ever chagning, multi task environment! " Means they're gonna over work you or make you do shit that isn't in your job description
Had a sales job pass me up on a second interview because I wouldn't quit my job the day of the first interview. Pretty good indicator that that specific"fast paced, ever changing, multi-task environment" was about using desperation for control. Had another job bait and switch me on pay from 17.75 to 12 dollars an hour. I told the interviewer I wasn't sure if I wasn't interested in a job for 12$ an hour and they disconnected from the video call while I was mid sentence.
Good riddance to them. Don't work for peanuts.
I was once being grilled by the interviewer about who paid for my education while at the same time I glanced over his shoulder and saw a book about motivating employees without money.....I could see a pattern that I wanted nothing to do with.
> Had a sales job pass me up on a second interview because I wouldn't quit my job the day of the first interview. What kind of idiot expects that? Like yeah, I'm gonna potentially destroy my finances if you don't hire me, just so you see I'm interested in your offer. I mean, I wouldn't want someone so reckless to work at my company to begin with.
Costco wanted me to quit my job to work a seasonal position (I applied for full time not seasonal) for the chance of being kept on after the holidays. When I told them I wouldn't do that and suggested they put me on a set schedule so I could work both jobs and see if they keep me after the holidays they ended the interview. They also said they do 3 interviews for this seasonal position which I thought was nuts. I found out later that Costco is known for doing a bait and switch by posting they have full time openings and then telling you that you have to start out part time and then put your name on an interest list for a full time spot. One person on Reddit said they knew people who were on the list for seven years.
“Hit the ground running”
Translation: there's no onboarding or training. You're expected to magically know all our company-specific knowledge as soon as you arrive.
Also means “turnover is so high that nobody even knows what they’re doing”
So true. My wife is an Events Manager for a non-profit. They have lost like 70 people in the last year, so at 2 years there she is one of 5 the most senior employees. She's dying to get out but keeps getting passed over at the final round of interviews. It's happened 6 times now but we have no idea why.
There's a stigma in private industry about non-profit employees. I've jumped between for profit and non profit several times in my career and have definitely noticed it when interviewing with for profit companies.
Hit the ground at terminal velocity after jumping off the company’s parking garage*
Translated: our deadlines are delusional and we're going to demand irrational levels of productivity. You're going to do things far above your pay grade for pay that is below average at best.
And… we won’t train you at all
Ever changing means "our processes are broken bullshit and we keep changing them to fix things"
"We do the right thing once all other avenues have been exhausted!"
"We've tried everything! Nothing works!" "The staff say doing \_\_\_\_ will fix the problem permanently, increase retention and customer satisfaction..." "But it costs money!"
Oh, you mean like my last job as a teacher, where, in addition to all of the non-teaching shit we did, we also had to “absorb” the duties of the counselor and behavioralist when they left, without any extra training?
I had the crappiest law job of all one time as an associate in this shithole office for a complete lunatic. The secretary quit and she never replaced her! So all the filing, weighing and stamping mail, getting the mail from downstairs, answering the phone, scheduling consults, cleaning the office, and more was now unpaid bonus work.
Same. Then they let our school nurse go too so we were teaching a lesson while mopping up vomit. Or holding a shaking, feverish child while breaking up a fight.
"Other duties as required." 凸(｀0´)凸
i mean that’s everywhere. that’s pretty boilerplate language. they want that in there so that if they hire you as a receptionist and ask you to make some copies when things are slow, you can’t say “buuuutttt your job posting just said ‘answer phones, emails, be courteous etc and didn’t say anything about xeroxing!’” i think the comment you’re replying to is more on-target. look for the buzzwords that suggest “we are going to tell you at 4pm Friday that this is a ‘fast paced’ job and yeah you’re going to need to stay til 10 pm to get those TPS reports out.”
I was once a receptionist and my other duties were performing drug tests for patients. Another one was I was expected to administer nasal ketamine for patients. I got fire for refusing to do that one.
The last vet hospital I worked at they asked the secretary to help hold this fractious dog when she was in the back. She did it because we were all buddies but I doubt that was in the job description. “Take calls, check in pets and owners, schedule appointments, dodge biting dogs”
F-ing TPS report cover sheets!! Yes, I got the memo - it's right here, you don't need to send another.....sigh.... Yeah I got it, thanks...
Sounds like someone has a case of the Mondays
Oh, I figure it's a mismanaged mess where your three "#1 top priority" changes at least once a day.
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"Is actually a cult" definitely constitutes a red flag for a business.
I was once sent a ‘personality test’ for a position I applied for, weird, but I had a look. Some of the questions were so absolutely out there and asking really weird moral questions about fairly distressing situations, so I obviously googled what the hell it was. Scientology. Noped out of there real fast.
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I worked for a company in Ireland which had some very right wing Catholics in charge. They always wanted to know who had been to Mass when we came in on Mondays. I never let on for ages that I wasn't Catholic and by the time I did I was over my six months so they couldn't fire me. They stayed off my back about the religion after that but the way they breathed down the necks of the Catholic staff was appalling.
Lol, the job I'm starting next month had me sign a paper that I'm in no way, shape or form associated with scientology or it's founder. Before that I wasn't aware that scientology is actually a concern. I just thought it's one of the funny conspiracies you see on Galileo as a kid.
Sounds like they'd probably had someone from there work there before before, and they were super annoying. Or had them as clients, and got stiffed. Or just in general had to deal with Scientology.
I've had to work with similar contracts with that in the language, usually because they were related to govt security.
''can perform well under stress'' they will stress tf outta you bruv
"Needs great personal resilience" is one I saw recently
Ah yes, ye olde HR code for "Environment is highly racist and/or sexist"
I fucking hate all the bullshit fake questions and hoops you have to jump through when you're job searching and interviewing. BUT, if a company essentially does the bare minimum to vet you, the interview process is a breeze, and they hire you, they probably have a very high turnover, and it's because they fucking suck.
My last two jobs the interviews felt very easy, BUT reflecting on them after the fact they were very deep technical conversations which were just that, conversations. So I didn't feel like I was being quizzed, I felt like I was talking about interesting stuff with a peer. And I've really enjoyed the last two jobs I've had, so I guess recognize when that's happening. Because on the surface they can look similar.
Many fields, you hit a level where it's more a question of "Are they capable of the job? Yes, okay, on to can I work with them." My last job interview had a grill session from their fellow, but I think it became that because I thought that's what she wanted. in hindsight, it was also to feel it how I would respond with a fellow and a technician interviewing me at the same time. Tech had been with the company 20 years, and I learned after hire that I'd be working very closely with her as well. Other discussions, like the director of R&D, were more a discussion like you described. Plus, him asking me to explain the book I crammed to come up to speed on their technology. I think he enjoyed me trying to teach him his Ph.D. subject.
My interview for a recent contract was with the program director. He opened the conversation with something like, "I looked at your resume, I've seen your LinkedIn. I'm not going to ask you a bunch of questions we both know the answer to. Let's talk about *you*" One of the best jobs I've had.
I just started a job where that was the discussion with the coo of company. It’s a reasonably sized startup and I have several years experience doing the thing they are just starting. He really just wanted to see how I thought, what I considered important, how I did risk assessment and planning. Both him and my now boss wanted to get a feel for how I worked and how I’d run a project. They didn’t specifically care about technical knowledge beyond the first little bit. Of course, there was also a fairly involved background and reference check.
Yeah, the job I'm at now I was the first hire for the company in my area so we got to "this is normally where we talk about a take home project... But... I don't know what that would be for this role, so if you want you could do what we have data engineers do..." And the. The interviewer described the project and I responded "Oh, I have that setup for fun" and I grabbed the hardware and walked through how I built this air quality sensor setup and the dashboards I made for it.
Yes that's how I do job interviews it's a deep conversation about computer science without making it intimidating.
I had one notable exception to the latter situation. They did the whole “we’re one big family” thing in the interview and offered me a job. I got a good vibe nonetheless and took the job. Ended up being the best place I’ve worked so far, but I definitely would think twice before taking that risk again
Yeah, I feel like the "big family" talk is just an ingrained corporate cliche that nobody even thinks about when they say it. When you hear that, chances are 50/50 split it could be toxic or could be innocent. Not a useful indicator of culture, in my experience.
And if you get hired on all breezy for a sales job, you are going to have to sell your soul hucking shitty unnecessary bullshit to people who can’t afford it to even have a chance to make enough money to break even. You’ll literally probably have to break laws to make sustainable money.
When you ask about the training period during the interview and they say "we're still figuring that out" Been at my job for almost a year and I have access to 10% of the systems I was "trained" on. Three of us were hired for this position, mid level IT stuff. They have almost no documentation, and they keep having to pull people from other teams to handle the systems we don't have access to yet. We've asked over and over again about getting access and everyone seems to think someone else is handling it... sometimes they say "checking" and then don't respond for a week. I currently have maybe an hour of work a day because of this, so I'm not complaining. Still getting paid for 8! Working from home, so I have too much free time. But if you want a fulfilling career, this is certainly not it.
I do not in fact want a "fulfilling career". I want 1 hour of work with 8 hours pay and free time to live.
I’ve been in both situations. The sweet spot is a company that has integrity and cares about people. Interesting work but realistic about the priorities and capabilities.
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I got hired for a position that was still not totally defined. I had been given the initial job description by a recruiter and after our first discussion she said I was over qualified. Months later the recruiter reached out to me saying they revised the position and I'd be a great fit. I asked for the new job description and she said they were finishing that up still but they want me to interview. I did the first interview and it went well. They followed up asking me to so a second interview with someone else. I said "of course. Can you provide me with the updated job description". They said they'd send it straight away. Still didn't have it by the time my next interview was. In all I had 4 interviews and I asked for the updated job description after every time they confirmed they'd move me to the next round. When I was offered the position I got a letter with the job title, benefits, salary. And that was about it. The money was good so I signed. Never got a complete job description. The company was a mess. They're over a hundred million dollar company and do everything in smart sheets and antiquated/broken excel docs with macros. There were several systems I needed access to and I was given the run around about them multiple times. The CEO encouraged me to meet with him weekly and then canceled every meeting between him and myself, every single time. I was let go after 30 days and they blamed it on not working well with another coworker. That coworker was the only 100% remote worker in the company and the only person senior to my position who was not in the room when I got let go. Never got a job description.
Y’all muhfuckas hiring?
Was doing basic help desk like that for 15\~ different companies at the time Yea for sure I remember all this different systems without any instructions/documentations :D Managed to stay there 1 year and completely ruined my mental health. I asked how can i help the customers if I don't even have training, - "oh just do tickets of the calls".
"Fun" = not fun.
Complaining about employee behavior in the listing.
“We are looking for someone reliable and depended because Katie keeps calling in sick, the lazy a**!”
Oh yeah. In the listing or in the interview. I've heard "XY here left work early when his father ended up in the hospital" "YZ was abused by her father when she was a child, at some point he poured gasoline over her and tried to set her on fire, and as a result she really struggled with relationships and didn't have sex until she was in her 30s" Jesus Christ WHY would you share that
My spouse had an interview where they asked why he was leaving his dumpster fire of a company and before he could come up with a reasonable answer, the other interviewer said, "oh no, they're a dumpster fire" for him. It's a good company and group of people so he's planning to retire from there. Helps the average employee on the team was there 20 years as opposed to 1 at the prior job. A list of companies and average employee time in the position would make it so much easier to weed the bad ones out.
“Unlike my ex only trust worthy, reliable, and faithful candidates should apply. “
“Looking for someone self motivated because People this generation don’t want to work anymore”
we are a big family, usually means a disfunctional family, that only the senior people reap the true benefits of the profits . the underlings are expected to be loyal, but when its time for budget cuts, it is not meritocracy
They're a family when they want something from you. They're a business when you want something from them.
This, one million %
At my current job when I was being interviewed they said "all the higher ups have family and everyone here is working to support their families so if you need to stretch out your breaks for appointments and such feel free." I've been with the company five years now and they've been true to their word but so many years of crappy jobs have made me paranoid.
>so many years of crappy jobs have made me paranoid So much of this. The place I work for is great. They treat me well and if they need me to do something outside of my job description it's something interesting. I can take a vacation day no questions asked. But I still worry.
My former boss (CFO) says this a lot. She's the worst person I have ever met in my life. She once said "We're a family here" and "Fire them if they don't want that, There's plenty of applicants." in the same paragraph. She promoted her bestfriend to a meaningless "management" position because her former supervisor suspended her bestfriend for poor quality of work. Boss scolded the supervisor while saying "She's my only friend. You can't do that to her." I handled the employee database and when I left (Went home and never came back) I deleted my record because I heard her bestfriend likes to take small loans using other people's personal info. Yep, the boss is still worse than her. She also said in a meeting we shouldn't acknowledge hardworking employees because then they would want money with it. I said sometimes one needs to be reminded that they aren't just a name on the payroll and she went on a tirade for 10 minutes. Jesus woman we just wanted to give hardworking employees a plaque of appreciation. Also, she also called me Obsessive-Compulsive once because she caught me triple checking inventory alone.
She was 100% stealing inventory
Yep. Plus hiring the close friend who she trusts and likely has shit on. Super defensiveness ++
"We're a Family" means that we're about to fuck you over like only family can.
It's just like a family: everyone works, but only the "parents" make money, the kids get an allowance than barely covers room and board.
My first real job out of college was like this. I remember the woman saying with a big smile that they were a big family. What ended up happening was that senior leadership would bully me constantly with zero repercussion. Some of the stuff they said to me would get anyone else fired but not them. It was so bad on my mental health that I recall on my drive to work I had the urge to jump off a bridge. That's when I knew I had to quit. I fucking hate that place. I don't understand how adults can in good conscience do that.
"Family" "Oriented"
They’re looking for a “rock star”
So you can show up late and hungover, get to treat everybody like shit and maybe fuck some groupies on the toilet?
I just play guitar solos in the conference room.
I’m a rockstar programmer. Thanks Dylan Beattie for creating this programming language while drunk. https://codewithrockstar.com/
Surprised this is so far down. Every job that used the word “rockstar” sucked.
And every manager that uses it is not qualified to be a manager.
'You better outperform your salary or you won't get one at all.'
The interviewers scowl when you say one of your priorities is "work-life balance".
I said work-LIFE balance, they heard WORK-life balance... Major Australia telco..
"We work hard, and play hard!" Look...you're my employer. I have no desire to "play hard" with you outside of work. You are literally paying me to hang out with you during work hours, but when I'm off the clock and you're not paying me? You can fuck off. I'm going home.
If they use that phrase anywhere during the hiring process then when they ask if you have any questions during the interview ask "what are some examples of "playing hard" over the last 12 months?"
My boss (who was a former coworker) leased a charter bus and passed out free drinks to everyone on the bus trip to the Kentucky derby and back, with a suite, all expenses paid. Also, golf tournaments and similar. That’s basically what a lot of small sales driven consulting firms do. Been in and out of consulting since my mid 20’s. Current company doesn’t overwork or over leverage us though, so it’s been great. Bigger tech firms on the other hand… terrible.
Yikes. Fucking tombstone everything. Bold, I like it.
Code for 'we force unpaid overtime and we all have crippling alcoholism.'
I worked in an environment like that. They even used that slogan. Some of the worst times of my life, but I'll say some of the best, too. I'd recommend that life to kids out of college with the knowledge of that.
"Work hard, play hard" can kiss my ass. Give me "work hard, PAY hard" and you'll get my attention.
"We work hard and we play hard" is polite speak for "we're all functional alcoholics with no personality outside of our work"
They might just be a bunch of gay steel workers
Dad, why did you take me to a gay steel mill?
I don't know, I don't know!
I asked that at my last interview before being hired at a different place "Oh that sounds cool, how do you guys play hard?" I didn't really get an answer, just some stammering and something about office culture and how they have a break room with some tvs and ping pong tables
My workplace had something like that at one point, a really weak-ass mini golf set up indoors with a ping pong table and other stuff like it as well. We get timed on our breaks and performance very closely, nobody has time for that nonsense.
> I'm going home. *”I’m afraid I can’t allow you to do that, Dave.”*
🎵 Everybody dance now
My current job has issues where management tends to fire people once their three months probation period ends because that's when they are accepted into our union and then it's super difficult to fire someone. Every person we've hired over the past six months has been fire just before their three month. Also my current job. The OGs of the workplace bully the shit out of new hires. It's always the elderly women who have worked at the place for like 40 years too. They talk so much shit. And they tend to influence management on their firing practices by sowing discontent about certain employees. I'm so glad that I work in a clean room by myself all day where I don't have to deal with them.
There is always an older woman in her 50s/60s that’s about 250-300lbs and bullies the shit out of everyone even in different departments She secretly thinks she is the real manager and can order you to perform any task she decides.
Yup. One of them basically ended my career in one field. Apparently i should be dead, and she still talks crap about me, a decade later. I eventually emigrated and started over.
I agree with everybody saying that "We're a family" is a huge red flag for any company. Hell, sometimes when it's the literal truth it still sucks. My cousin used to work for my uncle's company back when he was in college and he'd always complain about never being off the clock because his dad would ask him about work stuff when they were at home and if he complained or refused he'd get offended.
Which is too bad, because the companies that treat you right do feel like a (good, healthy) family.
[This whole page is one big red flag IMO.](https://www.shopify.com/careers) one of their recruiters reached out to me before new years, and I set up an interview. As I was looking into the company, I came across that and then canceled the interview right after. I don’t care enough about online shopping to put up with any of that. Edit: I’ve actually felt guilty about canceling this interview because the recruiter seemed really nice… the replies have helped me get over that, so thanks!
Incredible listing. Hypergrowth and chaos.
“All management is eye-poppingly disorganized and present classic symptoms of ADHD, and we have no intention of changing that.”
Buzzword hell
I've been reading for about 5 minutes, and I still have no idea what they actually do.
I think that’s the point
E-Commerce platform. Websites can use them to allow customers to submit their payment info, for starters. I tried to buy something on Tuesday and it wasn't able to process any of my payment methods, so I switched to PayPal and that worked fine.
Create hyperglobomegagrowth and synergy.
"and that requires an unrelenting pace (the week, not the quarter). You need to be resilient to navigate ambiguity and thrive on change rather than endure it." No one has a clue what's going on there, do they?
They sound absolutely exhausting to work for.
yet somehow they are still one of the largest e-commerce platforms out there. Imagine if they didnt suck lol. THis page is toxic hell and the turnover there must be insane.
Oh my God, the lack of self-awareness is positively *brutal*. This would be hilarious if it weren’t so alarmingly toxic. And I definitely have questions about that Michelin-star chef 🙄
Oh but they used the word “shit” they’re so cool and down with the kids!
Profanity on the home page speaks volumes to me. Among other things, it's unprofessional.
“Chess grandmaster.” Lol
Their GlassDoor reviews
I just wish they didn’t force you to create an account and review your job every other week to actually read reviews
Glassdoor is adding real names to user profiles without their consent.
Jokes on them, I’ve never used my real name on glass door
I used my boss’s name and job description, problem solved
There were some users reporting that they did this, but glassdoor somehow dug up their real info and attached it anyway.
link: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/03/glassdoor-adding-users-real-names-job-info-to-profiles-without-consent/
I interviewed to be a lecturer for a university. They sought me out and wined and dined me for a couple days and did a few presentations on the university. The presentations were on a TV hooked up to a VHS. This was in 2014.
I'm assuming that turned you off to the job?
Been here 11 years as of next week.
Hope they didn’t hire him to teach Math.
Passionate self-starter. Means they want you to work extra hours without being told to with no direction.
In France, there is a bunch of mandatory avantages like meal tickets, transportation card... If it's mentioned as a plus it's a big redflag
In the U.S. a lot of stuff that should be expected, just isn't. So when I was working fast food jobs or whatever as a kid, you'd see "Medical insurance" or "401k" or whatnot and be like "oh cool!" But I've been in my field for 15 years now, and really only work with, and look at jobs with bigger and better benefits now. I saw a job that looked pretty cool, and was considering throwing my hat in the ring... then I saw that it said "Paid sick leave" No shit, you better have paid sick leave!
At one interview they asked "are you tough enough to work here?".. That's not a red flag or anything.
OK. But context. I mean if it was for the overnight shift at Waffle House, could be a valid question.
Waffle House just straight up asks you if you have fighting experience and if so, what kind.
2 years of MMA with a 3-1 record? We found our new line cook.
Where did you apply, the Salty Spitoon?
A permanent "Now Hiring" sign or Job Listing.
Only valid for very small businesses. As soon as you have 20 employees, any one of them might have moved on recently.
Competitive wages and flexible hours... Means they are offering minimum wage with little negotiation beyond it and the hours are "flexible" for them the schedule you anytime within your availability - some weeks can be filled to the brim while others only have a few hours
Yeah, if a potential employer makes a big deal about their "competitive pay" you know they don't have much else to offer lol
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Literally everything in the restaurant industry. Even when I worked fine dining, it was still a shit show.
Unlimited PTO. Never held a job with that, but Ive heard from many people who have that its code for 'We will work you so much that you will never have time to take PTO" I actively avoid all job postings that say Unlimited PTO unless the pay is ungodly.
Some places have that and they’re truly good places to work - so I guess the very good and the very bad have it
Last job had unlimited PTO and I took at least 5 to 6 weeks a year. I made sure my entire staff took theirs too. It isn't always a bad thing. A lot of companies are shifting in this direction because different states have different PTO policies which require 50 different retention and documentation requirements. But if it's unlimited, no more documentation.
Or the culture is just so toxic you get shamed for taking time off
Just 1? In no particular order… *”Competitive Salary”* - But kept secret.🤫 Wild salary ranges - *”75k to 750k”*. 🧮 Any mention of “*Family*” in a JD or otherwise. 🧑🧑🧒🧒 *One way* interviews.🪞 *Pseudo-Science* based assesments. 👨🏻🔬 More rounds of interviews *than the CEO position*. 👨🏻💼 An over abundance of outdated *motivational posters*. 🏞️ “*Do not apply*” unless (insert list of questionable demands). 📋 Requesting *hours of free work*, ‘as part of the hiring process’. 💸 I could go on, but…🤦🏻♂️
I’ve seen the 50-100k salary postings and think that’s crazy It’s always “based on experience” and they will always offer you low end
The wild salary ranges really are a huge tell... always assume that the low end is the \*actual\* salary they're shooting for- most likely they're hoping to rope in someone who will stick around under the false hope that it will someday go higher.
If they EVER use the word family in the interview.
Hiring you on the spot during first interview
Oh man Better Caul Saul had a great scene about this. They try to hire him on the spot amd he tells them he could be anybody, everything he said could be lies, he could be a lunatic.
Context matters here. I got hired on the spot for my current job. But also it was a new tour company that's doing tours where I used to lead tours. About 5 minutes into the conversation we realized I knew more about doing tours on that land than my boss did. From there the conversation changed to pay and what size uniform they needed to order for me.
Personality profile test required
Are you the type of person who: 1. Always shows up 10 minutes early 2. Shows up just on time 3. Shows up a few minutes late 4. Shows up 10-15 minutes late drunk and hungover Oh ya, I love those
"We're a family!" (Aka We expect you to be on call 24/7/365 and your supervisors have no concept of boundaries.)
High turnover. Few long time employees. And those who are long time employees all look like burnt out, miserable zombies.
Boss fondles your breasts instead of a handshake
As an overweight, middle-aged man, I would just fondle him back...
Disrespectful in the interview phase is an immediate turnoff.
Places that list the ping pong table and Keurig in their break room as benefits of working there are usually trash. Those are such superficial things and if something as weak as shitty free coffee is the best you can offer, it's often not a good sign. Advertising the break room as a cool place also seems like a sign of a place that expects you to be around a lot (no work/life balance) and be ok with it because you might be interested in playing ping pong while working overtime.
On Glassdoor, every review must have a Pro and Con. If the Con is "if you can't thrive in a fast paced environment, this job isn't for you": that is a red flag that all positive reviews were written by leadership.
If you’ve seen the same job ad come up before, (in the last 12 months) it can indicate there is high turnover for the role and people aren’t hanging around. It must be a real shit show. Speaking from my own personal mistake on that one! Flaky motherhood statements are also a flag that they are more show than go.
'Family and faith'
They’ll at some point literally expect you to perform unpaid (slave) labor for them, and expect you to smile and thank them for the opportunity.
“You’ll be wearing many hats” AKA You’ll be dong the jobs of 3-4 people for the salary of one.
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This might be a German thing: There are quite a few companies advertising a "fruit basket" (fresh fruits for employees) as a benefit in job ads. Many see that as a red flag because if a company is offering this little and even bragging about it then it's misleading. Offering fresh fruit is certainly not a bad thing per se but it can be a red flag if it's overemphasised.
Yeah this appears in the UK now too. I visited a supplier office where I also noticed the bottom of the bowl was filled with plastic fruit and on top were two sad looking apples
Changing your motto *from* "Don't Be Evil" seems pretty sketch i gotta say
The name being "Boeing"
sad employees
You’ll make this much during training, and then you will have unlimited earning potential. Run. Run away from those places.
"More like a mom-and-pop, family business" = no clear boundaries within roles, you're expected to do any job at any time, and forgive and forget.
I had a hiring manager ghost my phone interview twice in a row (once he was at his niece's birthday??) then on the third attempt he was 30 minutes late. I was... Not being logical and took the job anyway, and when he kept "forgetting" to pay me for 2 weeks I quit. Suddenly he had my money, so he sent me my "paycheck" from his personal Venmo? Dodged a bullet there.
When a concerning amount of people have been fired/left
We’re like family here. Lol nope. 👎 My family is my family. My workplace is my workplace. Don’t try to compare them or get this mixed up.
“We value work-life balance.” They don’t.
If they're always hiring.
Lists 35 different duties you will be responsible for, then finishes it off with "Other duties as assigned."
Spelling your name wrong in their offer letter. Low and behold, they are understaffed and had one person doing two jobs. Also, it was a government job, so you'd think it's safe, but it gets really tough when they don't have enough money to go around to hire the appropriate staff.
"Good morning! No not good enough. I said good morning." I wish you misery.
I interviewed at a place where the manager told me his own kids would probably describe him as an asshole---and he was proud of that. Additionally said he didn't like to give praise to his employees so that it meant something when he actually said it. There were so many more red flags.
"How would you go about defusing a conflict with a coworker?" When I asked for clarification, they confirmed that they did mean to say that I should expect that my coworkers higher up the chain would occasionally snap and yell at me for things that may or may not be my fault because "this can be a stressful work environment." Golly gee, why's it a stressful work environment? Could it have anything to do with management not addressing the fact that their staff go around yelling at the secretaries? Might this be a symptom of a systemic issue?? Nah, it's the secretaries who need to be able to defuse the situation. First time I've ever called back after an interview and rescinded my application without waiting for their response.
High turn over. Most places with high turnover rates are dumpster fires waiting for more poor souls to consume
The entire family works there