Job Seekers Frustrated by Rude Recruiters
19 posts across 2 communities in the last 30 days; 95% from r/recruitinghell.
“why do you have to ghost people after initiating a conversation with them? Why? Just say no we're not moving ahead with you. How hard is that. end rant”
“hmm maybe this is why nobody like you’ [re: I hate being a recruiter]”
“This post makes me further realize that I hate dealing with people. The manager was probably half way up the recruiter’s ass and no one communicates clearly and everyone expects to read hints and solve mental riddles. Too early, on time, help getting upstairs. Jesus fuck, just…”
Applicants are expressing frustration with unprofessional behavior from recruiters, including rude emails, unreasonable demands, and a general lack of respect for their time. This highlights a disconnect between applicant expectations and the current recruiting process.
SOURCES (60)
“why do you have to ghost people after initiating a conversation with them? Why? Just say no we're not moving ahead with you. How hard is that. end rant submitted by /u/potterheadedash [link] [comments]”
“Hi everyone, I am sorry to say this but I really dislike recruiters and I don't understand their usefulness. I got rejected for 5 jobs last week, but I emailed the Hiring Managers, and literally all of them have scheduled an interview with me. One of them told me they were looking for someone with SACS experience and was surprised I got screened out. I then got an email from one of the recruiters asking me why I bypassed the process of hiring to email the hiring manager, when I was rejected.”
“You obviously didn’t read the first paragraph of my post [re: I hate being a recruiter]”
“There's a lot unprofessional recruiters and I don't know but I feel like it wasn't like that few years ago. [re: I got screamed at in an interview]”
“Don't go back for the third round and email the original recruiter telling him / her that you were shocked by the unprofessionalism of the interviewer, and wish to withdraw your application. [re: I got screamed at in an interview]”
“I was thinking the exact same thing till I read the last sentence and maybe that’s what OP is complaining about. I do think it was spot on till the person offered to out them to other recruiters. [re: What a distasteful take from this recruiter.]”
“This post makes me further realize that I hate dealing with people. The manager was probably half way up the recruiter’s ass and no one communicates clearly and everyone expects to read hints and solve mental riddles. Too early, on time, help getting upstairs. Jesus fuck, just say ‘the manager is half way up my ass, can you be here early?’ OP, the greatest challenge in life is communicating with people and managing their bull shit.”
“I don’t want to sound rude and I’m sure you’re asking for a good reason but it unless you’re specifically told not to always arrive early.”
“You could try to email the recruiter but usually not. I get the frustration though, they’re a parasitic black box of a company”
“I am older and have been in the workforce for a lot of years in very challenging situations. From the start of the interview he was looking to make me the bad guy. Very terse. He’s wasn’t a happy worker. I feel like I dodged a bullet. You know the saying slow to hire quit to fire. That door swings both ways. I don’t feel bad about it. I’m not staying in a crazy environment and my job is stressful/dangerous on a good day.”
“it's a dumb question but dumb answers weed out a lot of applicants. R-'why do you want to work here?' Candidate-for the money recruiter think this 'cat is gone if they get 1 more dollar an hour and i'll be interviewing again in 90 days. NEXT.'”
They do NOT care about candidates. That's why they do nothing but bitch.
“I’m a recruiter and you are completely in the right. Situations changed and you had the manners to update them immediately and although it sucks for the recruiter - they should have swallowed that and moved on. I’ve had multiple offers turned down after working months on a role and I would never react this way. Yeah you feel slightly pissed but ultimately it’s peoples lives we are working with and if it’s not the right role then it’s not the right role. Such is sales! Kudos to you landing the ne”
“Plus, depending on the recruiter, reaching out is a guaranteed way to not get the job. I use to be in hiring and some people would reject a candidate if they emailed or reached out to them, because they felt it was invasive since their information wasn’t on the requisition.”
“Don't do this. Don't bother me via text to schedule an interview after hours and then crickets when I call you and follow back up the next day. recruiters are a joke. i'm thankful I have a job now but the "recruiters" who I "worked with" when unemployed did nothing but meet with me to hit a number, promised communication and potential opportunities, and then boom crickets I really hate this profession and most recruiters just put a bad name to the ones who actuall”
“Honestly. This is why you’re prolly lucky your dodged a bullet. I don’t even understand what your shared (except your description) and if a manager in an interview was so condescending and rude…. The second someone swore at me in an interview, I would have said “excuse me. Sorry to waste your time. I value professionalism and respect, the fact you’re in management and cursing at me right now is a red flag. I’ll do use both a favor and leave because the values of this company is not something I w”
“Was the main recruiter around at all during orientation? What an asshole, especially for the way she let you go. Extremely rude.”
“The amazing thing here is the recruiter is responding and didnt ghost at an inappropriate time”
“Recruitment is like this because the other 50% of people complain when they don’t get an email letting them know they’re not being considered. Some people bitch because they don’t hear from the recruiter. Other people bitch because they do hear from the recruiter. What exactly would you prefer?”
“Lmao recruiters can’t win. If they email and don’t call, it’s a “why couldn’t they be personable and call me”. Now apparently if they do call it’s a “why did you call me and get my hope up?” This is why we ghost instead”
“The response to my last post here, the one about answering "walk me through your resume" in three minutes, genuinely whetted my appetite. People wrote to me about their own answers, what worked and what bombed, and it made me want to write about something else I see constantly in mock interviews. So here it is. I ask some version of this in almost every MBA mock interview I run. "What kinds of people frustrate you?" "Tell me about a boss you disagreed with." "D”
“Haha only because my dad was an engineer did I approach the convo as I did. Bunch of too smart for their own good, poorly dressed task masters. You still need some corporate workers to grow the business imo”
“More than 2 interviews for ANY role outside of maybe CEO, President, other high level corporate gigs is absurd. Anything over 1 interview for a 40k a year job is ludicrous. That person needs a reality kick in the teeth.”
“Wow, that's the type of shit you have to go through for a fortune 500, not bob's auto emporium.”
“I later asked the manager why but I prefer to keep to myself. But the point is AT LEAST cancel it a day or hours before this, wtf man. I came all the way there for nothing. submitted by /u/Turbulent_Line6858 [link] [comments]”
“Biggest pet peeve with employers at the moment is them getting annoyed when you call them and ask about a position. I get it could be irritating but not everyone has AC in their vehicle and gas to drive 30-40 minutes to a town over. I look and search online and not everyone has an online presence. But it’s just so irritating seeing “please do not call about the position.” So I can show up in person and get looked at crazy for showing up in person ? Idk just something that bothers me. Running out”
“Life happens. They'll get over it. You only owe yourself, not them. Stop thinking about it. Go do great at the permanent job you really want.”
“Just this week the same recruiter has called my PERSONAL phone THREE days in a row at 8:45 AM. She even had the audacity to leave the same voicemail each time. Then another dude DMed me an AI slop pitch saying he was doing “targeted” outreach because he was impressed with my journey from “law clerk to associate” at my firm. I will need to use a recruiter at some point because I’m nearing the mid-level cliff, but I also really want to go nuclear on one of these gremlins. submitted by”
“Recruiters, why are some of you so bloody useless. You barely know anything about the job I’m applying for, ask me questions I’ve already answered on my CV, then pass me over to the hiring manager. Hiring manager goes, “We’ll be in touch soon.” Then everyone disappears off the face of the earth. And when you chase them they still don’t reply. Mate, you’re not laying bricks on a building site. Your whole job is literally dealing with candidates and keeping people updated. Drop me a two-line email”
“I just got off a phone interview with them, and my god, the person on the other line was so uptight and downright rude, is this seriously how they interview people? They expected me to somehow recite why I left a job I put on my resume over 4 years ago, when I told them I didn't remember they seemed somehow upset with my answer. Then they wanted to know why I couldn't exactly recall what time periods I had been at and left all the jobs I put on my resume over the past 5 years. Like I und”
“You're blaming the interviewers instead of the Recruiting people that fucked up the JD. You're also using the term 'push' and 'pull' synonymously and they're not the same thing. I get that it was probably Recruiting's fault for copy/pasting the JD when that team actually needed something more Arch/Dev-related, but you can't really blame the people doing the interview for needing to determine whether or not you knew the necessary aspects of what the actual role”
“Had a screening call with a recruiter for a vet meds company last week who came in hot - she was super aggressive and just mean. It was totally bizarre - I’ve literally never encountered this “recruiting” approach in my life! If it’s an indicator of the culture I’d want no part in it. Do I pull out now? I’m employed so not desperate. The company should really get feedback on the lunacy but luckily this is not my circus or my monkey. What to put in my “thank you” note…good lord. submitted b”
“Yea, don’t rush because it pays more. I did that and was fired 6 months later knowing that there were many red flags. My recruiter straight up told me she was mad at me and even got loud. 😂😂 Like excuse me, are you my mother?? Then when I got the job she was like a proud aunt. I think that’s your sign to just wait, you might find a job paying even better later on.”
“I always give notice if I can as well but it's annoying that many employers have an expectation of notice even when they're not willing to do the same.”
“Hi all - funny story just happened to my friend and I immediately thought of this sub. He got laid off and an external recruiter called him and pitched him a job requiring 1-3 years of experience (he had 5). He got the job and during the background check he actually got another offer that was better suited to his skills. He literally got the offer on the first day of the new job the recruiter got him. He immediately put in his 2 weeks notice on his current job on the first day. They actually pai”
“Being late to something and not apologizing is rude in almost any circumstance. That is a fact. Recruiting is a low skill job. That is a fact. I would actually love to conduct a study on the IQ and college GPAs of those who end up in HR type positions, because I’d likely be able to present you with another fact.”
“I think some of the time they do actually think you're qualified and would be a good fit but want to make you feel like they are doing you a favor when hiring you and put you in a weaker position.”
“What is the recruiter supposed to do? They do advocate for change. They advocate for change by choosing what clients to work with. At the end of the day though, hiring managers are also human and you can’t expect them to be perfect either. Tell you what man. I would love if everything went my way as a recruiter, that’s just now how the world works. As to why recruiting exists: for internal TA, how else are they supposed to find or screen talent? For agency recruitment, it often serves as an outl”
“My mother really wanted me to get a job at her place of employment. She was just trying to be helpful. I had the interview set up, but the hiring manager was completely rude to me from the get go. Unfortunately, due to illness I was unable to make it to the interview. I apologized to the manager and my mother tried to. When my mother attempted to, the hiring manager made disparaging remarks about my employment history and lack of professionalism. I don’t really mind if she were to say these thin”