But when you’re hit with a ‘Thank you for your interest’ after the very first question, how would that make you feel as an applicant? Especially when the question doesn’t have anything to do with your qualifications.This womanwas overqualified for her prospective job, but the automated application system rejected her after the very first question. Confused about whether that’s the standard in today’sjob market, she shared her story with others.
Job hunting can be an arduous and exhausting process
Image credits:KATRIN BOLOVTSOVA / Pexels (not the actual photo)
This woman applied for a job where she exceeded the qualifications, but she got rejected for another absurd reason
Image credits:Polina Zimmerman / Pexels (not the actual photo)
Image credits:ColeyPickles
Image credits:Porapak Apichodilok / Pexels (not the actual photo)
People might have employment gaps more often than we think
Image credits:cottonbro studio / Pexels (not the actual photo)
Gaps in one’s career shouldn’t be grounds for discrimination
The good news is that the attitudes toward people with gaps in their resumes might be changing. The EEOC, which the author of this story quotes in her post, is working to end discrimination toward those who might have breaks in their careers. That includes mothers, older workers, people withmental illness, and previously incarcerated people.
Essentially, it’s up to employers and recruiters to end this stigma. Experts advise companies to revise their hiring practices and be willing to hire people with employment gaps. Management consulting firmStella Popwrites that long lists of desired skills might put perfectly qualified candidates off, so companies shouldn’t be afraid to drop them. “Even the best of the best could find the hoops to jump through not worth their while,” they claim.
The same goes for demands for 5-10 years of experience. The consulting firm points out that this can put off people who don’t have a formal education or the requiredexperiencebut could excel at the job nonetheless. This rule applies to hiring people with a criminal record. “Evaluate potential new hires based on their skills, experience, and willingness to do the work, not their past,” they write.
Experts during the EEOC and the OFCCP virtual roundtable also said that companies should make such policies known through their marketing. This includes posting photos of older workers on their website andsocial mediaor asking a person with a mental illness to start a blog documenting their experiences of working at the organization.
Many people sympathized with her experience and called out the absurd state of the current job market
Thanks! Check out the results:Indrė Lukošiūtė
Gabija Saveiskyte
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