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More work BS!!

Unemployed Not Considered

Still waiting for a response to the 300 resumés you sent out last month? Bad news: Some companies are ignoring all unemployed applicants.

In a current job posting on The People Place, a job recruiting website for the telecommunications, aerospace/defense and engineering industries, an anonymous electronics company in Angleton, Texas, advertises for a "Quality Engineer." Qualifications for the job are the usual: computer skills, oral and written communication skills, light to moderate lifting. But red print at the bottom of the ad says, "Client will not consider/review anyone NOT currently employed regardless of the reason."

In a nearly identical job posting for the same position on the Benchmark Electronics website, the red print is missing. But a human resources representative for the company confirmed to HuffPost that the The People Place ad accurately reflects the company's recruitment policies.

"It's our preference that they currently be employed," he said. "We typically go after people that are happy where they are and then tell them about the opportunities here. We do get a lot of applications blindly from people who are currently unemployed -- with the economy being what it is, we've had a lot of people contact us that don't have the skill sets we want, so we try to minimize the amount of time we spent on that and try to rifle-shoot the folks we're interested in."

There are about 5.5 people looking for work for every job available, according to the latest data from the Labor Department.

Sony Ericsson, a global phone manufacturer that recently announced that it would be bringing 180 new jobs to the Buckhead, Ga. area, also recently posted an ad for a marketing position on The People Place. The add specified: "NO UNEMPLOYED CANDIDATES WILL BE CONSIDERED AT ALL." When asked about the ad, a spokeswoman said, "This was a mistake, and once it was noticed it was removed."

Ads asking the unemployed not to apply are easy to find. A Craigslist ad for assistant restaurant managers in Edgewater, N.J. specifies, "Must be currently employed." Another job posting for a tax manager at an unnamed "top 25 CPA firm" in New York City contains the same line in all caps.

A company's choice to ignore unemployed applicants and recycle the current workforce ignores the effect of the recession on millions of highly-qualified workers and could prolong the unemployment crisis, said Judy Conti, federal advocacy coordinator for the National Employment Law Project.

"In the current economy, where millions of people have lost their jobs through absolutely no fault of their own, I find it beyond unconscionable that any employer would not consider unemployed workers for current job openings," she said. "Not only are these employers short-sighted in their search for the best qualified workers, but they are clearly not good corporate citizens of the communities in which they work. Increasingly, politicians and policy makers are trying to blame the unemployed for their condition, and to see this shameful propaganda trickle down to hiring decisions is truly sad and despicable."

There is no law prohibiting discrimination against the unemployed, though advocates said the practice could be illegal if it had a "disparate impact" on minority groups.

Congressman John Dingell (D-Mich.), whose home state of Michigan has a 14 percent unemployment rate, was particularly disappointed to hear about the ads.

"While I appreciate that many employers are facing unprecedented competition for job openings, to close the door on such a large population of potential employees is shortsighted," he said. "Being unemployed is not a choice many workers choose to make. I would hope that companies that are discriminating against the unemployed will take into consideration that this choice is only further contributing to long-term unemployment in our country."

That's sickening.

How totally messed up. And horrifying.

I almost had to pick my jaw from the floor. This just don't make any sense.

Holy fuck.

Why do they want to recruit people who are happy where they already are employed? Then, how upset would they be if someone took one of their 'happy' employees and recruited them away? What a viscious cycle they have started and how much more incestuous could it be!

That is beyond messed up. They are easily overlooking well qualified and experienced employees. And recent graduates like me are just completely SOL. Hope this doesn't really start a huge trend.

Doesn't it just make more economical sense to hire someone who is unemployed? Don't people want the unemployment rate to go down? This is suck backward thinking.

I guess they assume that the company they steal the already-working employee from will be the one to hired one of those "shirking" unemployed people.

This whole concept sucks.

(06-11-2010 09:33 AM)NKBurlington Wrote: [ -> ]Doesn't it just make more economical sense to hire someone who is unemployed? Don't people want the unemployment rate to go down? This is suck backward thinking.

I don't think companies and people who are employed care about the local unemployment rate. In fact, companies probably prefer a high unemployment rate because there are more available people to choose from and can use that as clout to threaten any disgruntled employees.

But I don't understand the theory behind taking people from other companies rather than people who are available immediately. Wouldn't they want and expect company loyalty from their employees? Hiring employed people who are willing to jump from one company to another shows a lack of loyalty to the company.

In my industry, I usually have to sign a non-compete / confidentiality contract stating that I will not go work for a competitor / client for at least one year following termination of employment.

No one could steal me if they wanted to unless it wasn't a current client (or a client they are actively pursuing) or a competitor.

Those fucking motherfuckers! I hope they all lose their jobs!

I often heard and still hear people say it is easier to get a job when you're working than when you're unemployed. This statement never made any sense to me and seemed like backwards thinking, but I guess in some cases this is true. If you're working and looking for a job, you will need to take time off work to go looking and to go for interviews, which might be a problem. The other problem is when you talk to prospective employers, the first question they're going to ask is "Why are you looking to change jobs?" If you hate your current employer, it's hard to bluff your way and give an acceptable answer. If you're unemployed, you have a very valid reason for wanting the job. The first question I would have for an employer that's recruiting employed people is why, and are they expecting company loyalty from workers who left their previous employers?

(06-13-2010 03:45 AM)CF Scorpio Wrote: [ -> ]Those fucking motherfuckers! I hope they all lose their jobs!

LOL! I hear ya sistah!

The reason why employers prefer employed people is because there is the perceived value that the person has. The person employed "obviously" is more valuable than the unemployed person because they have a job and the unemployed one doesn't.

It's kind of like how if a man wears a wedding ring and goes to a bar by himself, women will be more interested in him since he's more desirable.

I'm not saying I agree with this mindset but it is how many people think.

It's completely ---pardon the term--retarded. It will not help our economy and I don't know why these morons think that someone who is happily employed will come and work for them.

Personally, I think if anyone sees companies advertising this, the company should be boycotted and publicly shamed.

Jen M.

I think it's a form of discrimination and ought to be illegal. It's like "No Irish need apply."