According to Fairygodboss Members, These Are the 5 Things Employers Do That Discourage Job Seekers

The job hunt is exhausting and often discouraging. Sometimes, job seekers face the same issues with employers again and again. What do employers do to frustrate candidates? According to our community, these five things top the list.

1. Lack of communication.

Ghosting, zero response, lengthy periods between emails…these are all communication issues we’ve faced as job seekers. A lack of communication is enough to turn any professional off, especially when it comes to the already nerve-wracking hiring process.

One FGBer commented on how frustrating is to “submit an application with zero response, meaning not even an automated confirmation to say the application was received.” 

“Ghosting applicants” is another big problem, according to Barb Hansen. “It’s not rocket science to have pre-written or even automated emails (technology is magic ;) that let an applicant know what's going on.”

2. Wasting applicants’ time.

Other FGBers noted how disrespectful it is to waste job seekers’ time.

One community member noted how annoying it is when employers “leave positions posted even when they are no longer hiring — wasting an applicant’s time!”

“Making the application process for the position take up to two hours, and having to re-enter the same information multiple times (which is on the resume they insist you upload to begin the process), and the requirements of all your personal information,” Amanda Burt added. “Only to have a bot response two days later stating the position is no longer open or has been filled. Or worse, no response.”

“Interviewing six or eight people for one position — wasting so much time for people,” another FGBer commented. “Not sharing the benefits package at the first offer — having to dig into the benefits to see if can afford health insurance.  Super long hiring processes are painful too.”

3. Unnecessary disqualifying factors.

“Require higher education, regardless of the salary range, and not allowing someone with many years of relevant experience but not a degree to even apply for a position” was another source of job search stress.

On a similar note: “Requiring advanced degrees and experience but paying like an entry-level job.”

Julie Humbird agreed that it’s unnecessary to “require years of experience for entry-level work.”

4. Not listing pay ranges.

While some states and areas require employers to list pay ranges in job postings, there are many that still don’t have laws along these lines. And even those that are required to post salary ranges sometimes use ranges that are so wide that the candidate has no real sense of the pay they can expect.

This is certainly discouraging to job seekers. One FGBer stressed their frustration with “not listing pay or having huge pay ranges. I had all internal applicants for a recent position and several were already making more than my budget (midpoint for the listed range). I reached out to all of them to discuss, and all but one withdrew their applications.”

5. Lack of respect.

And finally, many community members pointed to a general lack of respect during the job-search process. 

“I worked for a large tech company that made interviewees cry on interviews,” wrote Zeecil Kimmel. “They asked difficult technical questions in a completely disrespectful manner and showed obvious favor to candidates with certain demographics. After sitting on one of the interview panels as the diversity interviewer I contacted HR on behalf of the candidate.”

This article reflects the views of the author and not necessarily those of Fairygodboss.

Are your biggest job search frustrations on this list? What are some things employers do that discourage you during the job hunt? Share your answer in the comments to help other Fairygodboss members!