I reached out to a recruiter from a staffing agency who is apparently looking to fill a contract position.

13 Comments

1. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 6:37PM UTC

   Depends on the agency.In my experience, the recruiter seems to want a warm body she can add for her quota. Many roles advertised TODAY (current day - and new) were filled "5 minutes ago"- mind you these are opportunities that require interviews that necessitate more than a few days to arrange, etc. (Fake jobs)If your schedule is flexible, you can fit her in. Otherwise, it might be a red flag for the agency

   They can send a job description, but that is meaningless. Copy/paste or canned. (How many ways can you describe 'accountant' or 'Executive Assistant'???)

   I'd tell them I want senior accountant and they say "the role JUST closed moments ago". Then they offer me graveyard shift at warehouse.

   They are filling what they have and will do anything to get you in the door. They are salespeople

2. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 6:51PM UTC

   To be honest, you're the one looking and if you believe that after work hours they have availability they may not always have that provided. Not a red flag, it just requires some time adjustment.

3. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 7:36PM UTC

   Please stay away from temp agencies.
   Most will ask for your current or recent employer and previous employers to be used as references to selling their staffing services to companies. In my experience working with a temp agency as a temp, the assigned job assignment doesn’t lead to permanent full-time employment with a company. The job assignments can be a mismatch in what you are looking for. Be wary of working with temp agencies. Stay away from temp agencies and be careful of them.

4. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 7:41PM UTC

   Thank you for the advice. I remember in the past when I was searching for jobs, the temp agency called me all the way into downtown and never offered me anything in the end. Mind you I had to commute almost 1 hr 30 mins as well. I was just told to fill out many papers and crickets in the end.

5. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 8:43PM UTC

   As someone who has worked at (as an admin NOT a recruiter) and for staffing agencies, I wholeheartedly understand people's perspectives.

   Oftentimes when companies call in for a candidate, they will call several agencies which of course, leads to competition and a push to get the right candidate ASAP. That will ALWAYS be their priority. Even if you do develop a good rapport with one, the recruiters often leave due to the high stress and demand of the job as it is about money, bonuses, etc, and not the candidate. It is so cutthroat. . For example, I recently stopped being available for the last one despite working for them for many years for several reasons related to lack of communication, etc.

   The pressure is so high that I feel that they often don't see things from the candidate's perspective. I have experienced lost paperwork which made me ineligible for hire, showing up for a drug test and my name was not included in the group, etc. The mismanagement was too much for me. At the time, I needed that money yet their money was received already from the hires. Once again, I learned to put their interests above mine. Not anymore, in any situation in my life but that is something else altogether.

   My motto now is to use them as they you - an in-between, reference, etc unless it is an actual 6 figure recruiting firm.

6. Dave ObertingJune 1,2023 at 8:57PM UTC

   Keep in mind, there is no licensing exam to become a recruiter or staffing agency professional. One can become a search consultant simply by declaring themselves to be one. That means you get a good representation of America in the staffing business -- 25% are really good and really know what they're doing; 25% are really bad and will fail out of the business soon, and 50% are in the murky middle.

   Just fyi...I generally give a candidate two options for the timing of an interview. If they can't make one of them work, it says the opening isn't enough of a priority for the candidate to adjust their schedule. It may cause me to move on.

   If you're really interested in the position, call the recruiter back, tell them you're interested and that you will work around their schedule to get an interview completed. It also sounds like it would be easy to let this one go.

   Regards,

   Dave Oberting

   Capstone Partners

   Long-time executive search consultant

7. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 9:29PM UTC

   Thank you for the input. She never called me and I gave her times she can call me. I did give her the whole week’s schedule I am available for a call. None of them were good for her. She then didn’t give me any times that work best for her. Most people send me an invite once I send them my dates and times to talk. I told her she is welcome to call me after hours as well, crickets right now from her. Besides that, she just asked me 3 questions on where I live, what experience I have with the 2 softwares she mentioned, and times I am available for a call. I think maybe she doesn’t know how to set up a basic call around normal business hours.

8. AnonymousJune 2,2023 at 12:27AM UTC

   Based on the last sentence ".... she doesn't know....."- unfortunately, I think the recruiter DOES know. Either ghosting you or SHE read between your lines.If you want to work with her for this or other potential jobs, is email her (or LinkedIn message)- don't call - and say an opening came up at the last minute on such day and you want to discuss your career path. (she'll probably start with no more than 30m; probably 15m phone call and send you a bunch of online forms, links, PDFs; ball is transferred back to your court). If you are serious, fill them out within 24h and then let it go. It will be in their system so if she quits- someone else can help in the future.Don't hold your breath. She'll either call or she won't. You can reach out to them as well - depending how urgent the situation is

9. AnonymousJune 1,2023 at 10:29PM UTC

   The recruiter knows how to ask questions but not how to read or interpret the answers. From your last two sentences, I think you already know the answer.

10. AnonymousJune 2,2023 at 5:27PM UTC

    you are the buyer, let her know that the times you offered are the only ones available for the week and that if it's easier then she should offer up her schedule open slots for the next week. Let her know that you would like to see the job description and if she needs to redact the company name until you speak that is fine. If you don't get clear responses let her know she can reach you at 530PM any day after work hours. If she complains let her know you work in an open office with zero privacy and cannot at the moment due to work deadlines take any time away. Don't blame one persons behavior on the whole agency I am sure she might be as busy as you, but you hold the cards here as you did not apply to her posting, she reached you.

11. AnonymousJune 2,2023 at 7:14PM UTC

    FWIW, when I was searching for a new job ~18 months ago, the standard way to arrange an interview/phone screen was for the recruiter to send me a Calendly link and tell me to pick an opening that worked for me.

    The red flag with your situation is that it sounds like she completely ignored your input and offered something that you’d said wouldn’t work for you. It’s not necessarily a red flag for the position itself, but it is one for working with the agency—she’s not respecting your boundaries and sounds overly pushy.

12. Dianne SouthwickJune 3,2023 at 3:21PM UTC

    IMO I would move on. I have applied at various temporary/contract agencies, have had interviews that lead nowhere both with the agency and company. I only had one agency come through for me and support me when the company ended the contract. That was Manpower in Oil City, PA and Manager Mindy Fink. It's frustrating looking for a job and having someone reach out to you and then ignore what you said.

13. AnonymousJune 7,2023 at 7:26PM UTC

    To the original poster (OP) and anyone else working with a temp or staffing agency, being placed at a job with the agency, or job seekers considering working with an agency, A Life After Layoff founder and recruiter Bryan Creeley released a new video on
    “The Recruiter’s Job Isn’t To Help Find You [job seeker]. It’s The Other Way Around”:

    https://youtu.be/oBNjNqWnaAQ.

    Please sincerely check it out. Mr. Creeley truthfully tells you how temp agencies and staffing firms work. Note: These agencies are not there to help you and don't care about you, the job seeker. They are there to benefit the client company since that company pays them solely for achieving and executing their staffing hiring goals and foots the bill. The agencies, in turn, are looking for people (warm bodies) to fulfill a company’s staffing needs before moving on to the next opportunity with another company. A non-profit organization I previously temped for officially admitted this truth bomb in a Google review regarding the temp agencies. The temp agencies are making money off of you, the job seeker, for assignment job placements (temporary, temp-to-hire, or permanent) to fulfill a client company’s needs and obligations. They neither care about you, the job seeker, nor your career endeavors. This video is worth checking out and is essential as some FBG users do encounter temp agencies with similar situations like the one seen here. Please do not rely on a temp agency or return to a temp agency to get a job. They are not there to help you, the job seeker, and are using you. It’s simple as that and is the truth, and this video is from an actual recruiter who truthfully explains that. Please share it with friends, family members, neighbors, strangers, or anyone who needs to hear this truth. Thank you, and I truly and honestly believe it will help you. Don't just take my word for it. See it and believe it for yourself. Knowledge is power. Again, thank you.