Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Work and Employment > Job Search
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 08-31-2009, 09:30 AM
 
9,196 posts, read 24,859,000 times
Reputation: 8585

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by Speedaddicted View Post
Um, thats like any oxymoron. Shouldnt they be? I mean thats like having someone who is not a doctor perform surgery. You should be highly trained in this area if it your job especially when its such a touchy situation with what you can and cant legally ask.
If it's an HR person, sure. But in the businesses I've worked for (large businesses), the vast majority of the interviews are conducted by the hiring manager and others within the organization with whom the candidate would be working, not someone from HR.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 08-31-2009, 03:20 PM
 
935 posts, read 2,405,591 times
Reputation: 470
Quote:
Originally Posted by CHTransplant View Post
If it's an HR person, sure. But in the businesses I've worked for (large businesses), the vast majority of the interviews are conducted by the hiring manager and others within the organization with whom the candidate would be working, not someone from HR.
True, but I have also met one HR manager who freaked out when I arrived at work a few hours early to ask her some questions before deciding whether or not to take the job. I don't mean "Why are you here?" I mean "OH MY GOODNESS! WHY ARE YOU HERE?! YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE FOR A FEW HOURS?! THIS IS NOT OKAY! WHY ARE YOU HERE?!" I took three attempts to calm her down and explain to her that I wanted to ask her a few questions. She then became a bit arrogant and started telling me something different than the kinder HR personnel that interviewed me before had told me. Instead of being a corporate trainer, she said I was just a trainer. Instead of saying I would make X amount, she said I would make about $3,000 less than was originally promised. That made me suspicious that one person would tell me one thing and another person would say something different. It's legal, but a bit suspicious to me at the time. Then, when my dad came to pick me up she started smarting off to him before he used his drill sargent voice to ask her where his daughter was. I eventually found him and she still acted a bit arrogant, but more respectful toward him.

I decided, if an HR Manager is like this before being hired, what would she be like once I started working there. Plus, we worked out the cost of gas vs distance vs pay and discovered we would actually be losing money since it was an hour away and located literally at the top of a mountain (no joke). I never met anyone who freaked out like that over someone coming in early. Heck, the president of the company let me into the building and he was as jolly as could be. However, that manager would have been my main boss, so I declined the offer and decided I'd rather be working freelance, making very little, and be happier than dealing with that kind of insanity. Besides, I probably made some other person happy who needed to feed their family and could deal with such behavior.

I mean, I didn't think coming in early was a problem, especially one that would earn such hostility. It sort of me. I thought HR Managers were supposed to be calm, friendly, and represent the image of the company. If it were the calmer HR person that had interviewed me earlier I would have gladly worked there, but she told me that the HR Manager would be my boss. Yeah, so I think sometimes HR personnel know more about what HR does than the managers themselves.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-31-2009, 03:35 PM
YAZ
 
Location: Phoenix,AZ
7,697 posts, read 14,015,617 times
Reputation: 7035
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1984vt View Post
Today I had my second interview in one month where I was asked point blank.

Are you married? Do you have children? How old are your children?

I want the jobs so I answer honestly. If you give that bull-crap statement of "that is an illegal question" or "I don't see how that would affect my job performance" as suggested - guess what, you aren't going to get the job.

I feel I need to start lying about it. I really feel that I missed out on today and the last job because I was honest about having children even though I assured them they were in school and had proper afterschool care.

This happening to anyone else? Should I start lying?
This happened to me this morning.

He asked if I was married and how old I was.

We talked about "general duties" of the job, and he mentions something like.....

"If you don't work out, we'll have to let you go......"

Hmmmm.

I haven't even started yet and you're already talkin' about firing me.

No thanks.

Have a nice day.

Good luck.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-31-2009, 04:22 PM
 
935 posts, read 2,405,591 times
Reputation: 470
Quote:
Originally Posted by YAZ View Post
This happened to me this morning.

He asked if I was married and how old I was.

We talked about "general duties" of the job, and he mentions something like.....

"If you don't work out, we'll have to let you go......"

Hmmmm.

I haven't even started yet and you're already talkin' about firing me.

No thanks.

Have a nice day.

Good luck.
Wow, hmmm...maybe that person and the HR manager I mentioned previously went through the same training program, LOL! I remember when I walked in to ask her a few questions about the job, after she calmed down, she started critiquing my cell phone and my shoes to see whether or not they were up to code. I wasn't even working there yet. I wore proper shoes luckily, but she was upset that I had a cell phone with me.

The wiring thing is starting to sound like a better idea to me.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-31-2009, 08:45 PM
 
25,157 posts, read 53,812,823 times
Reputation: 7058
HR managers and HR assistants are usually inadequately trained and do not have the education requirement to be in those positions.

HR people also may utilize stress interviews to harass and stress you out to see if you are applicable for the job. They want to see if you can maintain your composure; however, this is a red flag in that the job may be high stress or problematic. Stress interviews are controversial with a lot of people because they can put a bad mark on the company. I don't know many applicants that want to be harassed during a job interview.

If the HR department is dysfunctional, then you can bet the entire management system is dysfunctional or problematic.

Quote:
Originally Posted by kattwoman2 View Post
True, but I have also met one HR manager who freaked out when I arrived at work a few hours early to ask her some questions before deciding whether or not to take the job. I don't mean "Why are you here?" I mean "OH MY GOODNESS! WHY ARE YOU HERE?! YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE FOR A FEW HOURS?! THIS IS NOT OKAY! WHY ARE YOU HERE?!" I took three attempts to calm her down and explain to her that I wanted to ask her a few questions. She then became a bit arrogant and started telling me something different than the kinder HR personnel that interviewed me before had told me. Instead of being a corporate trainer, she said I was just a trainer. Instead of saying I would make X amount, she said I would make about $3,000 less than was originally promised. That made me suspicious that one person would tell me one thing and another person would say something different. It's legal, but a bit suspicious to me at the time. Then, when my dad came to pick me up she started smarting off to him before he used his drill sargent voice to ask her where his daughter was. I eventually found him and she still acted a bit arrogant, but more respectful toward him.

I decided, if an HR Manager is like this before being hired, what would she be like once I started working there. Plus, we worked out the cost of gas vs distance vs pay and discovered we would actually be losing money since it was an hour away and located literally at the top of a mountain (no joke). I never met anyone who freaked out like that over someone coming in early. Heck, the president of the company let me into the building and he was as jolly as could be. However, that manager would have been my main boss, so I declined the offer and decided I'd rather be working freelance, making very little, and be happier than dealing with that kind of insanity. Besides, I probably made some other person happy who needed to feed their family and could deal with such behavior.

I mean, I didn't think coming in early was a problem, especially one that would earn such hostility. It sort of me. I thought HR Managers were supposed to be calm, friendly, and represent the image of the company. If it were the calmer HR person that had interviewed me earlier I would have gladly worked there, but she told me that the HR Manager would be my boss. Yeah, so I think sometimes HR personnel know more about what HR does than the managers themselves.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-01-2009, 09:23 AM
 
Location: Henderson, NV
8,886 posts, read 20,262,668 times
Reputation: 5619
Legal or not, WECOME to the new interviewing questions done by companies! They don't care what's legal to ask or what's not, because they KNOW that you aren't going to run to a lawyer after the interview!
If I was having someone ask me these questions, these are the answers I'd give (or wish that I could):
How old are you?
Older than you!
Are you married?
Yep and glad of it!
Have children?
Yes.....ME (at least that is what my wife says about me sometimes)
Why do you want to work here?
Because I need a job!
Then I'd say, "Are we done with these kinds of questions now??"
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-01-2009, 09:28 AM
 
Location: Birmingham
754 posts, read 1,916,751 times
Reputation: 935
Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveBoating View Post
Legal or not, WECOME to the new interviewing questions done by companies! They don't care what's legal to ask or what's not, because they KNOW that you aren't going to run to a lawyer after the interview!
If I was having someone ask me these questions, these are the answers I'd give (or wish that I could):
How old are you?
Older than you!
Are you married?
Yep and glad of it!
Have children?
Yes.....ME (at least that is what my wife says about me sometimes)
Why do you want to work here?
Because I need a job!
Then I'd say, "Are we done with these kinds of questions now??"

You are absolutely right. I will not report them because, they may have another job with a different department come up. And yes, I do want to work for that particular company (it is one on my list of companies I would like to work for - I do apply outside of the list but prefer certain companies - I may reconsider them after this assinine interview)

Your thought is exactly what led to my thought of lying - The problem is, I am not good at lying - it isn't in my nature and you can smell a lie on me across the room.

So I know it isn't really an option for me and I will just continue and hope someone will take my word for it when I say, "I have appropriate arrangements in place for my children".
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-01-2009, 02:02 PM
 
25,157 posts, read 53,812,823 times
Reputation: 7058
So you are willing to work for criminals? Alright I see.


Quote:
Originally Posted by 1984vt View Post
You are absolutely right. I will not report them because, they may have another job with a different department come up. And yes, I do want to work for that particular company (it is one on my list of companies I would like to work for - I do apply outside of the list but prefer certain companies - I may reconsider them after this assinine interview)

Your thought is exactly what led to my thought of lying - The problem is, I am not good at lying - it isn't in my nature and you can smell a lie on me across the room.

So I know it isn't really an option for me and I will just continue and hope someone will take my word for it when I say, "I have appropriate arrangements in place for my children".
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-01-2009, 02:03 PM
 
25,157 posts, read 53,812,823 times
Reputation: 7058
Do you really think that will work when you are being interviewed by a pack of psychos LOL?

Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveBoating View Post
Legal or not, WECOME to the new interviewing questions done by companies! They don't care what's legal to ask or what's not, because they KNOW that you aren't going to run to a lawyer after the interview!
If I was having someone ask me these questions, these are the answers I'd give (or wish that I could):
How old are you?
Older than you!
Are you married?
Yep and glad of it!
Have children?
Yes.....ME (at least that is what my wife says about me sometimes)
Why do you want to work here?
Because I need a job!
Then I'd say, "Are we done with these kinds of questions now??"
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-01-2009, 04:04 PM
 
Location: My Private Island
4,941 posts, read 8,304,719 times
Reputation: 12283
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1984vt View Post
You are absolutely right. I will not report them because, they may have another job with a different department come up. And yes, I do want to work for that particular company (it is one on my list of companies I would like to work for - I do apply outside of the list but prefer certain companies - I may reconsider them after this assinine interview)

Your thought is exactly what led to my thought of lying - The problem is, I am not good at lying - it isn't in my nature and you can smell a lie on me across the room.

So I know it isn't really an option for me and I will just continue and hope someone will take my word for it when I say, "I have appropriate arrangements in place for my children".

Perhaps you can just tweak this response and say:

I have reliable childcare in place and my past employers can attest to my attendance/performance regarding this issue.

This way potential employers can have a sense of confidence this will not be a problem. Good luck!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Work and Employment > Job Search

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top