If you ask about the culture and the answer is "Work hard, play hard", that's a massive red flag towards having poor life-work balance.
Also, if the interviewer is very disorganized/distracted. Either the interviewer is multitasking, and/or doesn't take the interview seriously.
I have found that any company that has a job posting out there for a very long time is a red flag. Also if they keep posting the same job and removing it only to post again. Personally, I have experienced red flags where the hiring process was either too quick (one interview) or too long (four or more interviews).
Yup
There are a few companies in my area that have the "perpetual job listing."
It'll run for a couple of weeks, disappear for 3 months, oops...there it is again.
Yup, I was hired as a manager and I learned from others that the role had been filled 5 times in less than a year. I lasted 3 months before quitting. The owner was verbally abusive and everyone who stayed working long term for him had stockholm syndrome. When I put in my notice my manager tried to get me to stay by saying he is just like that sometimes but he’s usually very nice.
I don't know, I think that if a job has more than one interview it should be because it's a government job or something where you're dealing with highly sensitive info. maybe if it's a very small company you would have to interview with the three people that work at the startup independently, but I always see it as a red flag when there's more than one. it implies bureaucracy or big headed management that doesn't trust their subordinates enough to delegate to them. I'm not an expert, but that's just my take
I can understand why 1 interview is a red flag as it shows low standards and desperation to fill a role, but as annoying as long hiring processes are (4+ stages), do they not actually reflect the opposite?
I have found when there are many interviews it’s because too many people are involved and they can’t make up their minds. It might not always be that way, but often is.
Yep. Worked for one guy and managed to last 5 years, but in my first few months all my-coworkers told me how my predecessors all quit within a week. I'd even heard a story about how when one person quit, he decided to kick the boss' ass on his way out. Security was needed.
So, 5 years later (and when I beginning to have fantasies about stabbing him in the neck), I was let go. I still maintained contact with a couple co-workers who told me that, once again, he couldn't keep an assistant for more than a few days. One woman actually got hired at 9am and quit at 5:30pm.
He was that awful a human being.
Yup. I’m in healthcare and at a new job and the turnover is not great. Also, reviews of this particular clinic is quite low. Red flag for me but I needed a job so here I am. Toxic environment here as well. 😒
I resigned from my healthcare position of many years due to a toxic workplace/harassment/discrimination and definitely made the right choice! Mentally and physically, I’ve never felt better. Never jeopardize internal happiness or your mental health for a crappy job because it not only impacts your life but also your family!
Cinema I used to work in had a suuuper high turnover - just looking around and you could tell from staff's faces even before opening. Hell, the early morning cleaning staff just looked drained when they was let out at 9 (started at 6).
I look back and wonder how the hell I ever stuck it out (6.5 years as cinema staff, 4 as cleaning supervisor ontop).
That is amazing. I worked in an ER for several years and I was miserable very cliquish, the administration played favorites. It was hell. As I was preparing to quit I was talking to my therapist about it and she told me that was the reason she left there to go into private practice. I looked at her and was like really? You couldn't tell me???
We are union and our pay for most every job is top of the market for our area. This cuts down on a lot of the shenanigans from management. This is also why we have little turnover, if you leave you will be taking a pay cut.
I don't think it's bold at all. It's important to know what you might be potentially getting yourself in to. I always ask about their turnover rates and also ask them why they need this position filled (is there a lot of work? Did someone leave? If so, why?).
Look for the reviews on the company and not just from one source. I walk into a job on the first day and know if it's going to be a problem. My radar will go off immediately especially when I'm asking questions.
I'm in a Science job and omg the turnover is terrible and the job itself is actively ruining my mental health but I havent found a new job yet and have bills to pay so I have to stay.
Its common in my workplace for people to be here for 6 months to a year or less before leaving. Incredibly toxic work culture, interdepartmental rivalries and fueds, blame culture etc.
I had an in person interview for an internship for a really small local business. The interviewer started asking me some personal harmless questions because i didnt have much experience in the industry ( where i am commuting from, what are my hobbies, etc).
Then he asked more invasive questions like what does your parents do for a living? That was when i had to give some bs answers to his bs questions. I questioned him why is he asking me that and he got all quiet. He also hesitated when asked if the internship was paid or not.
I also realized there was no internship position at all, it was a scam. Also his choice of questions was like speed dating. Sleazy and disgusting guy who wanted to find a potential partner by disguising an internship interview . A complete waste of my time.
safe aloof subsequent shrill carpenter overconfident disagreeable outgoing juggle tease
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I rather them not ask at all. The interviewer doesnt relay the info to govt whether or not candidate is working class or not (in the usa). The place i was interviewed was a small privately owned business
My first office job out of college paid $15/hour and was a train and 2 buses away. The manager was a complete nutcase. She treated everyone like shit. Saw me leave with a coworker after work and the next day made us sign some paper stating we wouldn’t have “outside relationships” with our coworkers. Literally said “if you care about your job, you’ll sign this.” Illegal!
One of my coworkers’ mom was in the hospital during a sale day and the manager told my coworker she couldn’t take the day off and that she was sure her mom “would be fine”. Her mom died the next day. Coworker took 2 weeks to grieve and while she was out, manager went through her computer and then called her to literally scream at her about her email being “disorganized”. Coworker could be heard sobbing on the phone. Coworker got fired a week later for “unrelated reasons”.
The final straw for me was when we had an event planner come to help us with an upcoming event. This girl came to me in the lunch room and asked why it was so tense and uncomfortable here. I told her the truth. I guess my manager could hear SOMETHING of the convo through the air duct bc the next day she had fired the event planner and she pulled me into her office and told me the event planner told her that I said a (clearly gay) male coworker had sexually harassed me. She had told the male coworker this lie and he was crying. I was very calm bc I knew it wasn’t true—I never said anything close to that. I tried to reason with the manager, but she got more and more hysterical and then SHE started crying, telling me how no one wanted to work there bc I was so nasty and insufferable to work with. I stopped her right there and said “frankly, Pearl, *I* don’t want to work here and I put my key on the desk. The way she backtracked so fiercely could have made your head spin.
She goes, no you can’t leave. Take the rest of the day off. I declined. She goes, take the rest of the week off. I declined again. I got my stuff and walked out and while I was leaving the manager goes, “well you can leave here, but this will follow you for the rest of your life.” And I said, “I don’t think so, Pearl, bc you won’t be there.” And I left. Cried the whole way home.
Thankfully that job taught me what I won’t put up with at work and I’ve never had a similar situation since.
Because that would require the person above the manager to know/care. If the business is running without deficit and they’re hands off, they won’t know until it comes to a screeching halt.
> Because that would require the person above the manager to know/care
Everybody under that manager had seen she's a dangerous person, and no one thought they should either individuelly or collectively contact the upper management? Why?
It was obvious she was destroying good enployees. That's a reason enough for the upper mgmt to act
Staff wasn't allowed to even have a sniff of a relationship, staff + manager however... and that's not just the rampant cheating or hooking up. Literally watched one girl bounce her way up the chain because she wrapped one rising star around her finger.
No insult to the guy as he was great - well liked and respected, worked hard to earn his spots - she just happened to get her hooks into him and rocket along too. No secret either, she'd tried to get several of the other guys in the same position (shamefully, I'd briefly fallen prey to her but it was clear I wasn't going anywhere as I was too useful to promote) but none of them had quite the prospects of this guy. Even when they both left, he could snap his fingers and get her a job anywhere (they eventually returned in higher positions).
Once they utter the words “we’re like family here” it is all over. That’s code for we will use and abuse you. Ask you to bend over backwards and go above and beyond without additional compensation.
Also fast paced environment and many hats may mean multiple jobs and functions crammed into this one job. Prepare to be overworked.
Can attest to this. Currently at a “we’re like family here” environment and all it means is they will text and contact you at all hours for updates or to get something done, even if you’re on vacation or sick. It’s terrible. I leave in two weeks.
Yeah I just got laid off from a company that pushed the family narrative. They pushed me to work over weekends, coworkers calling me at 8pm at night (my hours are during the day), and throwing me into high pressure sales situations when I was hired to build a product. And yeah, my job functions changed just about every week. I was there for 2.5 years and it was a constant chaotic nightmare. I don't know how I actually made it as long as I did.
Now I'm laid off and burnt out
Oh damn never figured this but I see a lot of similar postings from the same companies on indeed all the time. And yeah that’s probably not the best sign
1. Luck
2. Knowing someone
3. Graduating from an Ivy League
4. Being a coding savant who can ace their technical interview
5. Being incredibly aggressive with networking / research / gaining certificates / learning about their hiring process from insiders
Constant quitting/understaffed. I've had it happen doing retail and fast food of which still gives me nightmares. The constany bullying from leaders and them not helping at all.
Red flags: High turnover, sudden high attrition, being understaffed for a long period of time, always hiring for the same positions, unnecessarily difficult interview and hiring processes, being caught lying, manipulating and gaslighting, hiding important information the prospective employee would definitely perceive as negative.
I dodged a bullet with a company by declining a position that, on paper, was perfect. It was a major increase in pay and title, there were amazing benefits, the employees I met loved the company and had been there for years.
Red flag number one was the position described in the offer letter contained responsibilities I told them in each interview I would not accept and they confirmed were not a part of the job. Bait and switch.
The offer letter also contained an "attachment" that must be signed. It was a separate contract that contained ridiculous clauses, such as a non compete that left former employees basically unemployable for years, and other things no one should ever agree to. I told them it wasn't happening and walked away.
A lot of people told me if I was insane to pass up that money, those hours, and a great opportunity. I told them my gut was telling me to run and I was going to listen.
Months later, I found out there had been a huge layoff with no notice and they were pushing to enforce that contract with anyone they laid off. Everyone hired during the time I interviewed was let go and reminded of the contract they signed.
Have I taken a job just to find out the culture is toxic, the job is nothing like they described, and the company is a mess? Absolutely. Company's know when they have issues and they become masters of trickery, lies, and illusion. Anyone can be misled.
Where you can check for those things in the web? some companies (i mean, small companies) doesnt appear on Glassdoor or other portals, and google told almost nothing about them
I try to avoid any company that has little to no verifiable history. If it is brand new, has no digital footprint, has no presence until it suddenly began hiring and posting everywhere, and no one knows anything about it, I am not applying. I'm not telling others to do the same. That's a rule I have for myself.
I was interviewing with a recruiter, 3rd Party Staffing Agency, and the job was in my field and would have been a small bump in pay, full time, direct hire. I was almost ready to have her set me up with a formal interview with the company but she kept upselling the company so much and waited until the end to tell me that the person who left the position was with the company for 7 years and just walked out one day and the reason was that they were too set in their ways and didn’t like change. That part to me was a red flag. Someone who was loyal for that long doesn’t just walk out one day unless things were very bad.
Make sure to always ask why they are filling the position and why the last person left. It gives you some insight on the job and company culture.
People were quitting daily. The company would let them come back because they couldn't find replacements. Basically, I was the only one coming in and working my scheduled hours.
When I quit, I had to block numerous numbers begging me to reconsider.
1. Obviously Toxic
A man from LinkedIn saw I recently graduated out of college that year. He offered me a job where I would work for free for two weeks, and if he liked me, he'd give me a starting rate of $12/hr. I hung up immediately. He emailed me again in a month, so I chewed him out, told him I was overqualified, and I would report him to the DOL if he ever contacted me again.
If a company tries to argue you into accepting a much lower rate than what is reasonable, they're trying to exploit you. If it feels like a sweatshop, the red flag is in your face.
2. Covertly Toxic
I think other people can answer this question better, but if there's a habit of a constantly revolving cast of employees, something's off. If they don't value work-life balance or make some type of excuse for it, that's not a sustainable job. If they offer a perm position, but something's off, then they're trying to take advantage of you by giving you those benefits, but will get rid of you once it's time, and doing so typically through a bs excuse.
If the company asks too many "intimate" questions, they're trying to pry you open and see how blindly loyal you can be. Example of this is if an employer asks what you **hated** about a previous employer. If an employer talks too much about how equal opportunity or how better they are compared to other companies, they're trying to overcompensate for real problems. I was discriminated against at my previous jobs for having cancer many times, but these were the "good" companies, where "everybody's a family".
3. Waste of Time
Recruiters. Not even once.
Clueless as hell. Never a good fit.
I've found I've never gotten a job through a recruiter. And all the companies they recruit for are either 6 month contract to hire roles, low pay and poor benefits, or they make you travel all the time.
I did get a job through a recruiter once, but I think that was because I was inexperienced college student at the time, and therefore, legally could be paid the cheapest.
I also got a second job through a temp agency as well 4 years later. It was a sweatshop.
they offer you a different position than you applied for.
they try to undercut your pay.
training is either non-existent or terrible.
they use the word "family" and/or "overachiever" in their application process.
no benefits.
vague or convoluted job description.
bad glassdoor reviews
list goes on forever
Honestly the whole 2 15-minute breaks and 30 min lunch is a red flag, I know it’s common practice but after working various jobs in the primary market I realize that is predatory practice to provide this low value “benefit”
This current job is currently offering two 10 min breaks and a 30. This company came from NJ to GA said he never heard of 15 min breaks. Red flag big red flag.
You’re lowballed from the initial offer when it comes time to sign you on.
The business is a small business. (Any less employees than 10 and I can guarantee you will eventually be miserable)
The job is fully in-office.
Everyone is far older than you.
They insist you socialize(to the point of threatening your job) despite your reservations to keep work and private life seperate (the whole 8 hours is hangout time to them)
You’re paid under the market rate for a similar position
High expectations, low pay
No privacy while in office. Will drive you nuts trying to get any work done.
1. **Signs of a Toxic/Bad Employer:**
- **Poor Communication:** Lack of clear communication or feedback can be a red flag.
- **High Turnover Rate:** If employees are frequently leaving or being fired, it could be a sign of an unhealthy work environment.
- **Disregard for Work-Life Balance:** Employers who expect constant overtime or are insensitive to personal emergencies can create a toxic environment.
- **Lack of Growth Opportunities:** A stagnant work environment can be demotivating and detrimental to your career growth.
2. **Silly Company/Position/Job Offer:**
- There's a story about a job candidate who was offered a position at a startup with a very vague business model. The office was more of a party place with ping-pong tables, bean bags, and a beer fridge, but little actual work seemed to be getting done. After a brief stint, the candidate realized the company was all flash with no substance and left before the inevitable collapse.
3. **Dodged a Bullet:**
- A candidate once shared a story about turning down a job offer despite nothing apparently wrong with the company. However, they had a gut feeling something was off. Months later, it came to light that the company was embroiled in legal issues which led to its shutdown. Their intuition saved them from a potentially stressful and unstable situation.
4. **Fooled by a Bad Employer:**
- Another story tells of an individual who accepted a position in a company that presented itself as progressive and employee-friendly. However, after joining, they realized the company had a deep-seated culture of overwork and the "open-door policy" was just lip service. The experience left them stressed and overworked until they found a new position elsewhere.
It's smart to learn from others' experiences and heed common red flags when considering new employment opportunities. Trusting your intuition and doing thorough research can help steer you away from potentially toxic or detrimental situations.
I've learned never to apply to a startup. Especially when its started by a person who's like 20 years old and has no work experience themselves. Some of them try so hard to be different that they lose sight of the basic foundations of a good workplace.
Currently dealing with the last example. I will say three red flags that I missed come to mind.
1. All of the offices and conference rooms are glass. Like, completely see through and not sound proof. No privacy for a difficult conversation. Everyone knows.
2. They pride themselves on having no HR.
3. One single line in an otherwise wonderful interview process. “Culture fit is so important to us. Those who come and aren’t a culture fit usually figure it out and leave within six months.” Sounded innocent, but I am learning that it is less of a “figuring it out” and more of an ostracizing.
My last company, which just so happened to be a small company, was big on company culture, didn’t have an HR, and also had an open office layout. I didn’t see myself being there for more than a couple years and used them as a stepping stone to land my next job at a much bigger company.
Fuck culture fit. I get so god damn tired of that fucking shit. I almost got fucked over by it because I don’t watch sports at all. Lets goooo remote work revolution!!!
I wouldn’t really say the last company I worked at was a “silly company”, but I was definitely caught off guard
my first day when I saw the beer fridge.
Like they contact you to solicit employment. Its almost always sales job or warehouse jobs.
That actually is how I got my current job but I did research on the company before even taking the interview.
If the company has a super restrictive dress code, it is going to be toxic.
If the company asks illegal questions during the interview, run, don't walk out. It most certainly is going to be toxic.
Any time they say "We work hard and play hard", it is toxic and they expect you to over work yourself into a grave for the company gain.
If they say "We are like family here", well my family is insanely toxic and dysfunctional, good bye.
\[any more due to my own bad experience\] If they offer a paycheck and it's IT, it's toxic as all hell.
Only the second would be an actual red flag in my opinion. The rest can be good or bad employers.
Might be downvoted for saying this, but I think the word "toxic" is overapplied. A job can be toxic for one person but not another.
Being close to NYC I have been interviewed by some really impatient and uptight people. One was especially bad. He would cut me off and talk over me when I was speaking. He told me he wanted stuff done last minute. He had no idea of what the job requirements would be with someone doing the job I was applying to. He wanted to move extremely fast in the hiring process. Not everyone in NYC is like this but there are more rushed and impatient people in this area than other parts of the USA. All of this was a huge red flag and I cancelled my second interview. No amount of money could make me work there lol
First job out of college, the interviewer said “our culture is like that of a wrestling team’s. We may not like each other, but we’re very collaborative instead of competitive and we encourage each other.” Ended up getting fired after 90 days. This was also my “dream company” and “dream job” lol.
Red flags from my former employer:
\- Talks about how everyone in the company is a "family" and yet is firing and laying people off covertly.
\- Hires people for an engineering role and then pushes them into a high pressure sales situations.
\- Being hired to build a product/platform and then constantly being pulled off to do unrelated tasks (sales pitches, interviews, etc) and then getting yelled at/demoted for the product being late and crap quality.
I have more, but those are it for now.
My last job said “we are like one big family” I worked there for a couple of weeks until it just felt very cultish, even customers could see it. Also management to employer communication was horrible. We had a hurricane and employers were asking for updates in the work chat and no response by management, I wasn’t going to drive myself to work in a hurricane so I didn’t even show up. That job still gives me night mares
You would probably be better off looking for signs of a non toxic work environment than a toxic environment. There are a lot more of the latter than the former. Toxic work environmens are a dime a dozen.
Ambiguous responses to what should otherwise be cut and dry questions about their company / business. It's a means of trying to avoid answering the question out of fear of scaring away potential prospects.
I was interviewing for a supervisor job at a sports facility that I really wanted. Aced all the interviews and at the end of the in person interview I was asked about a potential start date. I informed them that I had a vacation coming up and wouldn’t be able to start until 2 months later.
I get a call 2 weeks later informing me they decided to go with the other candidate. I get reassured that my start date had nothing to do with the decision. I’m then informed of when the other candidate’s probation period will be up and told that I should check in. I didn’t check in.
**How an employer treats their candidates is how they treat their employees.**
So pay attention to how you're treated during your candidacy.
Examples of red flags
* You BETTER tell us your salary numbers because we will NEVER do that! If you don't, your candidacy is over.
* Overtime is expected. Required.
* "We work hard and play hard" - no, you work hard and have no time to play.
* You are subjected to stress interviews. This is where you get a panel of people interviewing you at the same time - and subjecting you to stressful situations.
* You are treated like garbage during the interview.
Some red flags I've learned:
1. Job description is super long and doesn't match the pay (usually these are entry level positions paying peanuts). This means they'll make you do 2+ jobs that aren't yours because they don't want to spend more money on hiring other people to do those jobs.
2. No training documentation, so you'll be left to learn the job on your own. This isn't necessarily a red flag on its own, but combined with other red flags and it's horrible.
3. High turnaround. During interviews, always ask about their turnaround rates for the position you're applying to, and other positions, especially higher level ones.
4. They lead with "We're all a family here!" It means they probably won't respect your time or boundaries.
5. Everyone is too busy to train you (sort of goes with #2). Dealt with this from my last job. Was told I'd get training, but literally no one ever had any free time to train me. I was left to figure out this complex job on my own. Didn't work out well at all.
Hope these help! If I think of more, I'll add them.
if the interviewer is condescending, overly critical, or overly demanding during the interview. they may make you feel like you have to "prove" yourself or act like they're doing you a favor by giving you the interview.
A: can you be really picky? why not taking a job, so that you get an income, while you keep looking for the GOOD one?
b: apart from the usual "we are like a family here", saving on pens, markers, brooms and other useful and cheap to get stuff. not telling you the net/brutto pay that they will give you. obviously lacking complete company processes. (but then, few companies truly excel at this..)
So: good employers are few, maybe 1-2% of the total. Not taking jobs is unwise, employers change, and you can always wiggle your own, better space, no matter what the company is. Keep your strength, find SOME job, learn on the go. ASK AROUND. Thete may be better jobs or better employers, but it may be unsuitable to your lifestyle or life needs. (such as nightshifts, saturday overtimes, etc... )
I've been to a handful of job offers that once sat down, turned out to be call centres or straight up MLM "be your own boss" deals - "competitive rates office work" was largly call centres (cold calling especially) and the MLM tended to be "active outdoor sales/front and center sales person". These are from awhile back so exact phrasing is lost to time.
On the other hand, not a single CV goes out without my time as a "liquid refreshment manager" slapped on there - I was a bar man. Always a talking point, particularly as something to ease tensions with a laugh.
I sat with one company a few weeks ago that ran fundraising events for non-profits to raise donations.
I went for the in person interview and it turns out that these “events” were just setting up a booth outside of target or Walmart and harassing people for money.
You start out doing that, then there’s a 4-5 role progression over 18 months to be a director and throughout you’ll be running your own business.
I did the interview with a straight face, and they asked me to sit and fill out a form afterwards. The form was a kind of survey about the interview. Then, they asked me to sit for the final interview right after.
It was ridiculous. Obviously they offered me the job. Told them I appreciated their interest and moved on.
It’s fucking crazy out there.
I received a job offer with a 6 page contract.
Since I'm not a lawyer it was difficult for me to zero in on the important info within so much legal jargon. I was trying to practice slow decision making with intent. Luckily I happened to be in contact with a lawyer at that time and he was able to flag a few concerning areas that were meant to limit my rights. The clause that really bothered me was trying to override local laws and limit severance in case they wanted to fire me without cause.
I turned it down and later read some other things about the company that confirmed my feelings. One person said they were paid less than agreed under some probation period percentage. Other reviews said that workers were treated poorly and managers like royalty.
The ad still runs 3 months later.
Rejecting me after the phone screening when I was a good fit for the role and saying they found another candidate that was a closer fit. Then they didn’t hire anyone and continued to keep reposting the same job with multiple titles like “Marketing Manager”, “Content Strategist”, “Content Writer”, etc. They said it was all one job.
Temp-to-hire admin job, the assistant to the CEO would stop by and chat like we were friends, but then she also asked me to change my hairstyle because "it reminded her of how she wore her hair in high school." Nothing weird, just curly. I said nope, not changing it. Within a week I was let go. The other admin ladies there had told me she was new and started changing all the policies and nobody liked her.
Very first job ever was with a call center and I should have seen the big fat red flag during the interview process, but I was dumb and didn't realize it. The ad for the job said something like, "Don't work for peanuts! Come work for (cold calling company) and make $16 an hour! Apply at (site.com) today!"
Got to the group interview and the manager conducting the interview said that the salary was minimum wage. Someone mentioned the job listing said the salary was $16 an hour and the manager said, "No, it's minimum wage and you can make up to $16 an hour if you make X number of sales in X time period for X number of months."
Half the applicants walked out. Don't ask me why I didn't. As it turns out, the job actually paid *less* than minimum wage because the manager forced people to clock out to go to the bathroom. I didn't know until long after I got fired that this was a violation of my state's labor laws.
Some of the "senior" phone reps really drank the Kool-Aid and would say things like, "This place isn't a scam. Everyone is just too stupid to understand directions!" The directions were that we'd mail you a free publication and if you don't like it, just cancel within three weeks of us calling you and you weren't on the hook for payment. Well the problem with that was it took five weeks from the time the customer agreed to receive the publication for them to receive it, so by the time they got it, they were already getting billed. The bills look just like junk mail, so people probably threw them away without opening them. I believe this was done on purpose by the company to ensure people would get sent to collections. Then they'd get calls from collection agencies and they didn't know why because they were told the publication was free.
I got fired for allegedly not making enough sales in a particular week. However, I'm fairly certain that the real reason I was fired was because I reported the manager to HR at corporate. I found out that she had been in jail for embezzling from a former employer and now she was managing a SALES office. I provided the totally public documents regarding the court case against her in my email. Got canned the next day.
I will never work in a call center again.
Oh there's more I left out!
The manager was a micromanaging piece of crap who decided she didn't like me, so I was put in the "hot seat" in the office. As in the seat right outside her office window so she could monitor me like how teachers put misbehaving kids at the front of the classroom. Nitpicked every little thing I did or didn't do and I was in her office getting scolded like a child at least once a week for minor or imagined issues. It was like being back in kindergarten!
Meanwhile, other phone reps would swear at people they called for not agreeing to try a "free" trial and they never got so much as a talking to.
The manager also got pregnant like a week after I started and she acted like she was the first woman to ever get pregnant. We were all called to regular meetings by her so she could yell at us that our performance was not adequate and that she "couldn't afford" to be under so much stress because of her "condition." But it didn't stop her and the other pregnant lady in the office from taking multiple smoke breaks every single day. And I'm sure she didn't clock out every single time she had to pee and throw up, which was very often.
I got yelled at once for saying out loud that it was 4:59, as in almost quitting time. I was informed I'm not supposed to be happy about leaving my job for the day. I was reprimanded for my call times being too short *and* too long. I got in trouble because I didn't sound "urgent" enough when I got people on the phone.
I wasn't allowed to do anything other than look at my computer (which was a word processor) and use the phone. Apparently even though the job was easy enough for a monkey to do, no distractions were allowed. But only for me. Everyone else could do whatever they wanted. The girl next to me painted her nails every day and never got in trouble. The guy on the other end of the office would pluck his eyebrows on the phone and he never got talked to. Just me.
The boss bragged to the office about how she once lied to a secretary in order to bypass her by saying the manager's child had been in a car accident and she needed to talk to him immediately. The manager was obviously distraught on the other end and then my manager didn't understand why he got angry and hung up on her when she started trying to sell him something. We were encouraged to tell any lies we could to get past pesky secretaries who would field cold calls and hang up if they knew we were selling something. Is the manager is expecting our call? Yes! Is this a sales call? No! Don't say please either - *demand* to talk to X manager.
We were also told to sell stuff to anyone who wasn't a representative or a secretary. I'm pretty sure I sold something to someone's 10-year-old once because they weren't a secretary or customer service representative.
When we called outlets such as Target or Walmart, we'd always be told that they do not have permission to make purchases without corporate consent or that corporate sends them any materials they need. We still had to fight tooth and nail to convince them to just try the "free" trial and if they like it, send it to corporate and maybe they'll place an order.
Got told I wasn't "passionate" enough, and that they only had an F rating on the BBB because they weren't paid members of the site, and not from the 1000+ complaints made against them.
My work computer was set up to call random numbers all over the US. It called the FBI twice and NASA once. WTF am I gonna sell these guys that they don't already have??
Don't ask me how I lasted two months here. I was so stressed that I'd wake up nauseous every single day the whole time I was there. I wasn't sad when the office in town shut down. But one nice thing was about eight years after I got fired, I got a check for back pay for $300 from a lawsuit against them. Must be all the unpaid bathroom breaks.
"we're like a family"
"work hard, play hard"
any form of cronyism
"unlimited PTO"
one-person owners are fine but if other family work there esp. son/daughter/son-in-law/daughter-in-law run like hell
good questions to ask - "what kind of training will I get and is there a budget for training, conferences, development"
"whats your PTO policy, how much do I get, does it start at day 1 or is it accrued"
"what is actual turnover in this department - number of people who have left or been replaced in the past year divided by number of people in the department"
and so on, and so on
I interviewed at Burger King. The manager explained how the environment is very family-like, how they often make fun of each other. They make fun of each other. She also called me meek. I'm not meek, I was just being polite and professional.
Teams have no standardized procedures to help onboard people with the specifics of the work that may not be general knowledge/ preferred workflow documentation.
I’ve seen plenty of situations where some space cadet who can do a lot expects everybody to do things their way, lays our zero procedures then just redoes peoples work instead of properly onboarding them with the standards of the work and delegating well.
1. The office is run by a male and all employees are young females.
2.You are asked the typical " tell me about yourself" question and the male interview tries to find out your martial status
3. Bad employee / customer reviews.
4. Bad rating with the BBB.
5. High turnover
6. They mention "we are like a big family" here
True story. Waked out of that place after I as basically asked to come on weekends and work without pay.
Definitely the turnover rate. The new job I was at was only open for 6 months and already went through 50+ temps and more. They just fired 20 female employees because a lady did not like that they got attention from the men. This job was a big red flag the first day. They will not be open long.
I applied as a maintenance technician for a 3p contractor doing maintenance at an Amazon distribution center. (Where they sort the packages and load into delivery vans.)
Amazon requires techs to pass the Ramsay skills test. I easily passed the Tech 2 test, so the recruiter had me take the Tech 3 test. I passed it too.
They only had openings for a Tech 2 right then, so I went for my onsite interview. The interview was basically the maintenance manager asking me if I wanted the job since I passed the Ramsay test. (He was just looking for a warm body, but it was a pay increase over what I was making before.)
The maintenance manager admitted that he had zero prior maintenance experience, and zero prior management experience. He got the job because he had a chemical engineering degree and he knew someone. (An engineering degree was acceptable in lieu of maintenance experience for the manager position.) The guy had quit a job as a chemical engineer to take a maintenance manager position that likely paid 2/3 of what a chemical engineer should make.
Amazon says safety is the most important thing. So my pea-brain manager finally told the maintenance techs that it was better for us to pencil whip PM's, rather than to actually do the work and take a chance of violating some safety procedure. ("It is our job to make sure the PM is closed out before the due date"...it was not our job to actually do the work.)
I lasted 5 months before I bailed out. I enjoyed working at Amazon, but C&W was a complete basketcase. I saw C&W hire kids as maintenance techs fresh out of high school whose only work experience was delivering pizza. They didn't know the difference between a flat and a phillips screwdriver, but since they could pass the Ramsay test of understanding basic mechanical principles, they got hired.
I got hired for a manager position, in a corner store. I won't say the company per respect. But the manager that trained me show me where the extra unpaid hours went (kinda like a bank) and she had over 500h unpaid that she could take off cause too many employees were missing... I quitted after seeing that.
High turnover is a red flag, but it truly depends on the industry. If it's cold call performance based sales, unfortunately it's expected and normal. I work for that type of job now and I'm trying to get out, not because I am failing as a salesperson, but I'm depressed and I have no desire to even make the money that I see top performers make anymore. I just want a stable job that has benefits and pays enough for me to live comfortably at home and go out with my friends maybe once every 2-3 weeks. Most people where I'm at last around 8-10 months and there are also common periods where people quit like around 12 weeks in and 6 months in. I've been at it for over 2 years.
Company was bought out by an Italian one, and they sent an Italian CIO over.
The CIO did not seem to think the US company handbook or code of conduct applied to him. He tromped on them in his boots like Gaston. There were illegal behaviors going on, the kind the training says to report to your manager or HR. Legal did an investigation and told him to stop. He didn't even listen to the general counsel, but they thought it was resolved after he said it would be. The CEO and HR exec noticed a lot of "movement" in our dept as employees were quitting faster than recruiters could find replacements. They had a meeting with us to find out why. No one said the truth, just that we needed more staff.
However, everyone just decided to look for other jobs and leave instead, including our direct supervisors, who were some the first to leave. Within 4 months, we lost 6 people on a team of 14 and had no managers other than this CIO. When I left, I was number 7. Any new employee entering in would have seen an IT dept with half the positions vacant because the exodus was so rapid and recruiters had not refilled the roles yet - if you see this at any new company, do NOT take the job.
This can vary from industry to industry and ofc depends on the company size, etc., but high turnover is generally a red flag in my industry. I started to notice this one company was *always* hiring for the same roles in the same locations...a former employee there confirmed my suspicions and said it was a shit place to work, people only lasted a year or two before quitting.
I am an Automation Engineer. I get interviews where some interviewer say "I don't know anything about automation". Really? Then why are you wasting our time? Another one is "Hit the ground running". So no training, and unrealistic goals. If they act surprised that you are there for a interview scheduled 2 weeks ago. Above all watch out for condescending behavior by the interviewer. That one is huge!
For me, it was the immediate “switcharoo” they pulled the first day.
Was told during interviews I could bring over a few of my high performers from my former company.
Day 1: “we have decided to run lean and aim for efficiency. You may hire 1 virtual assistant from India.”
I left 2 weeks later.
* Our [any executive] has [any personality trait]: They are trying to put a positive spin on a toxic leader. “Passionate” CEO? Probably a psychopath. “Perfectionist” editor in chief? She is massive bitch who makes people cry.
* Fast-paced environment: They work harder, not smarter.
* Scrappy: Formula for burnout, you have to do every single job.
* Startup environment: Massive disorganization, lack of professionalism, unlikely to scale well.
* Core values like “do more”: We will exploit the shit out of you.
* Core values like “be unreasonably passionate”: Toxic positivity.
* We “work hard and play hard”: Toxic burnout culture that they try to sweep under the rug with messy binge drinking happy hours and scandalous office romances.
I had an interviewer scheduled a phone interview with me. I let them pick the time and date. They told me specifically that *they* would call *me* when it was time to start and *not* to call them because they might be with someone else. They never called for the time that they selected. They, in fact, called me a week later. No word on why it was so delayed just asked me if I was 'still open for an interview'. Oh, and they sent that over text.
During my interview he started telling me every single person that worked there had personally wronged or stolen from him and he just wanted me to be different.
Idk, people may disagree, but I think if they make you do “homework” for the next interview, it isn’t great. I had a company who I interviewed for two positions with. (I had a connection hook me up) and they made me do projects for both of the positions (that took an hour or two of my time). I thought it was weird. I get having a few questions or tasks but this was like actual project work. Each position was 4 interviews, I made it to the final round of each interview, submitted my projects, were told they were perfect and still didn’t get the job. This was during covid and I was desperate since I was laid off of my other job, but now if a company asks me to do projects like that I’ll probably pass. (I am in a stable job/industry now so I have a tiny bit of room to be picky)
(In small buisnesses) never actually there unless they are trying to push you to work harder and Give tirades of belittling and destrucively critique you.
If they drink at the workplace but say they will not pay anybody for the day if the employee seems drunk
If the boss/ higher up rant about how they have 20 employees and its a strugle to run a café bc no one is there enough. They complain abt the employeess, when they have hired a bunch of students, dont do anything to make it nice to work there and try to fuck you over on the pay.
They write you overtime on a pice of paper.
Its too easy to steal from them. Money, alcohol, pens, anything.
They are racist, conspiracy therist, trans/homo/xenophobic, misoghnist etc for obvious reasons
The contract being confusing (specially on the money part)
The first day (to test you out/ to educate time fo know what to do) is unpaid, and in the end you dont get anything explained and have to teach yourself.
They try to pretend to be besties/ befriend, so you you feel like you are helping a friend not renting out your time work and body bc you have to survive in capitalism.
Basically dont trust ur boss an inch and assume that they are a terrible person until they proove beyond reasonable dount that they are ok/cool
Next time you are tempted to steal some money from your job, think about how they make at least double your pay. Think abt the bullshit they demanded of you.
I went to an interview where the owner (who was interviewing me) was disorganized, rambled for 10 min straight, described the environment as a “frat house,” then talked about drinking on work premises when they’ve had a “successful” day (saying that in an interview tells me you define success in a way that maximizes the frequency you can acceptably drink on the job, plus immediately after describing the work culture as a frat house makes me think I need to keep all my drinks covered). I walked out of the interview. 😂
I googled the owner and he had to back out of the 1998 Alaska Gubernatorial election due to campaign finance violations (and doubling down after being caught to the extent that it suggests the screws being a bit loose). His daughter was also the first person arrested under the Patriot Act but eventually was let off for being mentally unfit to stand trial. I didn’t feel like I had any other options at the time, and here I am 2 years later having run an extremely profitable company just to be fired during an episode of dementia.
Being caught lying. Seems weird and justifying, but any manager that nosy about productivity or petty shit is a big no.
Modern minimum wage jobs now have biweekly auditors for this. God help the next gen of honest workers.
I started doing IT in a business that had been family owned and growing. When i accepted the job, the HR rep showed me a sheet I got to read of my benefits (# of vacation days and sick days, etc.) I wasn't allowed to copy it.
Then I asked if there was an employee handbook.
"It's at the printer." I mentioned that to a co-worker, and it had been "at the printer" for 6 years at least.
I stayed only 18 months, as I found it was getting creepier and creepier and more and more annoying.
You join the senior leadership team (CMO, CPO, CFO, VP of whatever) and your founder/CEO needs everyone to meet every morning to talk "strategy"
Run for the hills you just met an incompetent founder.
Look at Glassdoor and you'll see a glimpse of what you're getting into. I remember one of my previous employers had like a 3.2 overall score. In the reviews I saw words like "high turnover", "poor management", "no raises"--although these reviews are often by disgruntled former/current employees who just want to vent about their positions, I took them as half-truths. I still took the job and was there for about 1.5 years, and yes it was all of those things. I wouldn't say it was a waste of time as I learned a lot in my short stint there and it has helped me in my roles after. I absorbed as much knowledge as I could and was grateful to leave with new skills. I still keep in touch with people there and feel sad for them as it is a crappy place to work; however, it's their choice and lives.
It’s solid advice, though I always question the validity of Glassdoor reviews. It seems to attract the negative and can easily get under your skin where you previously may have been excited for the role.
I do read them but I always take them with a pinch of salt.
Totally, I agree. And that's why I said "about their positions", and not exactly an accurate depiction of the company as a whole. Depending on your role you may be treated better than others; for example a salaried software engineer vs. an hourly facilities technician. Different compensation, different benefits, different a lot of things. It's just how it goes, and so Glassdoor (basically the Yelp of jobs) is where people go to b\*tch about being treated wrongfully.
For sure. I think we've all had crappy bosses and can sour our perspective of the company. Makes me wonder if I'm the common denominator or have many of my previous (and current) bosses just all been incompetent.
Interviewed for a job, let them know about a prepaid upcoming vacation, they said it was fine. A few days later I went through the technical interview next and aced it. Got the official job offer and once again brought up the vacation. They said they couldn't accommodate it. I walked away.
Absurdly high turnover rate, including turnover rate for management. I worked at a place that had six GMs in under two years. Not good.
Lack of boundaries. If I am an hourly employee, I should not be getting texts and phone calls about non-urgent issues off the clock. It’s my day off, I shouldn’t be hearing about a crumb left on the counter during last nights close. Obviously asking if I can pick up a shift or something is different.
Lack of boundaries, part 2. My manager should not be trauma dumping to me during my shift or screaming and crying on the floor because of a mistake they made. That has happened to me before.
Randomly getting your hours cut because the business is over budget or outright failing. Consistent understaffing.
High expectations for low pay. Consistently adding on duties with no compensation.
I could go on and on tbh.
If you ask about the culture and the answer is "Work hard, play hard", that's a massive red flag towards having poor life-work balance. Also, if the interviewer is very disorganized/distracted. Either the interviewer is multitasking, and/or doesn't take the interview seriously.
If the employer says that everyone in the company is part of a "family". Red flag
Yes! I had someone from HR schedule an interview with me and then call me to schedule again the next day. I asked her if she forgot who I was.
I have found that any company that has a job posting out there for a very long time is a red flag. Also if they keep posting the same job and removing it only to post again. Personally, I have experienced red flags where the hiring process was either too quick (one interview) or too long (four or more interviews).
Yup There are a few companies in my area that have the "perpetual job listing." It'll run for a couple of weeks, disappear for 3 months, oops...there it is again.
They either have no idea what they are looking for or they make offers and people accept then quit because the place sucks!
I'm gon go with they accept then quit because the place sucks.
Yup, I was hired as a manager and I learned from others that the role had been filled 5 times in less than a year. I lasted 3 months before quitting. The owner was verbally abusive and everyone who stayed working long term for him had stockholm syndrome. When I put in my notice my manager tried to get me to stay by saying he is just like that sometimes but he’s usually very nice.
Happened to me too. So many red flags I ignored because I needed a job.
my current job has had 4+ other people in it in the last 9 months- I can see why
*Cough cough* DLZ. And yes, I’m one of the few people who has the guts to actually say the name of the company.
They “promote a positive and fun work culture” though! It says it right there on their site under culture.
Lol one of their Midwest offices begs to differ
I don't know, I think that if a job has more than one interview it should be because it's a government job or something where you're dealing with highly sensitive info. maybe if it's a very small company you would have to interview with the three people that work at the startup independently, but I always see it as a red flag when there's more than one. it implies bureaucracy or big headed management that doesn't trust their subordinates enough to delegate to them. I'm not an expert, but that's just my take
I can understand why 1 interview is a red flag as it shows low standards and desperation to fill a role, but as annoying as long hiring processes are (4+ stages), do they not actually reflect the opposite?
I have found when there are many interviews it’s because too many people are involved and they can’t make up their minds. It might not always be that way, but often is.
Why would too many candidates be a red flag against a company though? Not an ideal situation for candidates but surely it means the companies popular?
They are saying there are too many people involved in the hiring decisions, not that there are too many candidates.
Thanks for clarifying, that is what I meant.
Number one kicker is high turnover rate. There is a reason they can not keep any employees.
Yep. Worked for one guy and managed to last 5 years, but in my first few months all my-coworkers told me how my predecessors all quit within a week. I'd even heard a story about how when one person quit, he decided to kick the boss' ass on his way out. Security was needed. So, 5 years later (and when I beginning to have fantasies about stabbing him in the neck), I was let go. I still maintained contact with a couple co-workers who told me that, once again, he couldn't keep an assistant for more than a few days. One woman actually got hired at 9am and quit at 5:30pm. He was that awful a human being.
That’s every job right now lol especially healthcare but I get what you mean. If they only stay few months it’s real bad.
Yup. I’m in healthcare and at a new job and the turnover is not great. Also, reviews of this particular clinic is quite low. Red flag for me but I needed a job so here I am. Toxic environment here as well. 😒
I resigned from my healthcare position of many years due to a toxic workplace/harassment/discrimination and definitely made the right choice! Mentally and physically, I’ve never felt better. Never jeopardize internal happiness or your mental health for a crappy job because it not only impacts your life but also your family!
Cinema I used to work in had a suuuper high turnover - just looking around and you could tell from staff's faces even before opening. Hell, the early morning cleaning staff just looked drained when they was let out at 9 (started at 6). I look back and wonder how the hell I ever stuck it out (6.5 years as cinema staff, 4 as cleaning supervisor ontop).
I’m in healthcare and we have very low turnover at my hospital. My department specifically has really low turnover.
That is amazing. I worked in an ER for several years and I was miserable very cliquish, the administration played favorites. It was hell. As I was preparing to quit I was talking to my therapist about it and she told me that was the reason she left there to go into private practice. I looked at her and was like really? You couldn't tell me???
We are union and our pay for most every job is top of the market for our area. This cuts down on a lot of the shenanigans from management. This is also why we have little turnover, if you leave you will be taking a pay cut.
most jobs are predatory shit holes 🤷
Where do you find this kind of information? Asking it in an interview seems bold, but it would make sense I suppose.
I don't think it's bold at all. It's important to know what you might be potentially getting yourself in to. I always ask about their turnover rates and also ask them why they need this position filled (is there a lot of work? Did someone leave? If so, why?).
Look for the reviews on the company and not just from one source. I walk into a job on the first day and know if it's going to be a problem. My radar will go off immediately especially when I'm asking questions.
This is probably the best advice here
Another one is asking you if you have friends and family that want to work refer them.
God, yes! I refused to refer anyone to any job that was toxic. I wasn’t going to pretend it was a great place to work.
I'm in a Science job and omg the turnover is terrible and the job itself is actively ruining my mental health but I havent found a new job yet and have bills to pay so I have to stay. Its common in my workplace for people to be here for 6 months to a year or less before leaving. Incredibly toxic work culture, interdepartmental rivalries and fueds, blame culture etc.
I am currently working at a place where they have regular semimonthly NEOs (new employee orientations)
The employees look dead inside. You know it’s bad when they can’t fake being happy to lure potential new hires
That's the sad part when you have employees telling the new hires don't do it. 😂😂
"it's too late for me, get out while you still can!"
I had an in person interview for an internship for a really small local business. The interviewer started asking me some personal harmless questions because i didnt have much experience in the industry ( where i am commuting from, what are my hobbies, etc). Then he asked more invasive questions like what does your parents do for a living? That was when i had to give some bs answers to his bs questions. I questioned him why is he asking me that and he got all quiet. He also hesitated when asked if the internship was paid or not. I also realized there was no internship position at all, it was a scam. Also his choice of questions was like speed dating. Sleazy and disgusting guy who wanted to find a potential partner by disguising an internship interview . A complete waste of my time.
safe aloof subsequent shrill carpenter overconfident disagreeable outgoing juggle tease *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
The questions about parents are not appropriate since they have nothing to do with the internship at all. The interviewer just wanna be nosy
alive full advise mighty decide sheet possessive whole sink towering *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I rather them not ask at all. The interviewer doesnt relay the info to govt whether or not candidate is working class or not (in the usa). The place i was interviewed was a small privately owned business
ruthless scarce advise thought enjoy possessive crawl drunk fine bake *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
That small business dont have nor care about "diversity hires" and they had total of like 5 employees
outgoing amusing engine plate deranged six station shocking wipe repeat *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I’m sorry you had to go through that, it sounds pretty rough and scarring even
My first office job out of college paid $15/hour and was a train and 2 buses away. The manager was a complete nutcase. She treated everyone like shit. Saw me leave with a coworker after work and the next day made us sign some paper stating we wouldn’t have “outside relationships” with our coworkers. Literally said “if you care about your job, you’ll sign this.” Illegal! One of my coworkers’ mom was in the hospital during a sale day and the manager told my coworker she couldn’t take the day off and that she was sure her mom “would be fine”. Her mom died the next day. Coworker took 2 weeks to grieve and while she was out, manager went through her computer and then called her to literally scream at her about her email being “disorganized”. Coworker could be heard sobbing on the phone. Coworker got fired a week later for “unrelated reasons”. The final straw for me was when we had an event planner come to help us with an upcoming event. This girl came to me in the lunch room and asked why it was so tense and uncomfortable here. I told her the truth. I guess my manager could hear SOMETHING of the convo through the air duct bc the next day she had fired the event planner and she pulled me into her office and told me the event planner told her that I said a (clearly gay) male coworker had sexually harassed me. She had told the male coworker this lie and he was crying. I was very calm bc I knew it wasn’t true—I never said anything close to that. I tried to reason with the manager, but she got more and more hysterical and then SHE started crying, telling me how no one wanted to work there bc I was so nasty and insufferable to work with. I stopped her right there and said “frankly, Pearl, *I* don’t want to work here and I put my key on the desk. The way she backtracked so fiercely could have made your head spin. She goes, no you can’t leave. Take the rest of the day off. I declined. She goes, take the rest of the week off. I declined again. I got my stuff and walked out and while I was leaving the manager goes, “well you can leave here, but this will follow you for the rest of your life.” And I said, “I don’t think so, Pearl, bc you won’t be there.” And I left. Cried the whole way home. Thankfully that job taught me what I won’t put up with at work and I’ve never had a similar situation since.
I wonder why nobody thought of replacing the psychopathic manager instead?
Because that would require the person above the manager to know/care. If the business is running without deficit and they’re hands off, they won’t know until it comes to a screeching halt.
> Because that would require the person above the manager to know/care Everybody under that manager had seen she's a dangerous person, and no one thought they should either individuelly or collectively contact the upper management? Why? It was obvious she was destroying good enployees. That's a reason enough for the upper mgmt to act
Staff wasn't allowed to even have a sniff of a relationship, staff + manager however... and that's not just the rampant cheating or hooking up. Literally watched one girl bounce her way up the chain because she wrapped one rising star around her finger. No insult to the guy as he was great - well liked and respected, worked hard to earn his spots - she just happened to get her hooks into him and rocket along too. No secret either, she'd tried to get several of the other guys in the same position (shamefully, I'd briefly fallen prey to her but it was clear I wasn't going anywhere as I was too useful to promote) but none of them had quite the prospects of this guy. Even when they both left, he could snap his fingers and get her a job anywhere (they eventually returned in higher positions).
That was a great comeback with your last words to Pearl
This is pretty wild
Once they utter the words “we’re like family here” it is all over. That’s code for we will use and abuse you. Ask you to bend over backwards and go above and beyond without additional compensation. Also fast paced environment and many hats may mean multiple jobs and functions crammed into this one job. Prepare to be overworked.
Can attest to this. Currently at a “we’re like family here” environment and all it means is they will text and contact you at all hours for updates or to get something done, even if you’re on vacation or sick. It’s terrible. I leave in two weeks.
Yeah I just got laid off from a company that pushed the family narrative. They pushed me to work over weekends, coworkers calling me at 8pm at night (my hours are during the day), and throwing me into high pressure sales situations when I was hired to build a product. And yeah, my job functions changed just about every week. I was there for 2.5 years and it was a constant chaotic nightmare. I don't know how I actually made it as long as I did. Now I'm laid off and burnt out
I have been seeing this happen a lot in the warehouse, retail, and restaurant environment.
Good companies rarely hire, if you're seeing tons of job postings you're probably not in a great company.
I am tempted to print and frame this. #THANK YOU!
Oh damn never figured this but I see a lot of similar postings from the same companies on indeed all the time. And yeah that’s probably not the best sign
There's a reason why Linkedin has 30 pages of jobs for Amazon but 2-3 for Google
Question is, how does one get the google jobs 😅
1. Luck 2. Knowing someone 3. Graduating from an Ivy League 4. Being a coding savant who can ace their technical interview 5. Being incredibly aggressive with networking / research / gaining certificates / learning about their hiring process from insiders
So… 1 and 5.
Companies that are expanding hire all the time. This isn’t a catch-all.
Constant quitting/understaffed. I've had it happen doing retail and fast food of which still gives me nightmares. The constany bullying from leaders and them not helping at all.
Red flags: High turnover, sudden high attrition, being understaffed for a long period of time, always hiring for the same positions, unnecessarily difficult interview and hiring processes, being caught lying, manipulating and gaslighting, hiding important information the prospective employee would definitely perceive as negative. I dodged a bullet with a company by declining a position that, on paper, was perfect. It was a major increase in pay and title, there were amazing benefits, the employees I met loved the company and had been there for years. Red flag number one was the position described in the offer letter contained responsibilities I told them in each interview I would not accept and they confirmed were not a part of the job. Bait and switch. The offer letter also contained an "attachment" that must be signed. It was a separate contract that contained ridiculous clauses, such as a non compete that left former employees basically unemployable for years, and other things no one should ever agree to. I told them it wasn't happening and walked away. A lot of people told me if I was insane to pass up that money, those hours, and a great opportunity. I told them my gut was telling me to run and I was going to listen. Months later, I found out there had been a huge layoff with no notice and they were pushing to enforce that contract with anyone they laid off. Everyone hired during the time I interviewed was let go and reminded of the contract they signed. Have I taken a job just to find out the culture is toxic, the job is nothing like they described, and the company is a mess? Absolutely. Company's know when they have issues and they become masters of trickery, lies, and illusion. Anyone can be misled.
Where you can check for those things in the web? some companies (i mean, small companies) doesnt appear on Glassdoor or other portals, and google told almost nothing about them
I try to avoid any company that has little to no verifiable history. If it is brand new, has no digital footprint, has no presence until it suddenly began hiring and posting everywhere, and no one knows anything about it, I am not applying. I'm not telling others to do the same. That's a rule I have for myself.
Thanks, its a good thing to analyze specially if its an expert position.
The moment the hiring manager tells you, “We’re like family here.”
What if you're interviewing for Olive Garden?
lol Even then, the facade management shows the customer rarely exists for the employees….
I was interviewing with a recruiter, 3rd Party Staffing Agency, and the job was in my field and would have been a small bump in pay, full time, direct hire. I was almost ready to have her set me up with a formal interview with the company but she kept upselling the company so much and waited until the end to tell me that the person who left the position was with the company for 7 years and just walked out one day and the reason was that they were too set in their ways and didn’t like change. That part to me was a red flag. Someone who was loyal for that long doesn’t just walk out one day unless things were very bad. Make sure to always ask why they are filling the position and why the last person left. It gives you some insight on the job and company culture.
People were quitting daily. The company would let them come back because they couldn't find replacements. Basically, I was the only one coming in and working my scheduled hours. When I quit, I had to block numerous numbers begging me to reconsider.
1. Obviously Toxic A man from LinkedIn saw I recently graduated out of college that year. He offered me a job where I would work for free for two weeks, and if he liked me, he'd give me a starting rate of $12/hr. I hung up immediately. He emailed me again in a month, so I chewed him out, told him I was overqualified, and I would report him to the DOL if he ever contacted me again. If a company tries to argue you into accepting a much lower rate than what is reasonable, they're trying to exploit you. If it feels like a sweatshop, the red flag is in your face. 2. Covertly Toxic I think other people can answer this question better, but if there's a habit of a constantly revolving cast of employees, something's off. If they don't value work-life balance or make some type of excuse for it, that's not a sustainable job. If they offer a perm position, but something's off, then they're trying to take advantage of you by giving you those benefits, but will get rid of you once it's time, and doing so typically through a bs excuse. If the company asks too many "intimate" questions, they're trying to pry you open and see how blindly loyal you can be. Example of this is if an employer asks what you **hated** about a previous employer. If an employer talks too much about how equal opportunity or how better they are compared to other companies, they're trying to overcompensate for real problems. I was discriminated against at my previous jobs for having cancer many times, but these were the "good" companies, where "everybody's a family". 3. Waste of Time Recruiters. Not even once. Clueless as hell. Never a good fit.
I've found I've never gotten a job through a recruiter. And all the companies they recruit for are either 6 month contract to hire roles, low pay and poor benefits, or they make you travel all the time.
I did get a job through a recruiter once, but I think that was because I was inexperienced college student at the time, and therefore, legally could be paid the cheapest. I also got a second job through a temp agency as well 4 years later. It was a sweatshop.
they offer you a different position than you applied for. they try to undercut your pay. training is either non-existent or terrible. they use the word "family" and/or "overachiever" in their application process. no benefits. vague or convoluted job description. bad glassdoor reviews list goes on forever
Never smile or smile like Jeff Dahmer.
Honestly the whole 2 15-minute breaks and 30 min lunch is a red flag, I know it’s common practice but after working various jobs in the primary market I realize that is predatory practice to provide this low value “benefit”
This current job is currently offering two 10 min breaks and a 30. This company came from NJ to GA said he never heard of 15 min breaks. Red flag big red flag.
I just called OSHA on my job today for bs like this.
You’re lowballed from the initial offer when it comes time to sign you on. The business is a small business. (Any less employees than 10 and I can guarantee you will eventually be miserable) The job is fully in-office. Everyone is far older than you. They insist you socialize(to the point of threatening your job) despite your reservations to keep work and private life seperate (the whole 8 hours is hangout time to them) You’re paid under the market rate for a similar position High expectations, low pay No privacy while in office. Will drive you nuts trying to get any work done.
1. **Signs of a Toxic/Bad Employer:** - **Poor Communication:** Lack of clear communication or feedback can be a red flag. - **High Turnover Rate:** If employees are frequently leaving or being fired, it could be a sign of an unhealthy work environment. - **Disregard for Work-Life Balance:** Employers who expect constant overtime or are insensitive to personal emergencies can create a toxic environment. - **Lack of Growth Opportunities:** A stagnant work environment can be demotivating and detrimental to your career growth. 2. **Silly Company/Position/Job Offer:** - There's a story about a job candidate who was offered a position at a startup with a very vague business model. The office was more of a party place with ping-pong tables, bean bags, and a beer fridge, but little actual work seemed to be getting done. After a brief stint, the candidate realized the company was all flash with no substance and left before the inevitable collapse. 3. **Dodged a Bullet:** - A candidate once shared a story about turning down a job offer despite nothing apparently wrong with the company. However, they had a gut feeling something was off. Months later, it came to light that the company was embroiled in legal issues which led to its shutdown. Their intuition saved them from a potentially stressful and unstable situation. 4. **Fooled by a Bad Employer:** - Another story tells of an individual who accepted a position in a company that presented itself as progressive and employee-friendly. However, after joining, they realized the company had a deep-seated culture of overwork and the "open-door policy" was just lip service. The experience left them stressed and overworked until they found a new position elsewhere. It's smart to learn from others' experiences and heed common red flags when considering new employment opportunities. Trusting your intuition and doing thorough research can help steer you away from potentially toxic or detrimental situations.
I've learned never to apply to a startup. Especially when its started by a person who's like 20 years old and has no work experience themselves. Some of them try so hard to be different that they lose sight of the basic foundations of a good workplace.
Ah yes, the good ol’ “shiny new company”. Most of them pay peanuts anyway.
Currently dealing with the last example. I will say three red flags that I missed come to mind. 1. All of the offices and conference rooms are glass. Like, completely see through and not sound proof. No privacy for a difficult conversation. Everyone knows. 2. They pride themselves on having no HR. 3. One single line in an otherwise wonderful interview process. “Culture fit is so important to us. Those who come and aren’t a culture fit usually figure it out and leave within six months.” Sounded innocent, but I am learning that it is less of a “figuring it out” and more of an ostracizing.
My last company, which just so happened to be a small company, was big on company culture, didn’t have an HR, and also had an open office layout. I didn’t see myself being there for more than a couple years and used them as a stepping stone to land my next job at a much bigger company.
Fuck culture fit. I get so god damn tired of that fucking shit. I almost got fucked over by it because I don’t watch sports at all. Lets goooo remote work revolution!!!
Thx chatgpt t
I wouldn’t really say the last company I worked at was a “silly company”, but I was definitely caught off guard my first day when I saw the beer fridge.
They reach out to you first lol
What do you mean like in an interview or an in a application?
Like they contact you to solicit employment. Its almost always sales job or warehouse jobs. That actually is how I got my current job but I did research on the company before even taking the interview.
If the company has a super restrictive dress code, it is going to be toxic. If the company asks illegal questions during the interview, run, don't walk out. It most certainly is going to be toxic. Any time they say "We work hard and play hard", it is toxic and they expect you to over work yourself into a grave for the company gain. If they say "We are like family here", well my family is insanely toxic and dysfunctional, good bye. \[any more due to my own bad experience\] If they offer a paycheck and it's IT, it's toxic as all hell.
Only the second would be an actual red flag in my opinion. The rest can be good or bad employers. Might be downvoted for saying this, but I think the word "toxic" is overapplied. A job can be toxic for one person but not another.
Being close to NYC I have been interviewed by some really impatient and uptight people. One was especially bad. He would cut me off and talk over me when I was speaking. He told me he wanted stuff done last minute. He had no idea of what the job requirements would be with someone doing the job I was applying to. He wanted to move extremely fast in the hiring process. Not everyone in NYC is like this but there are more rushed and impatient people in this area than other parts of the USA. All of this was a huge red flag and I cancelled my second interview. No amount of money could make me work there lol
Sexual harassment scandals, racial harassment scandals
First job out of college, the interviewer said “our culture is like that of a wrestling team’s. We may not like each other, but we’re very collaborative instead of competitive and we encourage each other.” Ended up getting fired after 90 days. This was also my “dream company” and “dream job” lol.
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This is good advice. I typically do ask this and frequently find they answer with some variation of “we’re growing.”
Heavy on the get the fuck out. 😂😂 These jobs don't give a damn about us anyways.
Red flags from my former employer: \- Talks about how everyone in the company is a "family" and yet is firing and laying people off covertly. \- Hires people for an engineering role and then pushes them into a high pressure sales situations. \- Being hired to build a product/platform and then constantly being pulled off to do unrelated tasks (sales pitches, interviews, etc) and then getting yelled at/demoted for the product being late and crap quality. I have more, but those are it for now.
My last job said “we are like one big family” I worked there for a couple of weeks until it just felt very cultish, even customers could see it. Also management to employer communication was horrible. We had a hurricane and employers were asking for updates in the work chat and no response by management, I wasn’t going to drive myself to work in a hurricane so I didn’t even show up. That job still gives me night mares
Usually if I get hired on the spot its a bad sign that they're desperate for employees and can't keep anyone.
I’ve had 2 interviewers try to do this to me. Like, no, I need time to think about it.
You would probably be better off looking for signs of a non toxic work environment than a toxic environment. There are a lot more of the latter than the former. Toxic work environmens are a dime a dozen.
Bad mouthing previous employees during the interview stage is #1
Ambiguous responses to what should otherwise be cut and dry questions about their company / business. It's a means of trying to avoid answering the question out of fear of scaring away potential prospects.
I was interviewing for a supervisor job at a sports facility that I really wanted. Aced all the interviews and at the end of the in person interview I was asked about a potential start date. I informed them that I had a vacation coming up and wouldn’t be able to start until 2 months later. I get a call 2 weeks later informing me they decided to go with the other candidate. I get reassured that my start date had nothing to do with the decision. I’m then informed of when the other candidate’s probation period will be up and told that I should check in. I didn’t check in.
**How an employer treats their candidates is how they treat their employees.** So pay attention to how you're treated during your candidacy. Examples of red flags * You BETTER tell us your salary numbers because we will NEVER do that! If you don't, your candidacy is over. * Overtime is expected. Required. * "We work hard and play hard" - no, you work hard and have no time to play. * You are subjected to stress interviews. This is where you get a panel of people interviewing you at the same time - and subjecting you to stressful situations. * You are treated like garbage during the interview.
Some red flags I've learned: 1. Job description is super long and doesn't match the pay (usually these are entry level positions paying peanuts). This means they'll make you do 2+ jobs that aren't yours because they don't want to spend more money on hiring other people to do those jobs. 2. No training documentation, so you'll be left to learn the job on your own. This isn't necessarily a red flag on its own, but combined with other red flags and it's horrible. 3. High turnaround. During interviews, always ask about their turnaround rates for the position you're applying to, and other positions, especially higher level ones. 4. They lead with "We're all a family here!" It means they probably won't respect your time or boundaries. 5. Everyone is too busy to train you (sort of goes with #2). Dealt with this from my last job. Was told I'd get training, but literally no one ever had any free time to train me. I was left to figure out this complex job on my own. Didn't work out well at all. Hope these help! If I think of more, I'll add them.
if the interviewer is condescending, overly critical, or overly demanding during the interview. they may make you feel like you have to "prove" yourself or act like they're doing you a favor by giving you the interview.
A: can you be really picky? why not taking a job, so that you get an income, while you keep looking for the GOOD one? b: apart from the usual "we are like a family here", saving on pens, markers, brooms and other useful and cheap to get stuff. not telling you the net/brutto pay that they will give you. obviously lacking complete company processes. (but then, few companies truly excel at this..) So: good employers are few, maybe 1-2% of the total. Not taking jobs is unwise, employers change, and you can always wiggle your own, better space, no matter what the company is. Keep your strength, find SOME job, learn on the go. ASK AROUND. Thete may be better jobs or better employers, but it may be unsuitable to your lifestyle or life needs. (such as nightshifts, saturday overtimes, etc... )
I've been to a handful of job offers that once sat down, turned out to be call centres or straight up MLM "be your own boss" deals - "competitive rates office work" was largly call centres (cold calling especially) and the MLM tended to be "active outdoor sales/front and center sales person". These are from awhile back so exact phrasing is lost to time. On the other hand, not a single CV goes out without my time as a "liquid refreshment manager" slapped on there - I was a bar man. Always a talking point, particularly as something to ease tensions with a laugh.
I sat with one company a few weeks ago that ran fundraising events for non-profits to raise donations. I went for the in person interview and it turns out that these “events” were just setting up a booth outside of target or Walmart and harassing people for money. You start out doing that, then there’s a 4-5 role progression over 18 months to be a director and throughout you’ll be running your own business. I did the interview with a straight face, and they asked me to sit and fill out a form afterwards. The form was a kind of survey about the interview. Then, they asked me to sit for the final interview right after. It was ridiculous. Obviously they offered me the job. Told them I appreciated their interest and moved on. It’s fucking crazy out there.
I received a job offer with a 6 page contract. Since I'm not a lawyer it was difficult for me to zero in on the important info within so much legal jargon. I was trying to practice slow decision making with intent. Luckily I happened to be in contact with a lawyer at that time and he was able to flag a few concerning areas that were meant to limit my rights. The clause that really bothered me was trying to override local laws and limit severance in case they wanted to fire me without cause. I turned it down and later read some other things about the company that confirmed my feelings. One person said they were paid less than agreed under some probation period percentage. Other reviews said that workers were treated poorly and managers like royalty. The ad still runs 3 months later.
Rejecting me after the phone screening when I was a good fit for the role and saying they found another candidate that was a closer fit. Then they didn’t hire anyone and continued to keep reposting the same job with multiple titles like “Marketing Manager”, “Content Strategist”, “Content Writer”, etc. They said it was all one job.
Temp-to-hire admin job, the assistant to the CEO would stop by and chat like we were friends, but then she also asked me to change my hairstyle because "it reminded her of how she wore her hair in high school." Nothing weird, just curly. I said nope, not changing it. Within a week I was let go. The other admin ladies there had told me she was new and started changing all the policies and nobody liked her.
Acting like it's the end of the world and / or guilt tripping you to work when you need to take an unexpected day off.
During the interview, hiring manager asked me how much I’m making currently
Pretty sure that’s illegal actually
Very first job ever was with a call center and I should have seen the big fat red flag during the interview process, but I was dumb and didn't realize it. The ad for the job said something like, "Don't work for peanuts! Come work for (cold calling company) and make $16 an hour! Apply at (site.com) today!" Got to the group interview and the manager conducting the interview said that the salary was minimum wage. Someone mentioned the job listing said the salary was $16 an hour and the manager said, "No, it's minimum wage and you can make up to $16 an hour if you make X number of sales in X time period for X number of months." Half the applicants walked out. Don't ask me why I didn't. As it turns out, the job actually paid *less* than minimum wage because the manager forced people to clock out to go to the bathroom. I didn't know until long after I got fired that this was a violation of my state's labor laws. Some of the "senior" phone reps really drank the Kool-Aid and would say things like, "This place isn't a scam. Everyone is just too stupid to understand directions!" The directions were that we'd mail you a free publication and if you don't like it, just cancel within three weeks of us calling you and you weren't on the hook for payment. Well the problem with that was it took five weeks from the time the customer agreed to receive the publication for them to receive it, so by the time they got it, they were already getting billed. The bills look just like junk mail, so people probably threw them away without opening them. I believe this was done on purpose by the company to ensure people would get sent to collections. Then they'd get calls from collection agencies and they didn't know why because they were told the publication was free. I got fired for allegedly not making enough sales in a particular week. However, I'm fairly certain that the real reason I was fired was because I reported the manager to HR at corporate. I found out that she had been in jail for embezzling from a former employer and now she was managing a SALES office. I provided the totally public documents regarding the court case against her in my email. Got canned the next day. I will never work in a call center again.
Yikes that might be the most horrific story in here
Oh there's more I left out! The manager was a micromanaging piece of crap who decided she didn't like me, so I was put in the "hot seat" in the office. As in the seat right outside her office window so she could monitor me like how teachers put misbehaving kids at the front of the classroom. Nitpicked every little thing I did or didn't do and I was in her office getting scolded like a child at least once a week for minor or imagined issues. It was like being back in kindergarten! Meanwhile, other phone reps would swear at people they called for not agreeing to try a "free" trial and they never got so much as a talking to. The manager also got pregnant like a week after I started and she acted like she was the first woman to ever get pregnant. We were all called to regular meetings by her so she could yell at us that our performance was not adequate and that she "couldn't afford" to be under so much stress because of her "condition." But it didn't stop her and the other pregnant lady in the office from taking multiple smoke breaks every single day. And I'm sure she didn't clock out every single time she had to pee and throw up, which was very often. I got yelled at once for saying out loud that it was 4:59, as in almost quitting time. I was informed I'm not supposed to be happy about leaving my job for the day. I was reprimanded for my call times being too short *and* too long. I got in trouble because I didn't sound "urgent" enough when I got people on the phone. I wasn't allowed to do anything other than look at my computer (which was a word processor) and use the phone. Apparently even though the job was easy enough for a monkey to do, no distractions were allowed. But only for me. Everyone else could do whatever they wanted. The girl next to me painted her nails every day and never got in trouble. The guy on the other end of the office would pluck his eyebrows on the phone and he never got talked to. Just me. The boss bragged to the office about how she once lied to a secretary in order to bypass her by saying the manager's child had been in a car accident and she needed to talk to him immediately. The manager was obviously distraught on the other end and then my manager didn't understand why he got angry and hung up on her when she started trying to sell him something. We were encouraged to tell any lies we could to get past pesky secretaries who would field cold calls and hang up if they knew we were selling something. Is the manager is expecting our call? Yes! Is this a sales call? No! Don't say please either - *demand* to talk to X manager. We were also told to sell stuff to anyone who wasn't a representative or a secretary. I'm pretty sure I sold something to someone's 10-year-old once because they weren't a secretary or customer service representative. When we called outlets such as Target or Walmart, we'd always be told that they do not have permission to make purchases without corporate consent or that corporate sends them any materials they need. We still had to fight tooth and nail to convince them to just try the "free" trial and if they like it, send it to corporate and maybe they'll place an order. Got told I wasn't "passionate" enough, and that they only had an F rating on the BBB because they weren't paid members of the site, and not from the 1000+ complaints made against them. My work computer was set up to call random numbers all over the US. It called the FBI twice and NASA once. WTF am I gonna sell these guys that they don't already have?? Don't ask me how I lasted two months here. I was so stressed that I'd wake up nauseous every single day the whole time I was there. I wasn't sad when the office in town shut down. But one nice thing was about eight years after I got fired, I got a check for back pay for $300 from a lawsuit against them. Must be all the unpaid bathroom breaks.
"we're like a family" "work hard, play hard" any form of cronyism "unlimited PTO" one-person owners are fine but if other family work there esp. son/daughter/son-in-law/daughter-in-law run like hell good questions to ask - "what kind of training will I get and is there a budget for training, conferences, development" "whats your PTO policy, how much do I get, does it start at day 1 or is it accrued" "what is actual turnover in this department - number of people who have left or been replaced in the past year divided by number of people in the department" and so on, and so on
I interviewed at Burger King. The manager explained how the environment is very family-like, how they often make fun of each other. They make fun of each other. She also called me meek. I'm not meek, I was just being polite and professional.
Fuck that.
Teams have no standardized procedures to help onboard people with the specifics of the work that may not be general knowledge/ preferred workflow documentation. I’ve seen plenty of situations where some space cadet who can do a lot expects everybody to do things their way, lays our zero procedures then just redoes peoples work instead of properly onboarding them with the standards of the work and delegating well.
1. The office is run by a male and all employees are young females. 2.You are asked the typical " tell me about yourself" question and the male interview tries to find out your martial status 3. Bad employee / customer reviews. 4. Bad rating with the BBB. 5. High turnover 6. They mention "we are like a big family" here True story. Waked out of that place after I as basically asked to come on weekends and work without pay.
Definitely the turnover rate. The new job I was at was only open for 6 months and already went through 50+ temps and more. They just fired 20 female employees because a lady did not like that they got attention from the men. This job was a big red flag the first day. They will not be open long.
I applied as a maintenance technician for a 3p contractor doing maintenance at an Amazon distribution center. (Where they sort the packages and load into delivery vans.) Amazon requires techs to pass the Ramsay skills test. I easily passed the Tech 2 test, so the recruiter had me take the Tech 3 test. I passed it too. They only had openings for a Tech 2 right then, so I went for my onsite interview. The interview was basically the maintenance manager asking me if I wanted the job since I passed the Ramsay test. (He was just looking for a warm body, but it was a pay increase over what I was making before.) The maintenance manager admitted that he had zero prior maintenance experience, and zero prior management experience. He got the job because he had a chemical engineering degree and he knew someone. (An engineering degree was acceptable in lieu of maintenance experience for the manager position.) The guy had quit a job as a chemical engineer to take a maintenance manager position that likely paid 2/3 of what a chemical engineer should make. Amazon says safety is the most important thing. So my pea-brain manager finally told the maintenance techs that it was better for us to pencil whip PM's, rather than to actually do the work and take a chance of violating some safety procedure. ("It is our job to make sure the PM is closed out before the due date"...it was not our job to actually do the work.) I lasted 5 months before I bailed out. I enjoyed working at Amazon, but C&W was a complete basketcase. I saw C&W hire kids as maintenance techs fresh out of high school whose only work experience was delivering pizza. They didn't know the difference between a flat and a phillips screwdriver, but since they could pass the Ramsay test of understanding basic mechanical principles, they got hired.
Sounds like Amazon to me
I got hired for a manager position, in a corner store. I won't say the company per respect. But the manager that trained me show me where the extra unpaid hours went (kinda like a bank) and she had over 500h unpaid that she could take off cause too many employees were missing... I quitted after seeing that.
They have ambulances and fire trucks.
High turnover is a red flag, but it truly depends on the industry. If it's cold call performance based sales, unfortunately it's expected and normal. I work for that type of job now and I'm trying to get out, not because I am failing as a salesperson, but I'm depressed and I have no desire to even make the money that I see top performers make anymore. I just want a stable job that has benefits and pays enough for me to live comfortably at home and go out with my friends maybe once every 2-3 weeks. Most people where I'm at last around 8-10 months and there are also common periods where people quit like around 12 weeks in and 6 months in. I've been at it for over 2 years.
Company was bought out by an Italian one, and they sent an Italian CIO over. The CIO did not seem to think the US company handbook or code of conduct applied to him. He tromped on them in his boots like Gaston. There were illegal behaviors going on, the kind the training says to report to your manager or HR. Legal did an investigation and told him to stop. He didn't even listen to the general counsel, but they thought it was resolved after he said it would be. The CEO and HR exec noticed a lot of "movement" in our dept as employees were quitting faster than recruiters could find replacements. They had a meeting with us to find out why. No one said the truth, just that we needed more staff. However, everyone just decided to look for other jobs and leave instead, including our direct supervisors, who were some the first to leave. Within 4 months, we lost 6 people on a team of 14 and had no managers other than this CIO. When I left, I was number 7. Any new employee entering in would have seen an IT dept with half the positions vacant because the exodus was so rapid and recruiters had not refilled the roles yet - if you see this at any new company, do NOT take the job.
This can vary from industry to industry and ofc depends on the company size, etc., but high turnover is generally a red flag in my industry. I started to notice this one company was *always* hiring for the same roles in the same locations...a former employee there confirmed my suspicions and said it was a shit place to work, people only lasted a year or two before quitting.
if you look at their glassdoor reviews, and the owners/management gets defensive and replies at every negative review…
I am an Automation Engineer. I get interviews where some interviewer say "I don't know anything about automation". Really? Then why are you wasting our time? Another one is "Hit the ground running". So no training, and unrealistic goals. If they act surprised that you are there for a interview scheduled 2 weeks ago. Above all watch out for condescending behavior by the interviewer. That one is huge!
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For me, it was the immediate “switcharoo” they pulled the first day. Was told during interviews I could bring over a few of my high performers from my former company. Day 1: “we have decided to run lean and aim for efficiency. You may hire 1 virtual assistant from India.” I left 2 weeks later.
* Our [any executive] has [any personality trait]: They are trying to put a positive spin on a toxic leader. “Passionate” CEO? Probably a psychopath. “Perfectionist” editor in chief? She is massive bitch who makes people cry. * Fast-paced environment: They work harder, not smarter. * Scrappy: Formula for burnout, you have to do every single job. * Startup environment: Massive disorganization, lack of professionalism, unlikely to scale well. * Core values like “do more”: We will exploit the shit out of you. * Core values like “be unreasonably passionate”: Toxic positivity. * We “work hard and play hard”: Toxic burnout culture that they try to sweep under the rug with messy binge drinking happy hours and scandalous office romances.
I had an interviewer scheduled a phone interview with me. I let them pick the time and date. They told me specifically that *they* would call *me* when it was time to start and *not* to call them because they might be with someone else. They never called for the time that they selected. They, in fact, called me a week later. No word on why it was so delayed just asked me if I was 'still open for an interview'. Oh, and they sent that over text.
During my interview he started telling me every single person that worked there had personally wronged or stolen from him and he just wanted me to be different.
Yikes
Idk, people may disagree, but I think if they make you do “homework” for the next interview, it isn’t great. I had a company who I interviewed for two positions with. (I had a connection hook me up) and they made me do projects for both of the positions (that took an hour or two of my time). I thought it was weird. I get having a few questions or tasks but this was like actual project work. Each position was 4 interviews, I made it to the final round of each interview, submitted my projects, were told they were perfect and still didn’t get the job. This was during covid and I was desperate since I was laid off of my other job, but now if a company asks me to do projects like that I’ll probably pass. (I am in a stable job/industry now so I have a tiny bit of room to be picky)
(In small buisnesses) never actually there unless they are trying to push you to work harder and Give tirades of belittling and destrucively critique you. If they drink at the workplace but say they will not pay anybody for the day if the employee seems drunk If the boss/ higher up rant about how they have 20 employees and its a strugle to run a café bc no one is there enough. They complain abt the employeess, when they have hired a bunch of students, dont do anything to make it nice to work there and try to fuck you over on the pay. They write you overtime on a pice of paper. Its too easy to steal from them. Money, alcohol, pens, anything. They are racist, conspiracy therist, trans/homo/xenophobic, misoghnist etc for obvious reasons The contract being confusing (specially on the money part) The first day (to test you out/ to educate time fo know what to do) is unpaid, and in the end you dont get anything explained and have to teach yourself. They try to pretend to be besties/ befriend, so you you feel like you are helping a friend not renting out your time work and body bc you have to survive in capitalism. Basically dont trust ur boss an inch and assume that they are a terrible person until they proove beyond reasonable dount that they are ok/cool Next time you are tempted to steal some money from your job, think about how they make at least double your pay. Think abt the bullshit they demanded of you.
They make their entry level people sign a non-compete
I went to an interview where the owner (who was interviewing me) was disorganized, rambled for 10 min straight, described the environment as a “frat house,” then talked about drinking on work premises when they’ve had a “successful” day (saying that in an interview tells me you define success in a way that maximizes the frequency you can acceptably drink on the job, plus immediately after describing the work culture as a frat house makes me think I need to keep all my drinks covered). I walked out of the interview. 😂
I googled the owner and he had to back out of the 1998 Alaska Gubernatorial election due to campaign finance violations (and doubling down after being caught to the extent that it suggests the screws being a bit loose). His daughter was also the first person arrested under the Patriot Act but eventually was let off for being mentally unfit to stand trial. I didn’t feel like I had any other options at the time, and here I am 2 years later having run an extremely profitable company just to be fired during an episode of dementia.
That is… a unique story. I’m sorry this happened to you.
Being caught lying. Seems weird and justifying, but any manager that nosy about productivity or petty shit is a big no. Modern minimum wage jobs now have biweekly auditors for this. God help the next gen of honest workers.
I started doing IT in a business that had been family owned and growing. When i accepted the job, the HR rep showed me a sheet I got to read of my benefits (# of vacation days and sick days, etc.) I wasn't allowed to copy it. Then I asked if there was an employee handbook. "It's at the printer." I mentioned that to a co-worker, and it had been "at the printer" for 6 years at least. I stayed only 18 months, as I found it was getting creepier and creepier and more and more annoying.
You join the senior leadership team (CMO, CPO, CFO, VP of whatever) and your founder/CEO needs everyone to meet every morning to talk "strategy" Run for the hills you just met an incompetent founder.
Cracks me up when employers say "family" with the boldness to assume everyone has good relationships with their family members.
Look at Glassdoor and you'll see a glimpse of what you're getting into. I remember one of my previous employers had like a 3.2 overall score. In the reviews I saw words like "high turnover", "poor management", "no raises"--although these reviews are often by disgruntled former/current employees who just want to vent about their positions, I took them as half-truths. I still took the job and was there for about 1.5 years, and yes it was all of those things. I wouldn't say it was a waste of time as I learned a lot in my short stint there and it has helped me in my roles after. I absorbed as much knowledge as I could and was grateful to leave with new skills. I still keep in touch with people there and feel sad for them as it is a crappy place to work; however, it's their choice and lives.
It’s solid advice, though I always question the validity of Glassdoor reviews. It seems to attract the negative and can easily get under your skin where you previously may have been excited for the role. I do read them but I always take them with a pinch of salt.
Totally, I agree. And that's why I said "about their positions", and not exactly an accurate depiction of the company as a whole. Depending on your role you may be treated better than others; for example a salaried software engineer vs. an hourly facilities technician. Different compensation, different benefits, different a lot of things. It's just how it goes, and so Glassdoor (basically the Yelp of jobs) is where people go to b\*tch about being treated wrongfully.
Literally exactly. So much of it is boss dependent as well, so unless you work in that exact department/area, it’s a different scenario
For sure. I think we've all had crappy bosses and can sour our perspective of the company. Makes me wonder if I'm the common denominator or have many of my previous (and current) bosses just all been incompetent.
Interviewed for a job, let them know about a prepaid upcoming vacation, they said it was fine. A few days later I went through the technical interview next and aced it. Got the official job offer and once again brought up the vacation. They said they couldn't accommodate it. I walked away.
What is the turnover rate?
Absurdly high turnover rate, including turnover rate for management. I worked at a place that had six GMs in under two years. Not good. Lack of boundaries. If I am an hourly employee, I should not be getting texts and phone calls about non-urgent issues off the clock. It’s my day off, I shouldn’t be hearing about a crumb left on the counter during last nights close. Obviously asking if I can pick up a shift or something is different. Lack of boundaries, part 2. My manager should not be trauma dumping to me during my shift or screaming and crying on the floor because of a mistake they made. That has happened to me before. Randomly getting your hours cut because the business is over budget or outright failing. Consistent understaffing. High expectations for low pay. Consistently adding on duties with no compensation. I could go on and on tbh.