Preying On The Job Seeker

Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Preying On The Job Seeker 23 - AI Video Job Interview

Ever apply for a job that has some sort of AI video interview through a third party?

Check THIS OUT:

What does HireVue do?

HireVue helps global enterprises gain a competitive advantage in the modern talent marketplace with cloud based video interviewing, assessments, scheduling, and conversational AI software. Our customers can use our software to schedule and conduct video interviews, or can combine our video interviewing software with our Assessments tool(s) which involves the use of predictive, validated occupational science and artificial intelligence in order to augment the customer’s human decision-making in the hiring process.

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Video Screening Co. HireVue Illegally Collected Illinois Job Applicants Facial Scans, Class Action Alleges

By Erin Shaak
Class Action

Deyerler v. HireVue Inc.
Filed: January 27, 2022 - 2022CH00719 [TIMELINE] [DOCKET ENTRIES]

A class action claims HireVue collected job applicants’ biometric information without first providing statutory disclosures and obtaining informed consent.

Online video interview platform HireVue faces a proposed class action over its alleged practice of collecting job applicants’ biometric information without first providing statutory disclosures and obtaining informed consent.

According to the lawsuit in Cook County, Illinois Circuit Court, HireVue uses an algorithm to collect and analyze the facial geometry of a job applicant during a video interview and assess their “cognitive ability, personality traits, emotional intelligence, and social aptitude.” The lawsuit alleges, however, that the defendant has failed to satisfy the disclosure and consent requirements of the ILLINOIS BIOMETRIC PRIVACY ACT (BIPA), a state law designed to prevent the unauthorized collection of consumers biometric data, including facial geometry scans.

Per the suit, HireVue failed to provide certain disclosures regarding its data collection and retention practices and obtain job applicants’ written consent before collecting, storing and disseminating their private biometric data. The case claims HireVue failed to satisfy BIPA requirements even though doing so is “straightforward and may be accomplished through a single, signed sheet of paper.”

The lawsuit explains that HireVue tells its customers, i.e., prospective employers looking to fill open positions, that its video platform can collect “thousands of data points” during each job candidate’s interview. HireVue has allegedly represented that facial expressions make up 29 percent of a job applicants “employability score.”

The case alleges that the information collected by HireVue in the course of a video interview is “exactly the type of information regulated by [the] BIPA” - namely, consumers’ facial geometries.

According to the suit, HireVue has failed to inform job candidates prior to their interviews that their biometrics will be captured, collected or otherwise obtained, and secure their consent to collect the data. Moreover, HireVue ran afoul of the BIPA by failing to publish a publicly available retention policy outlining how long consumers’ biometric data will be stored, the lawsuit alleges.

The case further claims that HireVue unlawfully profited from Illinois residents’ biometric data in that it was paid by its clients for the use of its software.

The plaintiff, an Illinois resident who applied for a job with Varsity Tutors through the defendant’s platform in September 2019, says that she remains to this day unaware of the status of the private biometric data collected by HireVue. Per the case, HireVue violated the plaintiff’s “substantive state rights to biometric information privacy” by failing to comply with the BIPA.

The lawsuit looks to cover anyone whose biometrics were captured, collected, received through trade or otherwise obtained through HireVue’s video interview software within Illinois at any time within the applicable STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS PERIOD.

SOURCE

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Your next job interview might be with AI. Here’s how to ace it.

By Megan Cerullo
CBS News
June 16, 2023

Looking for a job? You may find yourself “face to face” with an artificial intelligence bot, rather than a person.

Corporate recruiters have long used AI to quickly scan job applications and whittle down the number of applicants. Now, companies are increasingly using the technology to conduct the job interview itself. This presents job candidates with a range of new challenges in what can often be a stressful situation, not the least of which is this emerging consideration: How exactly do you impress a bot?

“Employers understand that using AI can save them time, so we expect to see more of them using it in some way in the pre-screening interview process,” Keith Spencer, a career expert at FlexJobs, told CBS MoneyWatch. “From the candidate’s perspective it can be intimidating. You’re not interacting with a human - you’re interacting with AI, which can feel kind of strange.”

A recent survey from Resume Builder projected that by 2024, roughly four in 10 companies will use AI for job interviews. Of that number, 15% of employers said they will rely on AI to make hiring decisions without any human input.

What is an AI job interview?

Although virtual job interviews were used before the COVID-19 pandemic, the public health crisis made the process a necessity. Now that they are more commonplace, businesses are increasingly using AI to screen candidates.

“For years human resources departments have been using AI to automatically screen for resumes and applications. Now that virtual interviews have taken center stage, it’s being used as a first screening, especially in non-complex jobs where you have clear parameters,” Zahira Jaser, associate professor at the University of Sussex Business School, who focuses on how humans experience technology, told CBS MoneyWatch.

There are different types of AI interviews. In an AI-assisted interview, a job candidate is presented with questions on screen in text form that they answer and submit via either text or video. A recruiter or other company staffer involved in hiring then evaluates the submission to assess if the applicant is a good fit.

“Some have just an element of artificial intelligence so the candidate is recorded and someone watches their video,” Jaser said.

In that scenario, AI might help cull an applicant pool and recommend standout candidates. Notably, the technology could also inadvertently nix highly qualified job applicants, experts noted.

“The truth is it is still eliminating some candidates before a human makes the final decision,” said Stacie Haller, career adviser at Resume Builder.

“Existential dread”

Then there are those interviews that are AI-led and “completely automated,” according to Jaser. The experience is a little bit like videoconferencing with yourself. In CBS MoneyWatch’s test of AI interview software, the platform presented text-based questions on a screen above a live video box into which the candidate spoke. Their answers were recorded and submitted for review by AI.

In practice, an algorithm reviews and judges the candidate’s video submission based on verbal data, including the words they use, and vocal data, including a person’s manner of speech and delivery. In most instances, by contrast, privacy laws prohibit companies from collecting facial data.

“The candidate is in front of a screen that has questions that appear and the candidate has limited time to answer these questions,” Jaser explained, adding that the experience can be jarring. “People who have sat in these interviews find it difficult because they almost all fall into an existential dread when, at a very important time in your life, you’re not facing a human and you’re not seeing cues coming to you.”

How to impress a bot

Unlike a personal interaction with a human hiring manager either in the flesh or on a computer screen, conversational bots don’t give interviewees on-the-spot feedback or other cues on how they’re doing.

“The beauty of having an in-person interview, which is already a stressful experience, is that there is a human encounter. You meet a human, then you have an exchange, and if you sense a good emotion in the other person it’s a way to measure ourselves,” Jaser said. “We’re always looking for positive cues, and in this case you’re not getting any. So you have to be confident you’re saying the right thing without any cues.”

That said, experts offer some tips on how to ace an AI job interview.

1. Pretend you’re talking to a human. Spencer of FlexJobs recommends that candidates pretend they are interacting with a human, while acknowledging that can be difficult while responding to digital prompts.

“It’s like having a videoconferencing conversation with someone, but there’s no one there. You don’t see another face,” he said of the AI interview experience. As a result, candidates sometimes inadvertently end up mimicking the software and can become robotic in their responses, which is something to avoid.

“They get more rigid, their facial expressions become more stoic and they aren’t conscious of their non-verbals as much as their verbals. And AI programs are assessing non-verbals,” Spencer said.

Instead, pretend you’re interviewing with a person. “Maintain eye contact [with the camera], dress professionally, smile, and project confidence and friendliness,” he added.

2. Mine the job description for key words and use them. Companies instruct AI to assess job applicants based on predefined criteria related to their overall goals or a particular role they’re trying to fill. So as with any job interview, it’s wise to research the company and read the job description closely beforehand.

In an AI interview, though, it’s even more important to use words and phrases that correspond to the duties and qualifications of the job.

“There is a good chance the AI-interview tool will be ranking you based on your use of keywords and phrases from the job description,” Spencer explained. “If you’re gregarious, don’t rely completely on your charm. You want to have your facts straight and also have a clear understanding of the industry position, and be able to provide solid, tangible examples of your work.”

3. Practice, practice, practice. The best way to become more at ease interviewing while speaking to a screen is to practice. Jaser recommends a three-step approach. Start by practicing by videoconferencing with another person. Have them ask you generic as well as tailored interview questions.

It can also be useful to use a tool like Prepper from job search site Adzuna, billed as an “AI interview coach,” that generates questions related to whatever job description you feed it.

“It’s incredibly helpful to have someone ח or some thing chuck you a bunch of questions to get you thinking,” said James Neave, head of data science at Adzuna and one of the developers behind Prepper. “You’ll know if you’re prepared if you can answer those questions in a confident and accurate manner.”

Next, have your interviewer turn their camera off to simulate interviewing while addressing a blank screen. Then eliminate the human factor altogether and record yourself using a videoconferencing tool. Watch and review the recording. Keep a scriptin mind that includes key words you want to use.

“If you learn keywords, you’ll have quicker mental shortcuts to get to the info you want when the screen asks you the information,” Jaser said.

SOURCE

Sunday, May 28, 2023

Preying On The Job Seeker 22 - Ghost Jobs Redux

Ghost Jobs: An Economic Illusion That Harms the Unemployed

By Daisy Luther
The Organic Prepper
May 27, 2023

Are you trying to better yourself by finding a new job?  We keep hearing about record-low unemployment. This would make one think that there are job openings all over the place.  Have you been diligently looking through online job postings and filling out applications, only to hear nothing?  You might be chasing after ghost jobs.

"Ghost job” refers to online job POSTINGS THAT ARE SEEMINGLY NEVER FILLED. 

Why on earth would companies do this?  Why let people chase jobs that don’t exist?

A closer look at ghost jobs

Let’s look at why so many GHOST JOBS are out there, why mainstream media is reporting on the economy in the way it is, and what steps individual job-seekers can take.

Clarify Capital CONDUCTED A SURVEY of 1045 managers involved in hiring between August 31 and September 1, 2022.  They asked managers why they left job postings online even though they were not actively trying to fill those positions.  The answers?

· 50% reported that the company is always open to new people.

· 43% wanted to keep employees motivated

· 43% to give the impression that company is growing

· 39% the job was filled

· 37% to keep an active pool of active applicants in case of turnover

· 35% in case an irresistible candidate applies

· 34% to placate overworked employees

· 27% forgot to delete the job

· 33% no reason in particular

Disorganization within large companies can lead to incorrect job postings as well, according to a March 20, 2023, ARTICLE in the Wall Street Journal.  Many large companies have been going through rounds of layoffs and restructuring, and departments may post job openings redundantly or for jobs that havent been approved at other levels within the company.

This sounds like a fairly toxic situation between employers, employees, and potential employees.  If our unemployment rate is so low, we SHOULDN’T have so many people in employment limbo.

What’s actually going on here?

As explained by Heresy Financial, there are two sets of data used to CALCULATE employment rates, the establishment survey and the household survey. 

According to the establishment survey, the current unemployment rate is 3.4%, the lowest in history since 1969.  This is calculated by asking companies how many employees they have.  The big gap in establishment survey data is that it does not account for people working multiple jobs.  If one person is working days at McDonalds and nights at an Amazon warehouse, two separate jobs are considered filled, even though one person is filling both.

Household surveys are conducted by asking individuals where they work.  This is more accurate in that it accounts for people working multiple jobs, which is common at the lower end of the socioeconomic spectrum.  When you consider how many people work multiple jobs, it reveals a more accurate picture of how many people are not actually working at all.

Once seen as a fool-proof field, TECH COMPANIES have been MAKING LARGE ROUNDS OF LAYOFFS. Looking at skilled vs. unskilled jobs in the Heresy Financial video, we see that the jobs most in demand are the ones that do not require a college degree.  Those with a college degree, expecting a more highly skilled job, are finding fewer job opportunities.

Nobody wants to admit they’ve ruined the economy.

I’ve got a bunch of teenagers at home.  They’re still being told that college is the way forward in life, but this does NOT SEEM AS TRUE as it was 30 years ago.  Why the deception?  WHY would mainstream media push the narrative that the economy is booming and that if you just go to college, you’ll find a good job?

First of all, no politicians want to admit they’ve ruined the economy.  Much as I’d like to blame Biden for everything, fudging jobs data to make it look like a higher percentage of the population is employed has been going on FOR AWHILE.  This isnt partisan. ItҒs just politicians being politicians.

More significantly, the U.S. has held status as the world’s reserve currency for almost eighty years now.  This comes with ALL KINDS OF ADVANTAGES, such as ease in foreign transactions and the ability to impose punishing sanctions. 

However, this reserve currency status has been based on a level of trust with the rest of the world. Everyone agrees to accept our money largely because, particularly after World War II, we had such a stable, transparent economy compared to almost everyone else.  Politicians know that a lot of perks come with being the biggest and wealthiest, and they want to continue to present America to the world in that way.

There theres the AI effect.

Perhaps most significantly, the emerging use of AI has brought a great deal of chaos and uncertainty to the job market.  It’s highly likely that politicians and large employers alike would prefer to keep quiet about how much DISPUPTION will occur due to this new technology.

Many companies now USE AI TO PROCESS JOB APPLICATIONS. (We TOLD YOU it was going to be everywhere.) Large companies routinely use AI to filter applicants, even though algorithms are known to filter out qualified employees.  Despite known issues, AI is so much cheaper this problem will not go away any time soon.

Worse, the advent of AI has made companies unwilling to invest in new employees if they think they will be able to buy software soon that will be able to perform the same function.

This is not widely discussed due to fears of social disruption.  You may not remember learning about the Luddites in history, but I can guarantee you the people in charge do.

THE LUDDITES WERE a group led by Ned Ludd, a displaced artisanal weaver, back in the nineteenth century at the beginning of industrial cloth production.  Ned Ludd led other displaced workers on a rampage of property destruction throughout England before being brutally uppressed.

“Luddite" now is a term used to throw at anyone deemed anti-technology, but the Luddites weren’t anti-technology.  They were angry at the total change in lifestyle they knew they faced at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, and they tried to do something about it.

Needless to say, it didn’t work. I dont think smashing computers will solve our problems.

What can we do about ghost jobs?

But what can we do?  Are there still real jobs out there?  How can we avoid wasting our time with ghost job postings?

· Look at how long a potential job has been open.  If it’s been more than a month, be suspicious.  Also, look for how detailed the job responsibilities are.  The more specific the company’s needs are, the more likely it’s a legitimate job. (SOURCE)

· Apply for jobs on the company’s website, rather than through a site like LinkedIn or Indeed. (SOURCE)

· If no company contact information is listed, that’s a bad sign.  Same goes for poor grammar and spelling.  Also, if you spot a company that looks interesting, do an internet search.  If you can’t find much information about the company, avoid it.  Don’t ever give out money or a social security number before an actual hire.  And if the potential job sounds too good to be true, it probably is. (SOURCE)

· To avoid getting filtered out by AI algorithms, bear in mind that very tiny things will likely put you out of the hiring pool.  Do not go over word limits; be meticulous in your grammar and spelling.  While human eyes may see through minor mistakes in the case of an outstanding applicant, an algorithm wont.

And it’s okay to send out emails checking on the status of a job within a month of sending in an application.  If you’re afraid youve missed a call or deleted an email from a potential employer, reach out.  At least the potential employer will know that you really want the job.

Personally, I have heard complaints from both ends.  I know young people can’t find jobs. I can also think of three friends off the top of my head, actively trying to hire, that cannot fill positions.  Two of those jobs are very physically demanding, but they’re still jobs.

The job market is a mess, and nothing is as it seems.

There is a huge amount of turmoil in the labor market right now.  Deception abounds as to what career path is most promising.  We have a serious mismatch between what kinds of jobs we think are available and what jobs really are.  Ghost job postings are not helping anything. Neither will nagging or blaming other individuals in your life.

Encourage the job-seekers in your life to keep trying.  Maybe watch some videos together about ways to improve their resumes.  Or have conversations about broadening what kind of work you’re willing to consider or where you’d be willing to live.  Job markets can vary dramatically from one part of the country to another.

Hang in there!

Don’t give up.  Ghost jobs are making life difficult right now, but if you feel like you’ve fallen for a trick, don’t take it personally.  If you have been frustrated by this situation, realize you are not alone.  Ghost jobs are a real phenomenon. If the Wall Street Journal is criticizing employers, you know something’s up. 

And if you know someone who is searching for a job, consider this information before you tell them that they simply aren’t trying hard enough.

Hopefully, youve gotten some food for thought about how to filter your own searches a little bit so that you can avoid wasting your time with ghost jobs in the future. 

About Marie Hawthorne: A lover of novels and cultivator of superb apple pie recipes, Marie spends her free time writing about the world around her.

SOURCE

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Sunday, April 09, 2023

Preying On The Job Seeker 21 - Fake Job Ads

Job Seekers Face Rising Number of Employment Scams

By Jim Gambon
AARP
April 1, 2023

The 50+ Job Seekers in Massachusetts networking program usually offers its members workshops on resume writing, interviewing and the skills needed to land their next gig.

Last year, it added tips on how to keep criminals from landing them as fraud victims.

In December, the program hosted a workshop by AARP FRAUD WATCH NETWORK volunteers to warn people about the growing risks for those in the job market particularly amid the economy’s shift to remote work.

“Job seekers are very vulnerable,” says Karen Sowsy, who is a manager for the 50+ program. “People with long-term unemployment may be desperate. They’re often ready to jump at the first opportunity.”

Fake job postings on social media sites and online job boards, scammers posing as recruiters, and fraudulent offers sent by text and email for high-paying remote positions that require the purchase of software or work-from-home supplies are just some of the common schemes, says AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline volunteer Alice Diamond, 68, of Arlington. Swindlers are after money but also personal information - a key ingredient for identity theft.

“The last couple of years there has been a tremendous proliferation of scams,” says Diamond, who recently retired as associate dean for career and community service at Lesley University in Cambridge.

Nationwide, business and job opportunity reports ranked No. 12 on the list of most common consumer complaints and scams in 2022, according to the Federal Trade Commission, with 95,399 reports. Thats up from 38,451 reports in 2019.

‘Mystery shoppers’ targeted

AARP Massachusetts recently added employment scams as a topic covered in its fraud prevention programming.

“We saw people make decisions at the beginning of the pandemic to quit their jobs or retire,” says State Director Michael Festa. “Now some people are reconsidering those decisions and are reentering the workforce. The fraudsters know that.”

Mystery shoppers and virtual assistants are among the job categories that scammers frequently target, Diamond says. Mystery shoppers are hired to pose as regular customers and provide feedback to a retailer or restaurant about its service. Scammers try to charge applicants for phony training or certification. Or, they may send a bad check to the job hunter to cover purchases and ask that money be wired back to cover taxes, overpayment or other fees.

As for virtual assistants, Diamond says scammers will offer job seekers a high-paying remote position and request that the new hire pay for office supplies or other expenses up front, with the promise of reimbursement.

“Scammers are criminals, and they are sophisticated,” Diamond says. “Some of them could win an Emmy for their acting and a Pulitzer for the emails they write.”

Before engaging in any job-related transaction, Diamond says, people should do some digging to verify that the company or recruiter theyre dealing with is legitimate. Search your contacts for anyone who may be familiar with the firm or individual. Scrutinize email addresses for authenticity, and do an online map search for any physical address you’ve been given.

And if you do fall victim? AARP Fraud Watch Network volunteer Dennis Hohengasser, 73, of Taunton, says to reach out for help. “Its important to talk about it,” he says. “That will help heal the trauma.”

For information on AARP MASSACHUSETTS Fraud Talk Tuesdays, the AARP FRAUD WATCH NETWORK or upcoming fraud-related events, see aarp.org/mafraud.

SOURCE

Monday, September 19, 2022

Preying On The Job Seeker 20 - Ghost Jobs

Applicants say they’re being ghosted by recruiters, having their resumes eliminated by applicant tracking systems (ATS), and struggling to find remote work opportunities. At the same time, unemployment benefits have been cut off.

By the end of September, Holz had sent out 60 applications, received 16 email responses, four follow-up phone calls, and [one] solitary interview.
- Job Hunting 2021

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That’s not a real job opening
Some companies are posting ‘ghost jobs’ but don’t actually plan to hire you - or anyone

By Rebecca Knight and Juliana Kaplan
Business Insider
September 18, 2022

· The number of job openings has been sky high over the past year in the red-hot labor market.

· But some job seekers are still striking out, especially as the economy faces headwinds.

· That could be because some firms are posting “ghost jobs” that they’re not actually hiring for.

After applying to more than 300 jobs in the last six months without a single bite, Will no longer bothers to read job descriptions or research companies.

It’s just a waste of time at this point, said Will, whose real name is withheld but known to Insider.

He spends six to 10 hours a day on LinkedIn churning out applications, but says that he and his peers with similar credentials master’s degrees and MBAs from top schools - are having no luck getting interviews.

“I’m seeing all of these articles about how COMPANIES CANNOT RECRUIT PEOPLE fast enough and how there’s all these job openings,” said Will, who aims to land a consulting role. “But I’m also seeing my own personal experience and seeing other highly qualified candidates who can’t get interviews or can’t get jobs and I’m like, ‘Something is wrong with the system.’”

It is a puzzle in this remarkably tight labor market. While many EMPLOYERS CAN’T FIND ENOUGH WORKERS, some qualified candidates are applying to open jobs and AREN’T HEARING ANYTHING BACK.

That applicants are, on occasion, GHOSTED BY EMPLOYERS is nothing new, of course. But lately questions have been raised about whether a company’s job postings are reflective of actual open positions, or instead “ghost jobs” listings that employers are no longer actively hiring or recruiting for.

According to a RECENT SURVEY of roughly 1,000 hiring managers conducted by Clarify Capital, a boutique lending firm, 40% of managers have had a job posting open for over two to three months; one in five managers said they don’t plan to fill their current open job positions until 2023; and half of managers said they keep job postings up because they’re “always open to new people,” even if they’re not actively recruiting.

“We have over 150 million people working in the US economy,” Kathryn Edwards, an economist at the RAND Corporation, told Insider about the GREAT RESIGNATION. “Whatever can be true is true for at least one person. Having that many workers means that you can have two true stories that are in absolute conflict, and it totally makes sense that they’re both in our labor market.”

SOME RESEARCHERS SAY that “job openings” might mean something different today than it used to, and that companies routinely ADJUST TO FORCES in the economy and their industries by ramping up and down the intensity with which they recruit. OTHERS, MEANWHILE, HAVE SPECULATED that companies today are posting jobs but not trying hard to fill them, perhaps due to uncertainties about the economy. But at a time when many workers are still QUITTING THEIR JOBS AT ELEVATED RATES emboldened by the apparent strength of the labor market, the ghost job phenomenon underscores the idea that EMPLOYERS STILL HAVE THE UPPER HAND.

“Evergreen" postings in an uncertain environment

There are many reasons why companies might post vacancies with seemingly little urgency to fill them, recruiters say. Sometimes they want to give the impression that the company is growing ח but in an inflationary economy, growth is expensive, so they’re hedging their bets.

Sometimes they leave listings open with dreams that the perfect, unicorn candidate might apply. Other times they might post jobs to pacify their exhausted employees and demonstrate that they are indeed at least trying to hire more help.

There are also some jobs that are so in-demand think: mobile developers and software engineers ח that employers might leave up openings in hopes that someone, anyone will apply.

Allyn Bailey, a former recruiting strategy executive at Intel and now a director at Smart Recruiters, a talent sourcing and hiring platform, said that companies are more often posting “evergreen requisitions” listings for jobs that, in theory, they always need even if they don’t have the budget to hire. “That way they have a pipeline to leverage when they’re ready,” she said.

Of course, candidates don’t know that. They apply in good faith, ignorant of this strategy, and when the company eventually calls them, she said, “the talent is either not interested, has moved on, or is annoyed.”

Some recruiters say that ghost jobs are on the rise due to the heightened level of uncertainty that’s persisted for the past two and a half years. With the ENDURING LABOR SHORTAGE and high turnover, they can no longer accurately predict candidate behavior and flow. That, combined with a slowing economy, has created an air of tentativeness.

“The companies I talk to are struggling with how they think about HOW TO GET STRATEGIC WORK DONE because the contours of their business are changing rapidly,” said Pat Pettiti, CEO of Catalant, the online platform that connects independent consultants for projects at large corporations.

“They don’t understand who or what they need - and so they’re hesitating when it comes to hiring.”

Moreover, fears of a looming recession have made them hesitant to commit. “That’s why you have some managers thinking, ‘My boss told me to hire someone, but am I going to have to lay them off in three months?’”

William Stonehouse, the president of Crawford Thomas Recruiting, the Orlando staffing firm that matches jobseekers with Fortune 1000 companies, said that he often coaches employers on the perils of posting ghost jobs.

“A lot of businesses don’t understand the impact that a negative hiring process can have on future applicants,” he said. “If your listings are a graveyard of old positions and candidates are uploading applications into a resume black hole, it doesn’t set a good tone. People want to be treated with dignity and respect.”

“There are too many jobs posted”

Andrew Flowers, a labor economist at Appcast, the recruitment advertising technology company, expressed skepticism that “ghost jobs” are a widespread problem. “Some employers no doubt are fishing they have a job opening, but aren’t planning to hire - but I think this is a small minority of employers,” he said in an email interview with Insider.

Flowers pointed out thatings in each month, rem the overall job fill rate, the ratio of hires to openains very low, which reflects the tight labor market. Meanwhile, other economic research shows that recruiting intensity matters less for the job search-and-matching process than factors like candidate skills and quality and the macroeconomic environment.

“It seems plausible that the job openings figures overstate the amount of active recruitment going on, and perhaps by more than in the past,” he said. “But it’s also very clear that there are lots of openings right now.”

“When employers first started grumbling about a labor shortage,” Erica Groshen, a senior economics advisor at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations and former commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, was a little suspicious of the high number of job openings. But as she watched wages rise and job switching soar, she was sold on the phenomenon of real hiring.

Even so, “the advent of the internet means that applying for jobs is much easier,” Groshen told Insider.

“You can apply to so many more jobs, which then means that companies have to SORT THROUGH SO MANY APPLICATIONS many more than they ever used to before - which means that they employ algorithms to do this sorting,” Groshen said. “Those algorithms are going to be fairly crude.”

The number of openings and ease of applying are cold comfort for Will, who’s still fruitlessly job hunting day after day. For jobseekers like him, who come in with degrees and specific qualifications, the reality might have to be abandoning those ghost jobs altogether and seeking out poorer matches. After all, about a third of college graduates are underemployed, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, meaning that they’re in roles that don’t typically require a degree.

That’s because, even as workers are in a red hot labor market, they still don’t have the upper hand when it comes to work. Because workers in the US ultimately need a job to eat, pay for housing, and have health insurance, employers have what’s called monopsony power, which allows them to dictate wages, working conditions, and scheduling and it lets them post jobs they might never fill or accidentally filter the right candidates out of.

“There are too many jobs posted, he said. And the “websites - some of them are just broken and some just don’t work. It’s almost comical.”

SOURCE

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Thursday, August 20, 2020

Preying On The Job Seeker 19

Twice the past month on jobs I applied for - one at a good-old American telecommunications company, and the other a city government job - the self-identification page for ethnicity and race threw me for a double-take:

 

 

The first drop-down box for ethnicity is either “Hispanic/Latino (default)” or “Not Hispanic/Latino.”

 

 

Being a red-blooded Caucasian/White American male, born, living and looking for work in the United States, I selected “Not Hispanic or Latino,” then “White,” and finished filling out the forms, which wound up being an utter waste of time.

I got “thanks but no thanks” denial emails minutes after applying, surprised at how fast that was. 

Maybe some MACHINE scanned the forms and found a field or two that automatically disqualified me.

Kinda makes one think that Latinos and Hispanics are the majority workforce, and/or preferred job candidates.

God help the WHITE WORKING MAN.

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In memory of the layed off workers of AT&T

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• Being Poor
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• The Safety Net And The Recession
• Five Years Later
• Hopelessly Unemployed in 2012
• The Beaten Baby Boomer
• The Long, Dark Tunnel
• Voices Of The Long-Term Unemployed

Drowning In Debt

• When Bankruptcy Makes Sense
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ARS Technica

• Behold the world?s oldest sandals, buried in a ?bat cave? over 6,000 years ago
• Critical vulnerabilities in Exim threaten over 250k email servers worldwide
• WHO says flu vaccines should ditch strain that vanished during COVID
• DOJ finally posted that ?embarrassing? court doc Google wanted to hide
• ?No choice at all?: Pharma companies begrudgingly agree to negotiate prices
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Reference

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