Avoid Plantation Mentality in the Hiring Process

Unemployment abounds. Young candidates, ages 18-24 are particularly hard hit with some sources quoting 50% unemployment or underemployment. It is a time when prospective employers should be on high alert to avoid unethical practices in the hiring process. In the last three months I have witnessed many examples of this, some that are illustrative are below.

A family friend, a recent MBA graduate, lost his sales job and has vigilantly been interviewing with placement agencies and companies directly. He has been stood up by a head hunter after he traveled an hour for a lunch meeting. The excuse was a "last minute conflict." He made it to a 3rd interview round then was told after he heard nothing for 3 weeks ("we will get back to you by Friday" was the dictate), they "decided not to hire anyone." Finally, after a 2nd interview with a large communications conglomerate, he was asked to create a spreadsheet for upcoming 4th quarter projections that they would be free to use (own) as an indicator of his ability.

My daughter obtained her business degree in 3 1/2 years, only to find a stagnate business climate. She was one of scores that applied for a internship with a San Francisco based start up, requiring an extensive amount of product reviews as writing samples. Yes, the company could and use those reviews. She was one of 3 who scored this modest paying internship - only to find the paychecks were farther and farther behind. While the boss apparently was losing his funding, he seemed to think the idea of a non-paying situation might fit his needs as well as hers. He lives in a million dollar plus home, has a wife, three young children, a vacation home and really lousy business ethics.

Another young friend found a job on Craig's list for an Australian wine company planning to make their entrance into the USA market. An experienced wine marketing major, she was asked to provide numerous wine reviews of their products and friends' opinions of their products, and then was told her profile would be submitted as part of a VC solicitation package. There might be a position for her if the funding was obtained.

Let's be perfectly honest - people who are doing the hiring today might be doing the applying tomorrow. There are many super qualified people out of work, and more than one dead beat in a so-called (and maybe temporary) position of power. There's only one letter in the alphabet between the "f" in firing and the "h" in hiring, I think symbolic of their symbiotic relationship. Deal with candidates honestly and promptly, pay them a contract fee if you are going to use their work product and walk that proverbial mile in their footsteps in each stage of the hiring process.