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Top 20 Job Posting Red Flags of the Month (June 15, 2023)

Top 20 Job Posting Red Flags of the Month (June 15, 2023)

If you're out there looking for a new job like so many of us, you better keep your eyes open for these major red flags! We all know what some of these red flags look like. For instance, when you're applying to jobs on Indeed or LinkedIn, you are very likely to come across a posting where the salary is “competitive,” the benefits are vague, and the years of required experience are ludicrous. There is no universe in which an entry-level position should require over five years of on-the-job experi…
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'My boss was let go': Boss gets fired, now the company wants this employee to take their job without a raise

'My boss was let go': Boss gets fired, now the company wants this employee to take their job without a raise

Increased responsibility deserves increased compensation. Usually, if you're being given more responsibility, it comes with more stress and added workload, which you have achieved by displaying competency, aptitude, and adequate experience—at least in theory. Unfortunately, at times an employer might try and tell you that they're doing you a favor by bestowing increased responsibility upon you, and why should a favor get you a higher rate of pay? If anything, you should be paying them —they'd a…
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'I knew it would be a total mess': Micromanaging supervisor's simple mistake costs company $220k, gets fired

Whenever someone is confidently incorrect, sometimes it's better not to argue with them. Instead, make sure you cover your own rear and let them do their thing… and watch the chaos unfold—just as this worker did when they got a micromanaging new boss. This thread was posted to Reddit's r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit by the worker, Reddit user u/BrightRick. u/BrightRick explains that they worked for a catalog in the 80s. What's a catalog, you ask? Well, see, before the internet, people who were…
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'The manager was wearing shorts and flip-flops': Candidate told to dress professionally by interviewer wearing shorts and flip-flops

When you make a request of someone to uphold a certain standard, do a certain thing, or act a certain way, there's a general expectation that you will uphold the same—acting in a manner that makes your request appropriate. It's called “leading by example,” and people seem to really struggle with it, with many leaders making no attempt or actively avoiding having to do so. This job candidate reported being specifically asked by the HR worker, who was setting up the interview, to ensure that they…
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'I was fired after this': Worker fired for missing work due to injury sustained from shoplifter

You might think that being injured while trying to defend your company's property would get you a warm thanks and a pat on the back, at the very least… and definitely not a swift kick out the door. But chasing down someone who has nothing to lose is dangerous and not a risk worth taking—and (hopefully) not a risk your employer wants to take liability for. For that reason, most businesses often have rules about not engaging with shoplifters, thieves, and other criminals—even for security guards,…
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'Coldest Regards': Job candidate's passive aggressive cover letter goes viral

The modern job application process is as dehumanizing as it's intended to be. Apply to 200 jobs, and you might hear back from five, eventually getting an interview with three, with (hopefully) one actually having a chance of progressing to employment. Long gone are the days of “Turn up at the office and chuck your CV at the nearest manager" to prove your gumption. I highly doubt that method was actually as efficient as we've been led to believe. Still, if your older relatives are to be believed…
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'Now they want a resignation notice': Teacher gets fired, then ordered to submit a resignation

Getting fired sucks; having your means of income suddenly dissipate leaves you in a pretty vulnerable situation, forcing you to dig into your savings in order to keep yourself afloat—which, considering how hard it is to save at the moment… probably doesn't leave you with a lot. Luckily, there's unemployment (if you uniquely qualify), which can help bridge the gap and keep you off the streets while you find new work, which your previous employer must pay a part of—unless they can devise a way to…
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'There's a camera in my office': Employee discovers boss is watching their every move, internet reacts

'There's a camera in my office': Employee discovers boss is watching their every move, internet reacts

If this isn't a red flag, I don't know what is.
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'I'm going to need you to step up': Manager demands worker comes in despite already having plans with family

People have a habit of deflecting their own problems onto other people. If you own a business and don't schedule or hire enough people for a holiday weekend, that's probably your own fault—and your own problem to resolve. Still, it's pretty common for business owners and managers to turn around and blame workers for not being available at the last minute when they already have plans. This worker shared their experience on Reddit's r/antiwork subreddit, sharing screenshots of an exchange that oc…
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'I’m resigning Tuesday after Memorial Day and going on vacation': Dude regrets leaving $78k job for $90k WFH job, opts to be unemployed instead

'I’m resigning Tuesday after Memorial Day and going on vacation': Dude regrets leaving comfortable $78k office job for discombobulated $90k WFH job

The job market is not easy these days, ask anybody looking for a job right now. It's no walk in the park. One guy had a comfortable job that paid him a pretty good salary of $78k—however, it wasn't work-from-home and he was getting bored. Then, out of nowhere, he got a job offer from a “fully remote” company that offered him full benefits and a $90k salary. Who would turn that upgrade down, right? He turned to Reddit asking if he should make the change, and every wholeheartedly agreed . So, he…
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'That would be to expensive': Boss boasts about his standing desk but won't let anyone else have one

Standing desks may have become all the rage, but some people can't stand them. Being on your feet all day can be tiring and result in aches that can't wait to be eased by a well-deserved rest. Just ask anyone who works in retail, nursing, or the service industry and has to be on their feet all day. Workers from these sectors are probably permanently bewildered by office workers' obsession with standing. My own experience with standing desks has led me to believe that their sole reason for exist…
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'I thought everything was going OK': Worker fired for using her phone one month after starting new job

This worker shared her experience on Reddit's r/antiwork workplace subreddit community, telling of how she had been fired for using her phone from her new job despite never being given any warning that this was an issue. She had just started the new job a month ago, and although it was in a new industry she thought the job had been going well, but had never received any kind of employee handbook or had any rules regarding phone usage explained to her. “If I had been told that I was not supposed…
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'I need to get paid on payday': Bartender gets fired and blocked for demanding to be paid on time

Remember that one kid from your high school English class who treated everything like it was a complete joke—to the point of cruelty—never taking or accepting responsibility for any of his actions? Yeah, well, that kid could have very likely gone on to become someone's manager or open their own business. Now there's a terrifying thought. It's like George Carlin famously put it: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.” Well, this bar owner and…
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'Okay, I quit': Overworked worker denied a raise, immediately quits

Being denied a raise that you've legitimately earned often won't cause you to quit on the spot—but you might wish that you could. Often an organization won't see your contribution from your point of view, you might be coming from the standpoint of your raw productivity, but they're considering the entire weight of the top-heavy organization you've got presiding over you that they think is enabling that productivity to happen (and they have a point.) Plus, they have a standard to set; from their…
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'We will contact our lawyer': Company threatens candidate with legal action after they leave a review of their interview experience

Feedback is important but usually not well received. People generally don't like hearing all of the things that they could have done better; those with overly inflated egos tend to take this especially poorly. Sure, it doesn't feel good, but most of us would take the feedback—maybe apply it, maybe not—and move on from it. Only occasionally recollecting the exchange when the intrusive thoughts move in while trying to go to sleep at night. Rather than doing this, this company decided that they ne…
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'I put in my [four] week notice': Guy gets passed over for promotion, successful candidate tries to get him to do his work

Getting passed up for a promotion when you know you're the best candidate is heart-breaking—made worse by the fact that it's usually because of some petty political dynamic or so that they can bring in a nepotism hire. Bonus points when the person who successfully interviewed for the role turns around and asks you for help or tries to delegate your work because your peers and managers have recognized you as the “go-to person." Whatever you decide to do at that point… you probably would like to…
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