Jobhunting etiquette

In My Humble Opinion
1

Dear Dopers

Here’s a quandary I’ve come up against several times and never really figured out the best solution to. I’m looking for a job, and I just finished an interview with Job A. It was remarkably brief and I have no idea if I got it, though the interviewer muttered something about a training session tomorrow and that he’d call me back. I have an interview with Job B lined up later this week. Now Job A seems like a pretty good gig, so I’d be happy to get it, but:

  1. If it turns out I did get Job A, and I go to training tomorrow, have I more or less locked myself into taking the job?
  2. Is there any way to say “hang on, I want to go to this other job interview first” without looking like I don’t really want Job A?
  3. If the answers to 1 and 2 are “yes” and “no”, respectively, is there any way in a situation like this to scope out both (or all) jobs instead of being stuck with the one that offers you the earliest interview/throwing away perfectly good opportunities and risking ending up with no job at all?

Note that neither of these are “real jobs”, they’re paid by the hour.

2

My suggestion would be that if you get the call from job A, explain that you have another commitment later in the week and will be available to start next week. If you attend training, yeah, you have pretty much taken the job unless the training is unpaid or something.

When you attend job interview B, you should have enough questions for the interviewer that you can make a decision. If B is good for you, take it and call A and tell him you have found other employment. If A is better, tell B thanks, but you have other plans and call A. Most employers know that you are looking at several places at once and will take that into consideration.

SSG Schwartz

3

Something I often have to repeat to myself over and over:

“It’s just business; it’s not personal.”

You’re not locked into any job even after you’ve started it. I’ve had co-workers (briefly) who decided that the job wasn’t working out for them and left their brand-new job after 2 months, and this was a mid-level salaried position. For hourly jobs (waiting tables, specifically), some people were gone after one or two weeks, or even one or two shifts.

Keep in mind that there’s no boss who’s going to keep you around purely out of the goodness of his heart, either. It cuts both ways.

If offered, you can go to the first job, do the second interview, and if you get and like the second job better, just tell the first one that you feel things aren’t working out. If you want to be really nice, offer two weeks notice, but if you’ve only been there a week it’s not necessary. It won’t be a job that ever ends up on your resume.

It is in your best interests to be vague as to why you’re leaving. Just keep repeating “I just don’t feel like this is working out.” Eventually they’ll get it that they won’t get anything else out of you.

4

If they haven’t given you a formal offer in writing, and if you haven’t formally accepted said offer, then you haven’t locked yourself in yet.

5

Ahem, just because it’s hourly doesn’t make it not a “real” job --especially in this economy.

That said, I applied for at least a dozen or so crappy retail jobs in early Sept. Had interviews with four or five, accepted the only job actually offered to me. At which point I’d only attended a couple of interviews. Never mentioned my present crappy job at one of the later interviews, may have mentioned it in the last one (can’t recall). Would have happily accepted a job offer from the place I interviewed at only a week or two after accepting present job, but of course was not offered one (and quite frankly, I fear I shot myself in the foot by not implying hard enough that I was willing, nay, eager, to promise them to work there for the rest of my life).

At some level, crappy retail jobs and other hourly type gigs expect that if they offer 90 people jobs, 80 will accept, 70 will pass the drug test, 60 will pass the no-felonies background check, 50 will show up for orientation, and fewer than 40 will make it through the 90 day provisional period without No-call No-showing, being chronically late, or otherwise showing that they don’t really value their jobs.

So the employers treat the employees like disposable, interchangable cogs in wheels, and wonder why no one gives two weeks notice.

OK, my crappy retail job is with a Big Box Store–if you are applying to places with smaller workforces, some of my comments may not apply.

But in my opinion, it is perfectly legitimate to go to training for a day or two and decide that you hate it, and no longer wish to be employed by the company. You don’t have to tell Company A that in reality, your biggest reason for quitting is a job prospect with Company B. And certainly you can request that your training schedule be arranged around a " previous committment" without specifying “job interview with Company B”.

Saying you want to go to another job interview first is a bad, bad idea, unless YOU are special and being heavily recruited. Well, maybe not that bad an idea, but really, employers want people who will stick around through thick and thin. They know they can’t really get them or even just identify such people through a job interview, but they are going to try.

So take the first opportunity which presents itself, but it’s ok to keep looking for better opportunities–Employer A is looking out for its #1 interest and that’s not you.

6

Yeah, but it’s not a salaried job. I don’t think I’ve ever been given a formal offer in writing or otherwise. It’s always been more along the lines of “Can you start tomorrow? You can? That’s super!” I’m mostly worried these employers all need someone right now and aren’t going to bother waiting for you while you shop around.

7

Oh whoops, my post was directed at JThunder, not Eureka.

8

It is not wrong to say that you are pursuing all your options and need X time to be sure. HOWEVER, be prepared for them to either say “see ya” or demand an answer right away. It is not wrong for them to do this either. If they want you badly enough, they won’t do this, but you must be prepared for it.

9

Don’t mention other interviews. Just say you have personal commitments for the rest of the week but are available to start on Monday (or whenever).

10

Well, it depends on how you define “real” job. Any job that expects you to start tomorrow and wouldn’t be surprised by someone leaving after a few weeks doesn’t sound like a place where people have serious careers.

The general etiquate is that your new job should expect you to start in about 2 weeks. IOW that you would give your previous employer 2 weeks notice.

It’s ok to tell them you are interviewing at other companies until they make you an offer (it makes you look more in demand). Once they make you an offer, companies become like a crazy jealous girlfriend. So delay your start date with someone like a “doctors appointment” or “personal commitment”. Don’t tell them you are still shopping around, otherwise they may just give the offer to the next chump.

That said, no matter what kind of job, unless you are under some sort of signed agreement with the company, you are pretty much free to quit the next day if you want. You shouldn’t really do this unless your dream job al of a sudden came through at the last minute.

Worse case, you stay at a job you don’t like for a year or until you find something better.

11

I’m oversensitive on this point at the moment for reasons I’m not going to share with the world in general. But I’m not sure who benefits when we claim that only people who have “serious careers” have real jobs. If you are expected to show up on time reliably, punch a time clock, and meet your responsibilities, it’s real, even if part-time, temporary, and without benefits.

12

Absolutely do not do this in the private sector in the U.K. - the thinking goes, “If they don’t want you, why should we?”

13

Tell them you have prior commitments and can’t start until X date. When I was interviewing for jobs I had 2 that I accepted and then almost immediately left (one within 2 days and one within 3 weeks) because they were not what they had promised to be during the interview process. I then had one offer that took it’s sweet time coming around and by the time I heard back from them I had already found a better position. I do not feel bad at all for the 3 other jobs I ended up not taking or bailing out on simply because my first priority is me, not them, and I know they would lay me off or fire me without a second thought if it was to their benefit. The days of working for 40 years in the same company and pension with a nice gold watch are pretty much over at this point. Take care of you first and don’t worry about the other companies. Don’t moon them on your way out just for the sake of burning bridges or anything but don’t feel too dedicated to a company for any reason either.

14

For an hourly job, I agree, just tell them your busy for the rest of the week. If they must have an answer and you need a job, then I would just take Job-A. Job B might not even offer you anything but if they do, well, you tried to stall, you did your best.

15

Huh? How can “they” know if they want you if they haven’t yet met you? Also, doesn’t the fact that “they” want to meet you for an interview indicate at least some level of wanting you? If “they” didn’t want you, you wouldn’t have other interviews.

Not grokking the logic, here.

16

My vote goes for yes, you could start with job A and quit if job B comes through, but you would still owe job A two weeks’ notice to not come across as irresponsible. Just act really surprised and pleased that job B came through with an opportunity better than you’d expected.

17

I have some questions

How can you leave an interview with " I have no idea if I got it, though the interviewer muttered something about a training session tomorrow and that he’d call me back." You should have gotten more information. I will come back for a second interview, but if I am coming in for training the clock starts with the first class. So before I leave we will have discussed pay, benifits, hours and such.

On one job interview I was offered a job to start the next day, but I had a second interview at another job the next day. When he pushed me to start the next day I explained that I had a prior committment the next day and would not be able start until next Monday. I passed on the second job. Called the first job and told him I would be able start Monday and made arangements to be picked up Monday morning.

What the heck does “Note that neither of these are “real jobs”, they’re paid by the hour.” mean?

18

Seconded. There is no way I would attend a training session if I wasn’t sure I had the job!