Recruitment agents unprofessional behaviour

S

shammy feen

Registered User
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65
Hi folks,

Just got to get this off my chest.
I live in China at the moment.
In the last 4 weeks I have been contacted by 3 different Irish recruitment agencies by e-mail about discussing possible work in Europe and have arranged a time and date to recieve a call from the person, generally at around 12 noon GMT which is 7pm here. On each occasion the agent has not bothered to call at the appointed time and has not even sent an explanation by e-mail. Maybe im being over sensitive but I find this at the very least bad form and unprofessional behaviour. Its as if its ok to act this way because there are more candidates than jobs at the moment.

I generally spend some time playing with my 2 small kids before bedtime and its annoying that im hanging around wasting this time waiting for a pre-arranged call that never comes.

I have checked my phone and skype and they both are functioning normally.

There will come a time again when there are more jobs than candidates and I will remember who not to deal with again.

anyway...just letting off steam....;-)

Shammy
 
shammy feen said:
Hi folks,

Just got to get this off my chest.
I live in China at the moment.
In the last 4 weeks I have been contacted by 3 different Irish recruitment agencies by e-mail about discussing possible work in Europe and have arranged a time and date to recieve a call from the person, generally at around 12 noon GMT which is 7pm here. On each occasion the agent has not bothered to call at the appointed time and has not even sent an explanation by e-mail. Maybe im being over sensitive but I find this at the very least bad form and unprofessional behaviour. Its as if its ok to act this way because there are more candidates than jobs at the moment.

I generally spend some time playing with my 2 small kids before bedtime and its annoying that im hanging around wasting this time waiting for a pre-arranged call that never comes.

I have checked my phone and skype and they both are functioning normally.

There will come a time again when there are more jobs than candidates and I will remember who not to deal with again.

anyway...just letting off steam....;-)

Shammy
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yep. common practise with Irish recruiters.
..and when they call you, they havent even bothered reading your CV and end up talking to you about jobs for which you have no interest nor qualification.
join the club Shammy..
 
The new entry of James "The Dragon" Khans recruitment company may shake up the market somewhat but then again it'll be the same "Recruitment Professionals" just working for a different company so buisness as usual.
 
My feeling on it is at the busy times there were specialists who at least knew their area whether it was construction, science, insurance etc. etc They didn't have to be great sales people but just had to know what an employer was looking for. Now there are just a few left in each office and they cover all the areas. They have little or no clue what job suits what qualification. A few examples:

I recently met a headhunter as part of the first round of interviews for a job. Half way through the interview he went off on a tangent about another job he had that I would be "perfect" for. His words not mine. He just basically parked the interview and tried to sell me the second job. He gave me application forms and everything for it while getting paid for doing an interview. I had no interest in the job and it completely threw me.

My wife received about 5 calls from one particular recruitment agent. At least 3 of them were to ask her if she knew of anyone who would be interested in a particular job. He would open with the usual "so how are you?" and "sorry I don't have anything for you at the mo" rubbish and then he would quiz her for candidates for jobs in other parts of Ireland.

I rang an agent and asked if she had anything going in my field. She sent me on a job that was way different to what I do. So far removed that it might as well be brain surgery. Against my better judgement I let her put my CV forward. No surprises then when I didn't even get a call to interview. The same company will have other jobs coming up that I am interested in. I am going to apply directly.
 
You are their product. The employer is their client. As long a you remember this and never expect any kind of honest behaviour from them, you won't be disappointed. :)
 
I was sent by an agency for a job in Bray - only it was the wrong job ! The HR Manager & me were fairly peeved at this.

When I contacted the agency, he tried to say that the company had got it wrong !!
 
I often arrange calls with my clients at a certain time. Usually they say they will call me. If they don't call me within 10 mins or so of the appointed time, I call them. That saves me hanging around for a fairly indefinite period waiting for them. It is annoying when people don't call/turn up for meetings when they say they will but it's pretty easy to contact them by phone if they don't.

If I was waiting for a recruiter to call me, I would do the same - call them 10 mins after the appointed time (thereby letting them know that they didn't call on time) and re-schedule for another time. Then at least you know you are free for the rest of that evening.
 
Recruitment Agencies are crap. They hold on to your CV for years.

They are not worth contacting IMO.

They are very pushie at a time when you agreeable for any type of interview.

They act as if they know what they are talking about but the love to undermine your confidence & send you on "wild goose chases".
 
WaterSprite said:
I often arrange calls with my clients at a certain time. Usually they say they will call me. If they don't call me within 10 mins or so of the appointed time, I call them. That saves me hanging around for a fairly indefinite period waiting for them. It is annoying when people don't call/turn up for meetings when they say they will but it's pretty easy to contact them by phone if they don't.

If I was waiting for a recruiter to call me, I would do the same - call them 10 mins after the appointed time (thereby letting them know that they didn't call on time) and re-schedule for another time. Then at least you know you are free for the rest of that evening.
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Hi Watersprite.

I dont agree with that opinion. If you instigate a prearranged business appointment with someone, you should keep to that appointment time to the best of your ability to do so. If you dont, its only common courtesy to send an e-mail, apology or message for the reason you couldnt keep to your arrangement and then try to re-arrange for another time. To just not call and not send on a reason/apology why you couldnt make the appointment is just plain ignorant behaviour.

It should in no way be the responsibility of the person you arranged to have the meeting with to chase after you if you instigated the process.
 
shammy feen said:
Hi Watersprite.

I dont agree with that opinion. If you instigate a prearranged business appointment with someone, you should keep to that appointment time to the best of your ability to do so. If you dont, its only common courtesy to send an e-mail, apology or message for the reason you couldnt keep to your arrangement and then try to re-arrange for another time. To just not call and not send on a reason/apology why you couldnt make the appointment is just plain ignorant behaviour.

It should in no way be the responsibility of the person you arranged to have the meeting with to chase after you if you instigated the process.
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I'm merely suggesting a practical solution which saves me (at any rate) hanging around waiting for a phone call for an indefinite period. I didn't actually express an opinion seeking to exhonorate any type of behaviour. It's far better for me to call if someone hasn't called in time rather than sit fuming at a desk.
 
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