4 red flags to watch out for when job hunting
I hate to be the one who tells you this, but the road to finding your next job is littered with red flags. From questions around salary to unethical interview questions and obscure job listings, here’s 4 red flags to keep an eye out for on your next job hunt.
Asking about your salary
Asking what your current salary is may be an attempt to lowball you. If you tell them that you’re currently earning $55K, you’ll likely get a response like: “Great, that’s what we’re offering for this role. Does that suit you?”
They may have actually been offering 55K to 70K, and you’ve just indicated that you're happy earning at the lower end of the range. Eeek.
It’s not your fault though – it’s an unethical question that 19 states in the US have banned from being asked in interviews.
Here’s some ways to answer this icky question:
Great! I was going to ask about salary – what salary range are you looking at?
What was the previous salary of this role?
My current/previous role involved different responsibilities so I’ve researched the average salary for this role in our area. My expectation is a salary of $X in line with my research and level of experience.
Personally, I’ve lied in an interview and stated that I was earning 8K more than I currently was, so when they hit me with “Are you happy to receive that here?” I’d sneakily snagged myself an increase in pay.
You’re hired before the interview is even over
Interviews are preliminary discussions, designed to see if you’re a good fit for the company, and if the company is a good fit for you. So with this definition, you should be raising your eyebrows at any company that eagerly offers you the job in the interview.
There’s a process to this whole job search thing and being offered the job on the spot disrupts this big time. Usually, the hiring manager will need to check your references after the interview, hold interviews with other candidates and even sometimes get you in for a second interview.
So what does it mean if they bypass all of that and offer you the role in the interview?
It means alarm bells should be going off in your head. Ask yourself – why do they need to fill this role so fast? Why don’t they want to check my references? Don’t HR need to approve hiring choices? DO THEY EVEN HAVE HR?
Offering you the role on the spot could mean:
They’re desperate to fill the role - it’s been empty for a while (and there’s probably a reason for that)
They have a high turnover rate so they don’t invest time in new employees
They don’t value company culture, so they’re not too fussed on making sure you fit the team
They don’t have a HR team or a proper hiring process - BIG yikes
Remember, you don’t have to accept a role on the spot. You’re perfectly entitled to say “I’ll get back to you by Tuesday!” so you can take the time to evaluate the offer.
Salary isn’t listed in the advertisement
Is there anything more frustrating than the salary being excluded from the job advertisement?
Often we use expected salary as a filter when job hunting, so to land on a job that looks promising but doesn’t state the salary range is…painful.
It can just mean that the salary is yet to be decided or confirmed. However, sometimes it can indicate that the salary is below average for the role.
So, what should you do?
If the job is your ABSOLUTE goal and you’d be happy with whatever pay, apply! (But you should be getting paid properly, even if you love the work!)
Find the contact details of the hiring manager and give them a call. Express how much your interest in the role and think you’d be a great fit and enquire about the expected salary.
Apply and ask about the expected salary in the preliminary phone interview.
There is nothing worse than going through the whole interview process and being offered the job, only to find out that the salary will not support your lifestyle and you’re forced to decline the offer.
Talking about money can feel icky, but money is literally what we trade 40 hours a week of our time and effort for, so just ask! It’s the hiring manager's job to discuss salary and benefits, so they won’t be alarmed by you asking!
Entry level/junior role requires 5+ years of experience
How can an entry level job require multiple years of experience? Surely that’s counterintuitive.
And yep, it sure is. It may just be the employer describing their ideal candidate, but it could also indicate their workplace culture.
If an employer wants junior or entry-level candidates to already be experts, they may not offer great support, training or professional development when you start the role. It could also indicate that there isn’t much room for internal promotion, as everyone is overqualified.
You might even find that while these jobs offer an entry-level salary, the workload actually resembles that of a more advanced role.
Seeing “must have 5 years of relevant experience in a similar role” can be super disheartening when job hunting, but don’t let it stop you from applying if you haven’t clocked up the years of experience.
If it is a true entry-level job, you’ll be able to excel with a little bit of time and training.
If you’re currently on the job hunt, keep an eye out for these red flags. Unfortunately, there’s plenty of them out there, so I recommend trusting your gut and doing your research if something feels off.