How to respond to desperate job applicant?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Been there, done that

The candidate was extremely hungry for the job

We hired her. She was extremely loyal, punctual
and obedient but had some peculiar behaviors


You lack empathy for others

I bet you’ve never been that broke before where you can even feed your children

I think the PPs are breaking down into three categories.

1) Empathetic people who have never had to deal with manipulative, high strung people who wind up demanding a disproportionate amount of your time and emotions, create drama, and decrease morale and productivity.

2) Empathetic people who HAVE dealt with manipulative, high strung people who demanded a disproportionate amount of their time and emotions and said "never again."

3) Assholes.

I'm in category 2, and even if this woman would have been as wonderful as the PP's experience, I would not risk getting into another horrible situation when she's already showing a red flag. Yes, you can have people who wind up sucking and never show a red flag during the interview process - that is always a risk. But choosing someone who does havea red flag increases your odds of a poor outcome from the beginning.

And then there’s category 4: Those of us who wonder why the OP left the applicant hanging without giving them a clear timeframe re: what they could expect during the hiring process. This category might easily overlap with the other 3.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Been there, done that

The candidate was extremely hungry for the job

We hired her. She was extremely loyal, punctual
and obedient but had some peculiar behaviors


You lack empathy for others

I bet you’ve never been that broke before where you can even feed your children

I think the PPs are breaking down into three categories.

1) Empathetic people who have never had to deal with manipulative, high strung people who wind up demanding a disproportionate amount of your time and emotions, create drama, and decrease morale and productivity.

2) Empathetic people who HAVE dealt with manipulative, high strung people who demanded a disproportionate amount of their time and emotions and said "never again."

3) Assholes.

I'm in category 2, and even if this woman would have been as wonderful as the PP's experience, I would not risk getting into another horrible situation when she's already showing a red flag. Yes, you can have people who wind up sucking and never show a red flag during the interview process - that is always a risk. But choosing someone who does havea red flag increases your odds of a poor outcome from the beginning.

And then there’s category 4: Those of us who wonder why the OP left the applicant hanging without giving them a clear timeframe re: what they could expect during the hiring process. This category might easily overlap with the other 3.

The OP literally says:

The first was a general thank you for your time I am very interested in pursuing this position further. Then we did the in person interview Thursday and I said we would be reaching out to references. They sent follow up emails Friday, Saturday, and Sunday asking about references progress and saying they really need a job. I updated them yesterday and said we had connected with one reference, are waiting for at least one more to respond, and I will keep them updated. Then this morning I have an email "Good morning, any further progress on my references? I really need this job and to start working as I have no money. If not this job, I am open to any job you have available that I can start as soon as possible. Thank you".

They did not leave the applicant hanging. "I will keep you updated" is OP's response. It says "you do not need to keep asking, I will contact you when I hear back." The fact that the applicant does not 1) understand this or 2) does not trust it says that they could be troublesome as an employee. OP can't give an exact time frame because they are waiting on the references. If the applicant wants daily updates, they should be talking to their references, not the potential new boss. Anyone who has been through the job hiring process should understand these things, and the fact that the applicant does NOT raises a red flag.