Recruiters are serious dodgy people (Katie, and Ian, if you happen to read this, you are the honourable exceptions). I just got an email from a guy called Chris King, from Lloyd Harrington. I’ve never spoken to before – at my work email no less – with the subject line “Follow Up”.
In the email he asked me to contact him. I called him, assuming it was someone I had spoken to previously (they all tend to blur into one after a while). But no. He was some random recruitment agent, who had got my email address “from the receptionist”, and asked me if I wanted to “advance”. Advance what? His cut of my pay?
I asked him how he knew about me at all. “I call a lot of people every day and they said you where an excellent developer.”
Then he asked me various questions about my current employment I shouldn’t have answered (I did, because I was off guard). Finally he mentioned “two opportunities” in “web forms” … and couldn’t tell me any of the technologies involved.
Pfft!
Great spray!
But all too common – the industry seriously sucks. You have people like King randomly calling and telling porkies about how they found you all day: see my posting on Industries, like Fish, Rot From the Head Down on my blog, http://www.tobymarshall.com.
The industry gurus, the experts actually tell them to lie.
Cheers, Toby
Is there anything you can do about asshole recruiters? I’m basically being threatened by one for not accepting a position through them. It is the most unprofessional experience and has me pretty steamed. Is there anyone I can call and complain to?
I’m not sure Katie. I guess from the way you spell “asshole” that you’re in the States, right? There’s probably some ombudsman or industry watchdog you can talk to but I don’t know who that would be in America.
If they are threatening you in a scary way you could just call the cops on them!
Feel free to post their full name and the company they work for in these comments .. we could start an online “name and shame” :)