I was selected for an interview with a well known Canadian railway company. It was originally stated over email that there was an information session that would provide more insight on what the job was, what to expect, etc. This was to take place at 9AM over Zoom. When I confirmed my interest for the interview, another email was sent out saying the information session would start at 930AM (first red flag), and my interview was scheduled for 1130AM. (I had no option to schedule a convenient time for me, it was a “take it or leave it” situation, cue second red flag)
So, I took time off work so I could accommodate all of this video conferencing…information session was a 10 minute useless jabber PowerPoint presentation that spoke nothing about the job, instead was a dick stroking about the company. I see no reason why this couldn't have been a private YouTube link I could have watched at my own leisure. Here's the kicker – the person responsible for handling the candidates mentioned this job would require 3 weeks training at a location that would require me to relocate. The company would pay for hotel accommodation – that's it. HUGE red flag. The original job ad, although did mention “The incumbent receives on-the-job training, both theoretical and practical instructions, over a period of 3 weeks at 40 hours per week.” – No mention of where the training location is, or that this would likely require relocation for the majority of applicants. The job posting also did not mention where the actual job would be located after training is completed, or post a salary/wage. The only reason I applied was because I had never interacted with this company before, and me none the wiser thought a well known unionized railway company would probably be a good place to work.
The good part of me wanted to email the recruiter at the end of the presentation and thank them for their time, cancel the interview as I have no interest in relocating for 3 weeks for a job I'm unsure of, much less with a company that pulls shady shit long before ever meeting anyone face-to-face. I neglected to do this because this company wasted my time, so why shouldn't I waste theirs? I've seen this job ad with the same company posted before and now I know why it keeps resurfacing.
TLDR: Company posted a job ad with vague details, shows it's ugly head over a zoom presentation and wonders why they can't find people to fill the position.