Dear fellow Anti-Work Redditors,
Welcome. I appreciate your interest in reading my post. I'm a 28 year old single male in S.E. USA and have applied to over 1000+ jobs in my lifetime, interviewed (virtual + in-person) with over 75 companies in my lifetime, and have had the pleasure and *misfortune* of dealing with the HR lady, HR managers, 3rd party recruiters, and all the inefficiencies, and I argue, inherently corrupt/manipulative designs on American work hiring practices.
As if inflation, cost of living, rampant division, and domestic affairs aren't tough enough these days, but as young professionals, we were LIED TO. Somewhere between freshmen and sophomore year of college, I showed up angry to the gym ready to blow off steam from the misery (back when I was like 20) of realizing college sucks. Despite my disdain for taking out debt to attend college, my cognitive dissonance at that time kept me pushing to get the degree. In hindsight, I would have been better off dropping out and doing my own thing, but I thought of “the American Dream.” I got scammed by a feeling, if that is even a thing. I now am taking measure into my own hands to learn behind the roses and sunshine of the “American Dream” is nothing in substance.
I kept lieing to myself inside college, telling myself just play by the rules, excel at the game, do your “2 years of internships” before graduation, so you can “make the big bucks” and live the American Dream.
I kept giving the benefit of the doubt to the system. I was living by ego, not logic. But despite this, somewhere deep down, my soul was speaking to me, telling me that “this aint it G.”
I did everything by the book and still lost, like many of you reading this who feel upset, angry, demoralized, and negative. Turning in to cynics, our generation has been dealt an unfair hand in a system rigged to keep us down.
Young people en masse line up to the FAFSA every year to get ready to “play Russian Roulette” with their financial future aka college. American life is so unhealthy as it is, and so uncultured. But to make matters worse, there aren't enough good paying jobs for the amount of talent the college machine spurns out. A lot of my questions and grievances as a working professional are now aired towards my experiences in securing the job.
When applying to jobs: It's soul crushing to apply on LinkedIn or Indeed, only to find out the company you are applying to has an “iSims” or “Brass Ring” website.
- Companies do this to weed out lazy applicants from the strong.
- Companies ran by baby boomers are more likely to make it really tough for younger folks to be given the chance cause they are quite LITERALLY afraid they will lose their job cause Millenials will outperform them.
- Baby boomers are highly egotistic. They think their job title makes them a God. The reality is, most people can do the job that pays 100k. Can baby boomers put aside their ego and train and help younger workers to learn it and continue the company growth? NO.
When dealing with recruiters: You get that phone call. The rosy, positive, and deceptive butt-kissing recruiter, who calls or e-mails you with a sugar-coated “lovely” letter letting you know how “experienced and talented you are.
- why do we have to deal with 3rd party recruiters as opposed to hiring managers? It's because companies have learned it's more efficient to out-source and HR managers have less time to weed through 1000s of applicants. Another reason I hypothesize is because today's economy is more risky for employers. With gig-work, and since 2020 people becoming more self-employed, they are turning the tables on the applicants by saying “we will add another blockade” also known as the annoying recruiter who acts as a middleman/woman (to be politically correct lol)
- Recruiters lie like companies lie and embellish Job Descriptions/culture/etc.: Never make the mistake of working at a company for PAY only. you have to research the background of the company, stocks, and stability. Boy did I make a mistake at my last role at a start-up. They flat-out lied to me (partly cause of my desperate financial situation I had to take the role to pay bills), but I did have another offer with a company around for over 100 years. Recruiters talk to 50 other people after they hang up. They will only seek commission and a quick payday to go to Vegas and do blow. You are just a number.
More on company leadership: The last company I was at, I found out the CEO, CFO, CTO, and all except maybe 1 C-level exec were you guessed it, buddies. January 2023 came around and investors funded the startup. by July, 40 people were laid off, and $25 million was *poof* gone. Talk about red flags. Cronyism and nepotism are recipes for disaster. I'm glad the CEO was removed from his position. In order for investors to fund the company (despite metric failures and ARR quotas not being met)
References are bullshit: This is akin to something Adolf Hitler would do. The idea of “good upright moral society” bullshit Nazi Germany tried to build. The idea here is from 200 years ago, and it no longer has relevance in today's society. An easier way to vet candidates would be to have pay-roll stubs showing you worked at a place. Not only that, there is so much variance in people's personalities it creates a system of unfair advantage for some who are well-connected. If your parents are in Congress and well-connected, you have a leg-up in getting the top paying roles as opposed to someone who started with nothing and is truly qualified. I have seen daughters and cousins of statesmen be appointed to office roles in Congress and such, and they do drugs or party all the time, with no care or regards to the job.
The overhaul that is needed: Virtual interviews are a necessity. Not only do people work 9-5, but for those seeking a new job, they obviously can't interview during shift hours (which is another reason the system is rigged to keep us enslaved), but virtual interviews are the 1st step forward to maximize efficiency. Pre-recorded interviews applicants can send in are also necessary for maximizing time for employees seeking a new role. For example, 2-3 questions can be asked by the company on a video, and you can record the answers on your own time and submit it. Some companies already do this, in addition to a panel interview on-site if it's the final round.
Ego is the problem: ok you are calling me crazy for trying to solve an intangible thing, but hear me out. So far the United States has thrived on ego and greed (mainly corps) and executive level people (studies show they are sociopathic in personality). the only way we can achieve a better standard of living for all, and have secure, good paying roles, is if we get rid of the system hierarchy. This adage that “he wasn't fit, so he didn't survive, fuck him” never was the answer to civilization building. This Darwinian theory of survival of the fittest is a ploy to get people to believe “they aren't good enough” to keep them living in fear and strive to “chase the carror on stick” (piece of paper or cert.) to justify corporations not paying them a fair wage.
Wages: okay it took me a long time to process this mentally. Companies will get away with paying you less, because they aren't interested in your well-being or being “fair”. It's a game of leverage. If you are needed and they are more desperate, you hold more power. The same can be said if they have many qualified applicants and aren't willing to give you the $500,000 salary. Wage negotiation is a skill that you must be aware of.
Job pay: Most people are most likely to calculate their pay to see if they can pay their bills on time. Unless you are well-off with tens of thousands in your checking account, you want to know the pay as soon as possible.
This is a power ploy by companies. Remember, companies, politicians, and the system are working together to “keep the peace” i.e. keep the people quiet. Not discussing job pay is a way to keep you on your toes. I once did an interview where I spent not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 hours of my life going through rounds of interviews. And then, the fourth interview was on-site and they still didn't tell me pay. It was only after calling the recruiter and complaining that I need money and I can't make a decision until I know the pay, that the company CFO finally called me to discuss pay. This was a huge red flag, not only were they taking advantage of a broke young person desperate for money, but I was doing a dis-service to myself by not walking away.
Being transparent about pay is also only common in warehouse, delivery, and low-paying jobs which pay less than $25 an hour. I find that all job applications should POST the salary range or hourly range by LAW. I think New York has a mandate regarding this, in addition to Federal jobs.
Anyways, I'm done ranting away, as I just signed my offer letter to a company locally after quitting my last role 1 month ago. I had to go through hell to learn the system, and hope you readers can maybe learn a few things so to save you time.
- In short, you must understand you are not being played with fairly. There are a few good, honest hiring managers, but the majority of companies will try to pay you as low as possible. So know your worth,
- The system is broken and requires a complete tear-down and replacement to catch up with the times.
- We need laws to prevent baby-boomer gate-keeping practices to be made illegal, in addition to outlawing horrid websites like brassring or Isims.
- And finally, we need a mass propaganda machine to teach high schoolers NOT to goto any college, and instead, go to community college and “try out” the college life first before investing their time/energy/taking debt