Tl;dr if a company doesn’t accept applications through job sites, save your breath bc every single one of those jobs are hell.
Some background: I (26m) have worked retail jobs since fresh out of high school. I’ve done almost all types you can think of from bagger to cashier to my current job which is sales (IE selling furniture, cars, etc. that type of work). Out of all those types of jobs, the ones that are more stressful and anxiety inducing are the ones that outright to refuse any application that isn’t directly from their own career site. If a job doesn’t accept your resume and application through third party such as indeed.com, DO NOT APPLY.
Those types of companies want you to jump through their hoops to get someone that will do whatever they can to please their superiors. It’s a disgusting tactic that a lot of AAA companies use such as Safeway, Home Depot, etc. to get their worker drones in that can take emotional/psychological abuse. Keep in mind, I’m talking about online applications direct to their website. Going to a staffing agency isn’t any better. They want the same thing and that’s to get a warm body as quick as possible.
On the other side of the coin, every single other app that has accepted my resume through job boards, recruiting agents(from job boards or direct from a sub-department of the company you’re applying for and specifically designed to conduct interviews before accepting applications, NOT FROM STAFFING AGENCIES. I’ll talk about the differences below) have all had healthy work environments that do care about you and your work. Those jobs every time have been good work and give you the respect that a worker deserves. That means no grievances for requested days off, not being called in last minute on said days off, no power hungry managers, the list goes on.
Now that doesn’t mean there’s not gonna be at least one or two out there where the roles are reversed, but 9/10 times it’s been accurate every time for me.
Moving on, here’s where I’ll explain the differences between staffing agencies and recruiters. You can skip this part if you want.
Staffing agencies: these places are a lot like used car dealerships. They will sell you on a job and do very little past that. They are designed to fill labor quotas and sometimes get kick backs from companies dependent on how many applications get approved. They will always say they are from a staffing agency or are reaching out on behalf of a certain company. These agents will use language that avoids connecting them to the company by anything aside from proxy.
Recruiters: most of the time these agents are reputable and will ask you questions and conduct interview screenings before even offering the job. These types of recruiters want to see if you’re actually worth the time of sending your app to the company. They will say they are a recruiter with said company and will be honest and blunt.
Thanks for listening, I just sometimes see an influx of people on this sub saying their job wasn’t what they were expecting or felt like they were coerced into the job and thought my experience dealing with all sides would help.