I’ve been going through a lot for the past few months (sleeping on my friends’ couch, using food stamps, etc) and I’ve been applying for jobs during this time. Recently, I heard back from an employer who asked for me to come in for an in person interview.
Interview was fine and nothing out of the ordinary. Then the manager asked if I wanted to come in for a “working interview” where you come in for a few hours to see if you “fit in.” I have never heard of this before, but I am desperate for a job so I said sure, no problem.
I go in the next day and the manager puts me with one of their receptionists to show me how things work. I was taking a lot of notes, filing paperwork, verifying insurance eligibilities, checking in patients, etc. The manager expected me to answer the phones as though I legitimately worked there. I was there for four hours and they simply gave me a pat on the back and said “we’ll call you in a few days.” Of course, I never heard back. I live in NYC and was told that this is legal, which seems absolutely horrible. I’ve received another offer for a “working interview” somewhere else and I accepted initially, but I just cancelled it b/c I really believe it’s unacceptable for employers to do that.
Regardless, I left the first company a terrible review and reported the job on Indeed. I just cannot believe places are allowed to do something like this.
My apologies for the rant. Stay safe and well! <3