Started as the worst, and ended as the best. The beginning started like this: "I'm so sorry to have to inform you of this, but we pulled the wrong resumé contact information, we didn't mean to call you in for an interview." Before leaving, the interviewer gave me a brief tour of the company grounds (because they felt so bad for wasting my time). They introduced me to the department head that I would have been working for, (if that department was actually hiring). Had a great conversation and the department head was convinced that I would be an asset to them, and they hired me on the spot.

Just wanted to add (since this got way more attention than I thought) that I have been with this company for over 8 years now, and they are an awesome bunch of people. It was a very unlucky/lucky day for me!

Rhinosauron , Pankaj Kumar Report

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Pat Bond

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2 years ago

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Extremely rare event, unicorn level. Well done though.

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I was interviewing for a job in Houston, and lived in Austin, about 2.5 hours away. I drove to Houston for the first round of interviews, and they said it went well and wanted to being me in for a final interview, so i drove there again. It seemed like it went well and they told me they had one more interview to conduct and would have a decision tomorrow. So the next day came and went, I emailed the manager to ask if any decision had been made, nothing, waited a couple more days, left a voicemail, nothing. Then a couple days later, I just called the main number for the company and told the receptionist why I was calling. She was like "well, someone just started in that job yesterday". They ghosted me after I drove a total of 10 hours to interview twice. Still salty about that 11 years later.

ElToberino , Charles16e Report

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Jo Choto

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When I was young, no matter what you applied for, you would at least get a call or letter, however short, telling you if you had not got a job. This new trend of not even bothering to contact you after the fact is atrocious.

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I had an interview where I knew the answers I gave were good, solid examples. I understood the technical side well. But the interviewer kept sneering, being rude and saying “really?” In a skeptical tone and I got the distinct impression he hated me. About 20 mins in, I thought about politely calling it a day and leaving but in my innocence thought it would be good practice to stay. 40 mins in, it’s like a light switch goes off inside and he’s the nicest guy, his eyes light up and he started hard selling the role and position to me. Introduces me to the team. The director interviews me and he and the team are lovely. Apparently, their interview technique is to be rude to see how you perform under pressure and they’d all been observing using a camera and were impressed I remained so polite and calm throughout. They couldn’t understand why I declined.
to save me responding to comments. I understand pressure testing is a legitimate technique, and whilst I felt deeply uncomfortable and my gut was screaming at me to get out of there like in a nightclub when you know the creepy guy is really bad news and you need to get out, I understood that it was a possibility that that is what he could have been doing.

However to add more context, they had my work history including 10 years in the ambulance services which involves resuscitation whilst the public yell at you and threaten you. I’m used to being polite and professional whilst being harassed and threatened.

Nothing spreadsheet based, even pulling all nighters is going to match that for pressure and I’m well known for staying calm and composed all the time (even if I’m exploding inside).

My biggest objection was not realising I was being broadcast and hearing them discuss my reactions to my face, like I was some kind of movie actor. It felt so violating.

bibbiddybobbidyboo , Paul Long Report

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Jo Choto

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I don't think that being insulted and provoked in your interview is a reasonable way to test your skills in the field. In fact, experiencing that behaviour from a perceived position of power, in a situation where you are in a position of need, is not a reliable indicator of how you would respond to a patient. Like this person, it would give me a negative view of the company, and I would not appreciate being recorded without consent and being experimented on in that manner.

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Five interview rounds with the last interview round being with the CEO all for an entry level customer service job. During the last interview, the CEO said you weren’t allowed to get sick, and you weren’t allowed to leave at the end of the day until all of the work had been done. So even though the job was 8-4 the CEO said customer service reps often stayed until 6 PM or later. She also asked if I would be comfortable secretly reporting to her about what the customer service team is up to. I declined the job offer and the company harassed me with emails asking why and what they did wrong. Really glad I didn’t take the job.

freshlydeliveredegg- , Paul Brody Report

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Gaby Almodovar

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2 years ago

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Yeah, the crystal-clear definition of a toxic workplace.

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Maybe not the worst, but one that stands out:

I was the interviewer, hiring for a position working with individuals with mental and/or physical disabilities. The person I was interviewing used the word "r***rded" multiple times. I pointed it out after the second use, stating "this is a position working with people with disabilities, that is a word that is not tolerated in this environment." They shrugged it off, maybe two minutes later, dropped it again. I stood up, thanked them for their interest, handed them back their resume, and told them I could already tell it wouldn't be a good fit and didn't want to waste their time, and walked them to the door.

AcrolloPeed , Chris Chan Report

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Jo Choto

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How does someone like that even get associated with an organization for people with disabilities?

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An Interviewer told me that he worried I would be sexually harassed if I joined his team. Red flag.

jafarshah , Kim Siever Report

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Jo Choto

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He worried? Because he's okay that this kind of thing is actually allowed to happen? Yeah, that's a big old NOPE.

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I told them I couldn't answer their questions, farted audibly out of stress and thanked them for their time.

LobsterNixon , Todd McCann Report

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sofacushionfort

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Don’t sell yourself short: “A farting horse will never tire. A farting man is the one to hire.”

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My personal favorite bad interview:

I had been unemployed for a bit, was desperate for a new gig. Had gained a lot of weight living off of fast food, so my good pants didn't fit me very well. I sat down in the interview chair as the person was walking around to their side of the desk...

...and the button of my pants popped off, did a one-hopper off of the desk, and RIGHT into their coffee cup. Swished, no clink at all.

For the entire interview, they were sipping their coffee, and I was sitting there with my pants unbuttoned waiting for the big reveal. I left before they got to the bottom of their coffee, but they HAD to have put two and two together.

(This narrowly beats out the time I was offered water from a carafe at an interview, dropped it, and soaked both interviewers. At least that one wasn't as PSYCHOLOGICALLY tense.)

No, I didn’t get the job.

Yes, I should have told them. But I froze up, and they were a VERY talkative interviewer.

PM_Skunk , Robert Sheie Report

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Lyone Fein

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Classic

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Interviewer, putting candy bars on the table to open the interview: Have a candy bar. Do you want Hershey’s or Snickers?

Me: Neither, thanks.

I: Go ahead, pick one.

M: I don’t want any candy now, thanks.

I: Take one, Hershey’s or Snickers.

M: Okay, I’ll take the Snickers.

I: No, I want the Snickers. You take the Hershey’s.

M: No, thank you.

PomegranatePlanet , MCC Current Report

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Jo Choto

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These "clever" ways of seeing how you manage conflict are just stupid.

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Video chat interview: red flag #1 the interview was with 10 interviewers (I was told it would be 1-on-1).

Red flag #2: towards the end they asked if I had any questions. When I asked: "Do you all enjoy working here?" they all looked at each other nervously for about 20 seconds until someone said: "Sure. I mean, as much as you can enjoy work, I guess."

Nope.

paesanossbits , Matthew Hurst Report

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Kona Pake

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“I’m sorry, your time is up. Goodbye.”

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Yeah I have one that sticks out. I applied to a government branch as a network admin. The newspaper ad asked for a bachelors degree. They called me into the interview. When I got there, the first thing the interviewer said was, "We wanted someone with a masters degree. Why did you apply?"

Now, I wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they had other interviews that day and got them mixed up. S**t happens. I just informed the interviewer that the ad I applied for requested a bachelors degree, and confirmed the position I was interviewing for.

"No, we definitely wanted someone with a master's degree. So, again, why did you apply?"

"If you wanted someone with a master's degree, why did you bother calling me in for an interview?"

"You're very rude and unprofessional."

Yeah, you f**ked up at every junction thus far, but I'm the one who's rude and unprofessional.

fibericon , Kai Hendry Report

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Sandor M

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Someones cousin was already waiting with a masters degree,and they had to get rid of the others

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I drove 2 hrs for the interview.

Got there and the interviewer was off sick and hadn't told anyone about me coming in.

Got back in my car and drove the 2 hrs home.

Withdrew my name from consideration.

lent12 , Sean MacEntee Report

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Yort

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Ugh that happened to me once, only I had a 45 minute bus ride instead of a 2 hour drive. Nobody told me she was sick, nobody told the person who was working there that I was coming, I was given no way to reschedule the interview, and nobody ever contacted me to reschedule it. It was stupid anyway - it was through a local government program that helps people get jobs, my case worker thought it would be great for me to work in the call center of this place despite me pointing out that I have anxiety and can’t really do phone calls. Once in a while if I have time to prepare it’s fine, but having that be my entire job wouldn’t have worked out. But I’m still mad nobody even told me the person wasn’t even there!.

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At an interview for a tech startup, they asked me "If you could be any animal, what would you be?"

I answered "Otter" because you know, fun, active, work well with their hands and cute as f**k.

They really debated whether or not to hire me because of that answer because, and I quote, "We only hire predators, never prey." and they weren't sure how to quantify an Otter, because none of them had ever paid the least bit of attention to any sort of animal documentary or read biology or you know, visited a zoo recently.

God that job sucked hard.

rileysweeney , Richard Report

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Jo Choto

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Stupid questions.

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I went in to apply for an administrative assistant position and the guy kept asking me questions about liking kids and are my passports up to date...etc. I was SO confused. Turns out what he really wanted was a nanny for his two young kids to travel with him and his wife back to India. I was so angry he wasted my time. I noped right the f**k out of there.

you_are_marvelous , allison Report

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Gaby Almodovar

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That guy was an idiot. Why TF didn't he looked for a proper nanny?

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Had a phone interview and the woman kept asking more and more intrusive questions, kept hinting I'm a total piece of s**t who's totally unfit for the job (it was the easiest job description ever) and jumping to conclusions about my life that were completely untrue. For example I found out that being a freelancer who gets a lot of decently paid work each month is apparently living off my parents. She kept going on and on like that for quite a while before I told her to back off and hung up. Didn't really need that job too badly but it was in a different country so the trravel aspect was the main reason. Years later I found out it was a "stress interview" which apparently is a thing. F**k those people.

ZestyFix , Tim Parkinson Report

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Jo Choto

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2 years ago

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Again, I cannot imagine what they think they will gain by being obnoxious in an interview.

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At an interview to be a county street sweeper, guy asks me if I have a girlfriend, proceeds to rant for 5 minutes how young people dont get married anymore. Then he asks me what I want to avoid at the job. At the time I had no idea how to answer as I'd never been asked that in an interview before. So I ask him to clarify, to which he just repeats the question, over and over until he gets super angry that I dont know how to answer that, then asks me to leave. To this day, biggest wtf interview I've had.

iforgotmyfirstnameFU , sung ming whang Report

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Jo Choto

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Sounds like the best thing to avoid in this job would be him.

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Had an interview, went well. I was offering the job on the spot and accepted. The HR manager went to get the needed paperwork, came back 10 mins later and said “I must have forgot that we already filled this position. I’m sorry, but we don’t have an opening. I could call you if something opens back up”. I said no thank you.

hardware5434 , Joel Bez Report

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Pat Bond

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Whaaaat! You could actually get compensation in my country for that level of incompetence.

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I had a skype interview with a private practice and the lady interviewing me literally made it sound like a stern military parent.

"You can NEVER be late" (mind you the job was an hour away)

"Even if you have a cold you can NEVER call in sick" (idk if this was meant for pre or post-covid)

"We're a small company so you won't have much of a work/life balance"

"PS our pay for all this dedication is only 3 dollars more than the measely pay your getting now"

Just a whole interview of Red Flags. And the last one was when the lady messaged me immediately after saying I got the job and had to leave my job at maximum, five days' notice, regardless of me kind of bombing the interview and claiming there were other interviewees in line. I could see why they were having trouble hring people tbh

lolicraft , Sam Azgor Report

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Jo Choto

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Any employer that wants to deny you your legal working rights, forget it.

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When he said I'll give you extra hours if you bring me smokes everyday, then put his hand on my leg and said his wife gives him passes to have fun. I also got a speeding ticket on the way to the interview. Was not my month.

bhresmith , Falko Report

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Kanuli

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Hahaha. I thought you would get a speeding ticket from driving AWAY from the interview.

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Not that bad, but I remember Taco Bell asked me what type animal I would be if I could be anything. Like wtf do you want me to say? “ I would be a fire ant so I could work efficiently with my closest friends!” Sixteen year old me said an eagle, because they’re strong and they can fly. Meh...

HereComesTheSarcasm , marneejill Report

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Jo Choto

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Again, these stupid questions that don't actually mean anything.

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Was invited for an IT "helper" position when I was 17. Would help fix computers for people at a shody PC fix shop.
They asked me "Whats the first thing you check if a customer calls and says their screen doesnt turn on?"
I said "Well, you gotta check if they have it plugged into a socket"
They laughed and said thank you that will be it. Then led me to the door and gently pushed me out.

IgnasP , Ted Sakshaug Report

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Jo Choto

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Except that is literally the first thing you have to check, as everybody who has ever worked in IT will tell you.

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It was my best interview. Great rapport with the interviewer. Gave me the job on the spot. It for a transfer to QA at Johnson Control. Came in to work the next day to have the offer rescinded. The job was already given to the plant managers niece and it had only been posted because of company policy. The story is much longer and complicated afterward but it was the first of several times I had been promoted (different companies) and then been told, "Never mind."

the_real_abraham , Fen Labalme Report

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Dorothy Parker

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Only accept with their signed offer letter in hand, including all benefits described.

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Had an interview at an office supply store once. Guy told me straight up it was a high-pressure sales quota job. They're prices on computers and.peripherals were s**t and that's what I'd be selling.

Dude straight up said it's a lot of work for low pay, not a lot of people enjoy working there, and he finished off with the fact that he's been there for 18 years. Practically ran out of that interview screaming

funkyjiveturkey , Warren LeMay Report

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Aria Whitaker

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You sure that company wasn't named "Dunder Mifflin" by any chance???

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Showed up looking good in my suit with a ton of knowledge on Capital Partners.

It turned out I had researched the wrong company named Capital Partners.

[deleted] , Kent Wang Report

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Jo Choto

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Aw, that must have been so awkward!

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My first Interview ever was at DQ and I accidently knocked a 90 year old woman over.

[deleted] , Mike Mozart Report

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Lyone Fein

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Ouch

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Job was for a vibration analysis engineer. I knew how to do the job well. I knew the pay should be around 95k, and they stated 55k (in the interview). When I tried to discuss my point, they said, "don't worry, there's plenty of overtime". They also mentioned since they weren't involved with many balancings at the moment, I would assist the cleaning crew with a lot of the cleanings. I've never been so uninterested in a job in my life.

Bender3455 , Mike Schmid Report

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Vicky Z

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Oh don't worry you will have plenty of overtime, do things that are not your responsibility and take a shitty salary on the top!! Nothing to worry really

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An agency sent me for an interview and said “the starting salary is £33000”. The interview went fairly well until the interviewer said “so what sort of salary are you looking for?” So using the info I had from the agency I said. “Well, I think £33000 is a fair starting point”....the interviewer practically threw me out! He started to shout about wasting his time because I expected to be paid a huge salary and who did I think I was... he was paying £20,000..............

Rainbow-Civilian , Keith Cooper Report

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Monkey Spunk

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Yep, I've had this before, they offered me the job at £5k under my current salary, turns out the recruiter had lied about the salary, spent a week badgering me to take the role because "money doesn't matter, they're a great company", in fairness I knew people who worked there and loved it but at that salary, no way.

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Realised it was a pyramid scheme half way through the interview. I was already working so didn’t accept the job.

BrutalNutritionist , Krasimir Makaveev Report

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Sawdust

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Interesting choice of paperweight for a multi-level marketing outfit.

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I got invited to a "group interview." I thought it meant that a group of people would interview me, which is fairly common. I showed up and there were about ten other kids there. We all went into a conference room and they interviewed us all at once. They asked a question and everyone took turns answering. They switched up who went first each time, and one kid completely froze when it was his turn, so we all had to sit there in the most uncomfortable silence.

allmilhouse , US Department of Education Report

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Jo Choto

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I believe this was the premise of a show called "Blind Date".

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I was the only person that hr was able to source for a role and I still got rejected. :(

jmnolly00 , Suzie Tremmel Report

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Kate Fei

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I kind of get this one. From my experience (I was hiring people a few years back) it is not a good idea to hire someone just because noone else applied at the time. If they are not a fit (for any reason) the company should not settle.

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