Feeling pressured by a job recruiter

[ComingUpTrumps]

Had a strange phone conversation with a recruiter earlier today. I felt really pressured by them, and felt like I was being U when I asked for more information about a job role.

I know recruiters need to match up jobseekers to vacancies fairly quickly, but this made me a feel a bit uneasy.

Full context about the situation below:

I'd registered with a recruitment agency a couple of months ago, and a staff member rang today to ask me when I was available in general to start work.

I told them that I could start from next week. They then said that their client is only available to meet me this Wednesday, and that the meeting would take a whole day. Although, when I asked what the meeting would involve, the recruiter said that they didn't know.

I have things on with a voluntary organisation this Wednesday that would be quite difficult to rearrange, so I told the recruiter this. They replied that a paid job of course takes priority over volunteering, so they were adamant that I should cancel the volunteering and meet the client.

I then asked what the job title and role were, and all they could say was which organisation is was with and what the nature of the role was (admin).

AIBU to ask for more information before I commit to the meeting on Wednesday?

How rude. I'm sorry I'm not available this Wednesday, it's too short notice. Repeat until he gets the idea.

No way would an admin interview take alll day.

Tell them you'd like to
See a job spec and also full details regarding Wednesday before you cancel anything

YANBU. How urgently do you need to find work? Because I would avoid any agency that puts pressure on you like that, especially without being able to give you any detail on the job. A good employer would take it as a positive sign that you're not willing to let someone else down at short notice! That man sounds like an idiot.

How was it left?

Just say you don't want to and don't answer their calls until you feel like it, as they say plenty more fish in the sea, you don't have to go to anything they put forward if you don't want to.

You have to remember that recruiters are sales people. They are on commission. You going for a job is about money for them - not what's right for you. Sorry. But it's true. You do what's right for you. Good luck.

Thanks everyone.

I currently do freelance tuition work for around 7 or 8 hours a week that pays around £30 per hour.

I'd be able to fit this in around a full-time job and it pays comfortably, so I'd rather wait to find the right role than choose the first role available that comes along but isn't right for me IYKWIM.

I had a really bad experience with work last year (was training for a public sector vocational role, and felt like I was being run into the ground), so I'd really prefer to wait for a role that feels right rather than feeling pressured into taking the first role that comes along. I hope that sounds reasonable.

I've worked in recruitment for over 20 years. Firstly in agencies and now I work in internal/In house recruitment. So hopefully my experience will be of assistance!

This recruitment agency sounds awful. It doesn't matter what you have in your diary for that Wednesday, the fact is you are unable to attend on that day and they have no right to ask you to cancel your plans for that day to attend an interview that they can't even give you any information about.

Firstly, how are you even supposed to prepare for an interview when they can't tell you anything about it? I have never in my life put a candidate forward to an interview without giving them details and prepping/briefing them. Even now working in the internal recruitment team for a large retailer, I fully brief all my candidates for our roles and the interview process so they know exactly what to expect and will always try and work interviews around both them and the hiring manager. And the agencies we do sometimes use do the same.

It sounds very much to me like they are trying to squeeze you in last minute. The fact that they are so desperate for you to cancel plans to attend an interview tells me that they either have nobody else for that role and are desperate to get you in, or that the employer is someone they've called up to try and see if they can fill their role and the employer has given them a limited time frame to get suitable candidates in because they can't be bothered to really deal with them or because they already have candidates lined up for interview themselves.

Even if they think that the paid job should take presidence over the volunteering work, I find it extremely unprofessional of them to actually say that to you! That's for you to decide for yourself! In fact the only organisation I would expect to say that to you would be the job centre! (Who I also used to work for lol).

Who are the agency if you don't mind me asking? If it's admin work you're looking for, I can recommend some good agencies?

A whole day interview sounds unlikely especially if they cannot give more information. Just tell the recruiter that you are not available.

Thanks browneyes - the info that you've given here is really helpful.

The agency is London-based, and is called Love Success. I'd heard good things about them in the past.

In terms of roles that I'm looking for, I'm most interested in roles involving writing and research (perhaps working for a charity, think tank or a public sector organisation), and potentially involving languages as I did a French and Spanish degree.

Bumping :)

No problem!

I don't like agencies who pressure people and they give the decent ones out there a bad name.

You should never feel pressured to attend an interview. At the end of the day if the role isn't right for you, you need to be given the chance to decide that upfront, otherwise that's just wasting your time and the employers time. And to be able to decide if the interview is the right thing for you to do, you need to have all the facts about the role and the company. If they can't give you that information, you can't possibly go into that interview fully prepared. Which automatically puts you on the back foot.

I'm not as familiar with agencies that deal with the type of thing you're after, however I'll ask a few old colleagues and if I can make any suggestions I'll come back and pop them on here

Oh and the only reason I can think of for an all day type interview is if it's for an assessment centre. Usually there would be things like a group exercise, 1-2-1 interview etc. But that would usually be several hours, not all day and they would NEED to prep you for it!

OP, if they told you who the company are, why not contact their HR dep tomorrow asking for details, explaining the recruiter didn't tell you anything other than 'admin' and a full day interview on Wednesday.

Was just called by the recruiter again. He said that the client was panicking a bit, because they really need someone in by tomorrow apparently to do a day's trial.

I said to him that I could only commit to a job if I could see a jinn specification in advance, and said that I hoped that this was understadnable. He started sighing and told me that I seemed really sceptical.

Am I being U?

That's not unreasonable at all. And you ARE sceptical. "Admin" could be the local brothel for goodness sake.

If they are desperate and you are an experienced admin, they can send you a job desc by email. It's basic professionalism and would take them two minutes. Tell the recruiter to do his job. I'd want to know hours & approx location too. Their reluctance is making me v sceptical.

That's not unreasonable at all from you.

I'm an ex agency recruiter and would always have a JD for any candidate going forward for a position. Sounds like he hasn't done his due diligence and found out what the role actually is for himself first.

I'd steer clear of the agency and look for roles you feel more comfortable with, and always try and meet the recruiter first. You're putting your career in their hands so just make sure that it's someone you can look at and have faith in.

Ahhh OK now this makes sense. A 'day's trial' means you going into the office and actually working - which is why they are telling you they need you for the full day.

Tell the recruiter to jog on. I would not consider going and giving 7 hours of my time for free without having even had a chance to look at the job spec. It's completely unreasonable - and bloody unprofessional - to expect you to go and do a day's work without even knowing that the job title is, who you'll report to, what the duties would be, remuneration package, hours of work etc., etc.!!

The recruiter doesn't sound as if they know their arse from their elbow. I'd also be sceptical of this being an actual job given how reluctant the recruiter is to give you a JD. It's not unknown for unscrupulous companies - who need some temp work doing - to ask people in for a 'trial shift' but not actually employ them. They just use the series of people to get the temp work done, for free - because there is no genuine vacancy.

Yes... was going to say a 'day's trial' sounds like they have a shift to fill, and at the end of it you will have worked for a day (possibly for free?) and thanks very much.

Been there....

The company is probably advertising the role themselves. He doesn't want to give you the details because he doesn't want you to approach them direct and lose his fee. He's a knob.

I suspect he thinks you're a brilliant candidate who is a shoo in and will easily beat other applicants they've got through their own recruitment routes. There are more professional ways for him to deal with this.

you're not being remotely unreasonable to want a JD/proper details about a job before committing to interview, never mind a trial day (presumably unpaid.....). IME of admin I've not heard of trial days - yes, they may give you a practical exercise to do (typing/spreadsheet/intray test) as part of the interview process but never a trial day.

I'm pretty sure any trial like that would be paid....

I've recruited in the past whereby the company wanted a one week trial period and would then assess the candidates suitability to the role by how they did. And they were paid in full with shift allowances too.

Then again I was a good, honest recruiter working in Manufacturing! So it doesn't sound like this bloke has a clue what he's doing

I'd tell him to remove you from the recruitment agency's books.
Say you have found their approach very unprofessional and at times insulting.
Tell them it's not unreasonable to have at LEAST a job spec before an interview, never mind a full days trial.
Yes, the company need somebody, but you have to decide if you are the person for them. It might not be a job you want and you don't want to waste yours or their time!

Agencies of any description are just useless

Apply directly and you'll do much better

Thanks everyone :)

Sorry if I didn't make this clear earlier on in the thread - the recruiter did tell me which company the role was with, so I took acatcalled's advice and went on their website, but that particular role isn't advertised on their site.

Honestly OP, the recruiter is being a dick. Call the company.