AIBU to find supermarket job interviews oddly demanding and irrelevant?

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I am a so called professional who has just had enough of one restructuring after another. I have handed my notice in.

I want a part-time job in a supermarket not as a manger but as a shop floor/warehouse worker.

Last month I had to do a psychometric test I kid you not, and was emailed to say I was through to the interview stage and I had to book an interview. All of the interview slots however had been taken in spite of the email only having been sent fifteen minutes before!

Having complained I was offered an interview but for a store a little further than I wanted.

There were three of us, we were given a little tour, then a group exercise, a small Functional skills test, then individual interview.

The questions:
Hobbies etc
One thing others would be surprised about me.
What would I do if I won the lottery.

Seriously, what bearing would these answers have on how I could do this job?

What would you say to the question about something someone would be surprised by me. I had absolutely no idea.

What answers would you have given?

What are they looking for? What answers do they want?

This is exactly it.

I worked at ASDA about 10 years ago and when I did my interview, it was all about how you interacted with other people, your confidence, whether you could keep eye contact, whether you were helpful or stand-offish, etc.

There were lots of people who turned up with an attitude of "this is bloody stupid" and none of them got a job.

The sad thing is with the minimum wage going up and technology replacing a lot of the menial tasks, there really isn't scope to recruit someone that can just do 'trolleys' or 'tills'
The 2 supermarkets I've recruited for both run schemes that do recruit people with disabilities like the one you described but it's a separate process & done through a charity provider. They wouldn't have to complete the online tests & the 'interview' would be more of a supervised work experience & then support for the first few weeks in the role.

These days we would not be able to have someone with a learning disability doing trolleys due to the risks involved.

Exactly this

This has really made me laugh 😆

Well these tests clearly don’t work judging by the poor customer service that seems so prevalent in too many major supermarkets.

Was it Waitrose?
Either way it seems OTT.

I remember being asked to do a speech about a random subject at a group job interview for clothing retail assistant back in the late 90s. The subject they gave me was films. Like why would I need to know about films to sell high street clothing?!

I didn't know what to say except I did film studies at college and it was really boring. Obviously I didn't get the job!

I guess things are even worse now!

No wonder some young people cannot get a job.

Dd1 went through Asda’s online interview process. It was insane. I recruit graduates for complex, sensitive work and don’t put them through that shite.

I went through the same last year. Eventually...I discovered that what you do is Google "how do I get a job at xxx supermarket? (ditto ask on their website). All the answers are there. These days, it seems that what you HAVE to do is just tell them what they want to hear. Learn and regurgitate. I had a full, group online interview/discussion that lasted 45 minutes just to stack shelves at ALDI. Bonkers. The length of the online screenings. Aargh..! Once I understood the "rules" I sailed through the telephone interview and was offered a job at ASDA (which I rather enjoy) Good luck!

Interviews with surprise nonsense questions like that are deeply ableist to autistic people

@Serencwtch

These days we would not be able to have someone with a learning disability doing trolleys due to the risks involved.

What 'risks'?

Which I would have to say is not progress.

There were no risks. Apart from him being entirely reliable, and keen.

Disabled people have it hard with prejudice about what they can and cannot do. I was glad I could help him and the employer.

It worked out for both well. So I have to disagree with your assertions.
And what a sorry place that someone with a learning difficulty cannot get a job. Leave them on benefits. No wonder so many are on them I guess.

We provide questions in advance for this reason.

I worked in a supermarket many years ago. I wonder if asking these stupid questions at interview is to see how you'll cope with all the stupid questions the customers will ask you?
For example: thrusting a tin of soup in my face and asking "Will I like this?"
"Which toothpaste tastes the nicest/deodorant smells the best?" etc
Waving an orange at me: "Is this one of my 5 a day?"
Gazing at a trolley: "How does it work?"
"Do you have that cheese I like?"

I worked at ASDA over Christmas when I was at uni. The interview was solely a group one. We had to build a thing ( I think it was spaghetti and marshmallows) and then they had us all do the Walmart Wiggle and pocket tap. Hideous but I just faked it.

I got the impression the ones they liked the most got the plum Greeter role, then tills, then deli/pizza/curry counter, stacking shelves, cleaning etc. They made it clear there was a hierarchy.

I got let go after Christmas because I hadn’t come to work the day that I was burgled despite letting them know I was tied up talking to police officers etc. 🙄

Nothing can ever prepare you for this.

Mmm
A cop out and questions in advance are a recent thing
I was subjected to interview nonsense in the 90s for m&s
Had to do an aptitude test where I told them what they wanted to hear.
I was an expert at masking
They I had to stand behind the counter in men's wear and ask men about their fashions choices.
Failed that because I wasn't chatty enough
Because men shopping in m&s want to discuss fashion with teenagers.
I was 16 at the time and looked very young
The woman interviewing me said.

"Oh these men could think you were from management "
What a load of 💩

I agree. I guess all the people complaining about the process didn’t get through…

I worked in retail 5 years ago after coming from the corporate world. Am now back in the corporate world but I went through all these processes. People think they just turn up and are given a job. The role was harder than first thought tbh. Imagine entitled customers moaning about all sorts I.e the bins needed emptying during Covid. People complaining about the coffee shop being closed. Grabbing at toilet rolls like mad people, with one scoop taking all the hand gels, stealing the toilet rolls from the public loos and bringing in their own empty plastic bottles and filling them with the hand soap.

I know what I would be saying to them if I saw this as a general member of the public but you need to deal with this shite from the companies view point.

And of course the middle aged women (sadly it was women!) looking down on you because you worked in retail. For all they know I could be well off and doing the role for the very attractive company discount!

I’m more fascinated by how, in these difficult and competitive times, how so many useless people get hired.
Thanks goodness for workers’ rights or it would be so much easier to get rid of useless ones and pick from the massive pile of available workers and test them out.

That brings back happy memories of Bangkok.

My son (17) has had a few awful interviews; 5 hour pot wash trial- there was 6 people booked each day trying to get this job, he didn't get a rejection just radio silence. He's had interviews for Farmfoods were 600 people applied and only 20 applicants interviewed.

Just applying for jobs like McDonald's, H&m and Next he had to do scenarios and personality tests.

It's definitely an employers market at the minute and he does have some experience from volunteering etc. I dont think people realise how tough it is at the minute as people moan about the welfare bill.

lol, don't me start me off , I am uni educated, alive, aware, vibrant, intelligent, soft, have a sense of humour, I always fail Boots online questionnaires, and when I go to Boots , excuse me but see half alive, semi dead, unhelpful, people working there with bizarre facial expressions

My ex applied for a job at Asda (in the IT department). He has years of experience and qualification. Failed the psychometric test. He is ND and a lot of ND people stumble at that first hurdle.

There was a thread on here where OP was answering questions about her job as an online shopping picker for a large supermarket. Her interviews consisted of group stuff and a presentation.
What is the point in an interview making you do group things when it is not related to the actual job?

In contrast, my DM has a small company and when she interviews people, it is directly related to the job, and she shows them around. No bullshit questions, group stuff, or roleplaying.

What is the point in an interview making you do group things when it is not related to the actual job?

Because all retail is working as part of a team.

Or Priscilla queen of the desert