22 Red Flags to Look For in Job Interviews

If you encounter any of these things at your job, GET OUT!

Published 3 years ago in Wow

Interviewing for a new job can be anxiety-inducing, but over at r/AskReddit, we were able to get some advice on how to avoid red flags at new job interviews. If you encounter any of these things at your job, GET OUT!

1
I didn't know it at the time, but "you'll be wearing many hats" was a sign that they were going to give me the work of four positions and the wage of one. I didn't last a year there before I left and now I won't even finish reading job ads that include that line. -u/Couch_slug

2
Selling up a flexible schedule. Yeh, it is your schedule that will be flexible for them. -u/Individual_Lemon_139

3
"Be your own boss". If you hear these words leave immediately. It's a pyramid scheme. -u/Mister_Bill2826
4
Sh***y, passive-aggressive post-it notes all over the communal kitchen. -u/WalkTheFleedRoad

5
"We work hard and play hard" = you will work very hard and afterwards you'll have the opportunity to suck up to the boss while drinking in their favourite bar. If you don't go you won't advance. -u/CuriousHuman111
6
I was once told “Sometimes the hourly workers go on strike and they lock us in to keep the production line running, but management brings us steaks and we have an informal agreement with the unions so you can cross the picket lines once a week to visit your wife.” -u/dachjaw
7
I went into an interview for a low-level admin position, and they made me put my cell phone in a bucket up front, stating "no phones are allowed in the back. it reduces productivity." Big NOPE for me. -u/bunintheoven2

8
At my last place of work, the person interviewing me had a printed cartoon on their wall of someone who looked like a bomb had blown up in their face, with the caption "I spoke with 'boss' name' about it.. I guess we're still doing it". That wasn't subtle at all, but I ignored it. The boss was an absolute tyrant who wouldn't listen to her staff, consider changing her mind about anything, or let people do the work they were best suited to do. She wouldn't show up for weeks at a time. -u/Posaunne
9
"We only want the best of the best" Me: "how much are you paying?" "Minimum wage" -u/pissingintherain1220
10
I interviewed for an independent contractor position on a piece rate. It's hard to predict how much you're going to earn on a piece rate, so to attract me the manager showed me some paystubs from his guys. I noticed that they were desperate to hire, because they didn't have enough contractors to deliver the work contracts they'd already sold. I had two guys from different offices call me after I'd declined the position who apparently still thought I was considering it. -u/madeamashup

11
When you ask, “what do you like about working here” and the interviewer talks about the location of the job (“it’s a great place to live!”) instead of the actual job. -u/beard_lover
12
Jobs where the expectations of the position aren't clear. The person hiring you should be able to give a clear idea of your responsibilities are day to day in a practical way. It shows that the company understands what it wants out of the position. I've worked a couple positions that had a really hard time figuring out who was supposed to do what that lead to a lot of confusion and both of them had this in the interviews. If the company you're working for can't define what success in that position looks like you won't be able to either. -u/Xerodo
13
I once showed up for an interview and the manager wasn't there that day. No one called me to let me know. The assistant manager was not apologetic for the scheduling issue at all. She was literally just like "oh, she's not here today" in a tone that suggested I should somehow already know that. She said they would call me to reschedule some time the next week. I told her I was currently unavailable M-W but could come in any time Th-F. She said if I couldn't make time for the interview, I probably wouldn't be a good fit. I said okay, and went on to my other interviews and ending up working elsewhere. You'd think that would be the end of it, but both the manager and the assistant manager badmouthed me to a few other people in the industry, including one of my friends. -u/53raptor

14
I always ask about training and learning curves. Every job I’ve had that went wrong- I notice that when that question came up they stumbled. -u/ikogut
15
Interviewer: Do you have any questions for us? Me: what is a challenge this department has recently faced? Interviewer: Job security. -u/DragonsLoooveTacos
16
We cater lunch and dinner for our whole team! Sounds like a positive, but what it means is, "We expect you to be working past dinnertime hours, and there will be a lot of social pressure to never leave, and to socialize with the team well past working hours. We don't understand that anyone might want a life outside of work." -u/helava

17
When they ask out of nowhere what clients can you bring with you. -u/Space2345
18
Last job I worked. "Yea, everyone here is new, but it's totally because of covid" "The boss doesn't like people going out to get lunch because they're afraid you'll never come back, so bring your own lunch" Also was told by my trainer "you want to know the best advice I can give you? Find another job". This was like...my 2nd week in. -u/Expensive_Historian
19
I was once part of a group onboarding for an IT job. They handed us all the one-page new hire "contract" and everyone except me signed immediately. When I read the paperwork, I discovered we were signing a mystery document. Clauses included "I agree to abide by the personal search and seizure security policy (attached)." Without other pages, there was no way to determine what I was agreeing to. I kept requesting more and more pages until the HR drone said "ok, I guess [me] is just determined to hold everyone up. We will handle you separately if you're struggling so much." After I walked out and drove home, I called the hiring manager to apologize for not taking the job. He informed me that HR reported I had walked out after refusing to be drug tested. -u/ManiacDan

20
I had a job interview with two people asking questions. One of them brought questions for the wrong position. -u/Autarch_Kade
21
Once an interviewer straight up asked me if I had any trouble working for free on weekends... I told them my free time is more valuable than anything and that the only way that I would work a weekend is if they are paying me and if I felt like working a weekend. She got really mad at me and ended the interview right away. -u/lempiraholio
22
Besides always hiring, they seem almost overly eager to say, "Yes, we could do that!" to everything you ask. No job will have literally everything you want, and if your gut is telling you they seem to be promising a bit more than they can offer, they likely are. -u/Doobledorf

23
Was interviewed by a Senior programmer and the department head. The department head was continuously making condescending remarks towards the other interviewer. Poor guy just sounded broken. Hope he's somewhere else now. -u/khanman504
24
"Well, the overtime isn't mandatory, but most folks stick around after hours most days." Spoilers: The overtime is mandatory. -u/IM_OK_AMA
25
They told me all about their generous severance packages. In the initial interview. Turnover city. -u/takatori