06 Feb Spot the Red Flags: Bad Recruitment Agency Practices

Threatening times of economic decline unfortunately promote a  productive period for bad recruitment agencies to ply unethical tricks.  However, there are some red flags of bad recruiting practice which, when known, will help you spot and avoid unscrupulous recruitment agencies with poor performance standards.¹

You climb into bed, exhausted and ready to sleep off the feats of the day and to forget the items on your to-do list for tomorrow. You patiently wait for the wave of slumber to start settling in, thinking of your upcoming long weekend in March and the extra couple of leave days that you need (really, really need!).

Then it hits you.

You can’t take leave – your contract is coming to an end in April!

You haven’t updated your CV or enabled the Open to New Opportunities feature on your LinkedIn profile either! Which agency do you send your CV to? How long will it be before you land a new role?

And so, your plans of an early night turn into tosses-and-turns as the prospect of unemployment takes hold.

Being in the job market isn’t easy and could seem like a job on its own. On top of this, you don’t want to be second-guessing a Recruitment Agency’s (RAs) credentials.
To help you, we’ve put together red flags to look out for to spot bad RAs.

! The Agency asks you to pay an application or administration fee  

Agencies should NEVER ask you to pay any fees. Agencies are paid by companies that hire you. This will not come out of your salary and is a fee agreed upfront by the agency and client.

!  The Recruitment Agency does not set up a face-to-face meeting

Not setting up a face-to-face meeting should immediately sound warning bells. Does the agency not care enough about their reputation and the calibre of candidates they represent? If an agency doesn’t even care about their own reputation, would they care about you?

! The RA consultant doesn’t seem informed about your industry

If consultants don’t appear to be knowledgeable about an industry, or the finer detail of your role, then they are most likely not doing their job properly. This could be an indication that the agency has poor standards when it comes to performance.

! The consultant asked your referee if they are on the market

If you are dealing with a new agency, it’s a good idea to call your references to find out how the consultant engaged with them. Finding you a role should be the top priority of the consultant, not growing their network (at least not in this way).

! A consultant advises you to embellish your work experience on your CV

Asking you to lie is a BIG NO. If an agency is OK with unethical behaviour, what lines will they be willing to cross when it comes to you and your career?

Should I trust RA’s after reading this?

Yes! But not all of them. Do your homework before contracting with an Agency. If you don’t agree with the RA’s ways of working, keep looking until you find an agency that aligns to your values.

Want to know how Afro Ant does it? Click here.

¹  https://recruiterbox.com/blog/how-to-spot-a-bad-recruitment-agency

Image sourced from: Self Central
Article by Brand Ant