Cleveland "Job Bank Mother" sends nasty rejection e-mail to jobseeker

[Rickrock]

Kelly Blazek and I worked for the same firm many years ago. If I remember right, she did promotional work for the firm. I did not work closely with her but we knew who each other were and she seemed okay at the time. That was quite awhile ago.

Kelly Blazek's response was out of line. If she didn't want to connect the girl with her list of professionals, she could have said so in a nicer way, although I can see her point. If she does have the only job bank in town, where else could this candidate go instead? I am hoping that Ms Blazek was just having a bad day and let it out this time and that is not her normal attitude. Finding a job in today's market is really hard and I know that people are encouraged to network.

 

[blackbeltninja]

But that's the thing, it's an application. I don't know why people would feel personally put upon or offended that someone they don't feel is qualified sent in an application for something. I am involved in HR, hiring, and interviews too. I can't see this reaction as anything other than someone a little too high on their own feeling of power. I get unqualified applicants for every single job we ever advertise.

Is this why "only successful applicants will be contacted" even when the application is rejected, because you get too many cretins hoping for the best when they're clearly not suited for the post? Frankly, assuming I was adequately qualified for the position I'd quite like to hear why I did NOT make it through for the interview, so I know where my CV or experience needs a little polish. If it is idiots like this woman who take up all HR's time so I can't find out why I'm not as suitable as I believe I am, then perhaps they do need to be put in their places.

Instruction #1 is to read the instructions carefully. If you can't even do that properly...

/catharsis
/$0.02

-d-

 

[eastofeden]

The only thing I can think of in defense of Ms Blazek is perhaps she let a lot slide for many years before she chose this particular moment to let it rip. It happens.

 

[borg69unimatrix]

LOL

I had a job where one of the supervisors got stuck with dealing with the address change and such things. She arrived early at work one day and took over the break room right up till the first break of the day. She'd rearranged everything and right by the TV had put in a poster listing all the obligations of the employees, and a rack with forms she'd designed for everything from address change to suggestions for the workplace.

I often feel like even when you spell it out for them and present the forms there's still going to be a healthy percentage that just won't get it. I lay awake nights wondering how they make it through life in general.

 

[brokegayguy]

But that's the thing, it's an application.

Pretty much this. If you're in HR, you damn well better expect lots of emails just like Mekota's. It is literally your job to collect applications and put the word out that you need someone for this or that.

Employees not following directions is one of my biggest pet peeves. An example is when they move and don't notify me with an address change, which is their responsibility. Then I get 50 phone calls bitching at the last minute because they didn't get their W-2's and expect me to drop everything and pull it out of my ass for them on the spot.

OMG I see this exact same thing all the time. You know, I think entitled employees are a MUCH bigger problem than entitled applicants. At least applicants, I can see being desperate or acting inappropriate. But employees, there's just no excuse. You got the job, now do it.

Frankly, assuming I was adequately qualified for the position I'd quite like to hear why I did NOT make it through for the interview

I wholeheartedly agree with this, but it's just never going to happen. Not when dozens, maybe hundreds of people are applying for one job. Plus, with people like Blazek running around, they're just going to call this attitude "entitled" and be extra resistant to it because they're cunts like that :-/

 

[borg69unimatrix]

Is this why "only successful applicants will be contacted" even when the application is rejected, because you get too many cretins hoping for the best when they're clearly not suited for the post? Frankly, assuming I was adequately qualified for the position I'd quite like to hear why I did NOT make it through for the interview, so I know where my CV or experience needs a little polish. If it is idiots like this woman who take up all HR's time so I can't find out why I'm not as suitable as I believe I am, then perhaps they do need to be put in their places.

Instruction #1 is to read the instructions carefully. If you can't even do that properly...

/catharsis
/$0.02

-d-

Dear Mr. Ninja:

We reviewed your application, and while you're adequately qualified you're just too hot.

The thought of staring at your package and face day in and day out without being able to touch would be too counter productive for our company. Please do feel free to apply your raw sexy animal magnetism with our competitors.

Sincerely,

The Borg Collective HR Dept.

 

[G-Lexington]

I have two friends who work Hr, and both of them mine Facebook and Twitter. Not to establish personality types, necessarily, but to look for red flags. If every other post has a misogynistic tinge, for instance, they might think twice about hiring them. Honestly, though, their biggt red flag is the post/tweet "I really need a job - I'll do ANYTHING!" This always seems to translate into "Even after you hire me, I will continue looking for another job, and will leave the second something else is offered to me.

Lex

 

[mikey3000]

If this new generation has any entitlement issues, it's our generation that has created it. Our generation is the one who has spoiled their children by giving them every convenience under the sun, yet expects them to "work" the day they turn into adults. "You reap what you sow."

 

[xbuzzerx]

Is this why "only successful applicants will be contacted" even when the application is rejected, because you get too many cretins hoping for the best when they're clearly not suited for the post? Frankly, assuming I was adequately qualified for the position I'd quite like to hear why I did NOT make it through for the interview, so I know where my CV or experience needs a little polish. If it is idiots like this woman who take up all HR's time so I can't find out why I'm not as suitable as I believe I am, then perhaps they do need to be put in their places.

Instruction #1 is to read the instructions carefully. If you can't even do that properly...

/catharsis
/$0.02

-d-

I have never in my life heard back from any job that did not call me for an interview. Ever. Yes, it would be nice to have this kind of a personal touch and hear back from employers or at least get a pro forma thank you letter for receiving your application and resume, even if you aren't hired. But I think the fact that this doesn't happen in anything but very high-end jobs with small numbers of applicants has more to do with the disposable mindset that corporations and employers have today towards applicants and employees, and not much to do with a few people applied while falling a little bit short of the qualifications asked for. The job market is a pretty soulless place today and I honestly don't see that changing, even if people stopped the habit of, much like with college applications, applying both a little above and a little below what they're qualified for, just to see who will respond. And people are hard up enough for work today that I consider it rather cold to adopt anything resembling a notion that people ought to be humbled or "put in their place" for taking a chance and trying to get a job working for you.

I have two friends who work Hr, and both of them mine Facebook and Twitter. Not to establish personality types, necessarily, but to look for red flags. If every other post has a misogynistic tinge, for instance, they might think twice about hiring them. Honestly, though, their biggt red flag is the post/tweet "I really need a job - I'll do ANYTHING!" This always seems to translate into "Even after you hire me, I will continue looking for another job, and will leave the second something else is offered to me.

Lex

I said much the same thing in a thread quite a few months back about what kind of "trouble signs" are people looking for in an interview. In a job (I'd wager they're the majority) where the interview process itself is not essential to establishing if someone actually has the hard qualifications for the job or not, what you're looking at, for lack of a better way to put it, is does this seem like a level-headed, normal, reliable person who will mesh well in the work environment. The things that would really put someone off in an interview quite likely do not bear directly on skill qualifications-- if you're dropping F bombs during the interview or make a racist joke, that's likely the end of your application even if you're qualified.

 

[blackbeltninja]

I have never in my life heard back from any job that did not call me for an interview. Ever. Yes, it would be nice to have this kind of a personal touch and hear back from employers or at least get a pro forma thank you letter for receiving your application and resume, even if you aren't hired. But I think the fact that this doesn't happen in anything but very high-end jobs with small numbers of applicants has more to do with the disposable mindset that corporations and employers have today towards applicants and employees, and not much to do with a few people applied while falling a little bit short of the qualifications asked for. The job market is a pretty soulless place today and I honestly don't see that changing, even if people stopped the habit of, much like with college applications, applying both a little above and a little below what they're qualified for, just to see who will respond.

Fair enough.

And people are hard up enough for work today that I consider it rather cold to adopt anything resembling a notion that people ought to be humbled or "put in their place" for taking a chance and trying to get a job working for you.

Well... if I'm honest, the Most Irritating Thing in the World as far as I'm concerned is people who waste my time. Since I already have very little of it for myself to start with and have become less tolerant as I've got older, I let the transgressor know in no uncertain terms when it is happening.

-d-

 

[xbuzzerx]

Well... if I'm honest, the Most Irritating Thing in the World as far as I'm concerned is people who waste my time. Since I already have very little of it for myself to start with and have become less tolerant as I've got older, I let the transgressor know in no uncertain terms when it is happening.

-d-

There are jobs where having your time wasted is part of your job. It would include but not be limited to HR and customer service. But honestly it's never taken me more than 3-5 seconds to look over a resume (enough to know if it is keep or toss) and less than a second to hit control + v to paste a response e-mail.

 

[blackbeltninja]

There are jobs where having your time wasted is part of your job.

This is a terrible indictment on our society.

-d-

 

[Gentleheart]

I'm thinking about sending those of you who do HR or HR-type work a copy of my resume and a typical cover letter I'd send out just to see what your thoughts on it would be. Don't blazek me though, please.

 

[blackbeltninja]

Dear Mr. Ninja:

We reviewed your application, and while you're adequately qualified you're just too hot.

The thought of staring at your package and face day in and day out without being able to touch would be too counter productive for our company. Please do feel free to apply your raw sexy animal magnetism with our competitors.

Sincerely,

The Borg Collective HR Dept.

What sort of terrible company has this ridiculous policy?






-d-

 

[borg69unimatrix]

Well... if I'm honest, the Most Irritating Thing in the World as far as I'm concerned is people who waste my time. Since I already have very little of it for myself to start with and have become less tolerant as I've got older, I let the transgressor know in no uncertain terms when it is happening.

-d-

This is why I kind of agreed with blazek. The amount of trivial requests I get from people who can't manage their lives and expect someone else to bail them out and clean up their messes - usually last minute can be overwhelming, and counter productive.

Do businesses really need to expend the resources to explain to every Joe Schmoe who blindly sends out hundreds of applications hoping to get a bite why they were rejected?

Like those guys on grindr who blast everyone without reading profiles first just hoping ONE will take the bait and say yes. Does every one of those guys deserve a formal rejection letter?

 

[Adrusek81]

Did anyone else get the "insecure middle aged woman lashing out at youthful possible competition" vibe here?

Yes, I have gotten the same vibe. However, I would say that she is primarily a despicable sow who revels on despotically abusing anyone that she can have a little power over. Given the fact that her profession is to find jobs for others, I find it surprising that she would be so disdainful of people in need of employment - especially because I am sure that, as someone who "has many contacts", she is fully aware of the fact that opportunities for professional development are becoming more and more scarce for the majority of people. Denying the requests of the desperate is awful, but denigrating them just because you can is downright obnoxious, vile and evil.

While I do understand that dealing with functionally illiterate job applicants can be frustrating (reading the message that this Diana Mekota girl sent was embarrassing, and I can barely believe how someone who redacts so awfully unwell and has such poor dominion of language, could have worked as a journalist), this is Kelly Blazek's job. If she doesn't like to do it, she should look for another profession. As things stand, her deliberately cruel, arrogant and atrociously unprofessional letter is shameful at best, and deserving of the utmost contempt at worst. She is nasty just for the sake of it in an industry in which public relations are exceptionally important.

All I can say is that I am glad that she has been raked over the coals for her behaviour. She is a disgusting cunt in every sense.

 

[Kulindahr]

Well, Rickrock just disproved the Cleveland causation hypothesis. I'll mark that one off the list. Was headed in the wrong direction. . .

I looked at that gif and wondered why the train was just jerking back and forth.

 

[Kulindahr]

I have two friends who work Hr, and both of them mine Facebook and Twitter. Not to establish personality types, necessarily, but to look for red flags. If every other post has a misogynistic tinge, for instance, they might think twice about hiring them. Honestly, though, their biggt red flag is the post/tweet "I really need a job - I'll do ANYTHING!" This always seems to translate into "Even after you hire me, I will continue looking for another job, and will leave the second something else is offered to me.

Lex

My sister once chose one applicant over the other two finalists because the guy's resume started with the statement "Looking for an employer worth being loyal to". After six months on the job, it was evident he meant it, too. When they started a program of paying for college courses for employees, he was at the head of the list.

 

[Kulindahr]

If this new generation has any entitlement issues, it's our generation that has created it. Our generation is the one who has spoiled their children by giving them every convenience under the sun, yet expects them to "work" the day they turn into adults. "You reap what you sow."

Definitely. I always noticed a very high degree of correlation between high economic status of parents and inability to really work.

 

[xbuzzerx]

This is a terrible indictment on our society.

-d-

Somebody has to deal with every stupid question or every personal complaint in an office workplace, sadly. But if you really want to know what wastes the vast majority of my time, it is neither applicants nor people who can't follow instructions. It's having to deal with our private insurance system-- getting people signed up, signed off, and handling the paperwork of the reimbursements. It's beyond ridiculous. Offices and particularly medical offices have to have full time staff just for handling this because it's so inefficient.