The One That Got Away

My job search took an odd turn this week, one that underscores the main themes of this blog: the frustrations unemployed people confront, the emotional roller coaster we have to deal with on a daily basis, as well as the un-freakin’-believable incompetence of hiring executives.

Earlier this month, I went on an interview for a job at a health-related website. I spoke with the editor and the HR person, and if I do say so myself, the interviews went well. I took an editing test, which took me two days to complete.

So imagine my elation when I got an email inviting me back for a second interview. Wow! I must have done okay on the test. I might have a real shot at this job.

So I go to the office at the appointed time. The editor comes out to greet me and says, “Oh, I already spoke to you.” Uh-oh. This can’t be good.

Then she gets the HR lady, who tells me to sit in a meeting room. She then comes back and tells me, Opps, sorry, you were called in by mistake. I said I got an email from her and even confirmed it. She apologized—somewhat—and told me she would see if I was still a candidate for the job via email as I was quickly ushered to the door.

I, being the desperate job seeker, was polite and said it was okay. I didn’t live too far from the office, so it was no problem coming in for what turned out to be an unnecessary trip. Hey, money is tight and my gas tank was near empty, but no problem. I don’t mind wasting my time for a job I was obviously not going to get.

But that wasn’t the worst of it. When I said I didn’t have to drive too far, she said: “Well, at least it got you out and about.”

WHAT THE …!

Listen, honey, contrary to popular belief, jobless people don’t spend all day in their pajamas, eating junk food in bed and watching TV. (Well, okay I do watch some soaps, but most of the time, I’m actively looking for a job on the Internet, doing freelance work, running errands, visiting doctors, and yes, even going on interviews for which I’m not called in by mistake.)

Although I don’t rise at the crack of dawn as I once did when I had to commute into the city, I do get out of bed in the morning hours, exercise, shower daily and put on decent clothes.

What really hurts is that I wanted the job. The office was in easy commuting distance from my home and the job would have utilized my prior experience while giving me a chance to learn some new skills.

When I got that email for a second interview, I was so hopeful. And then….

So I waited a day, and finally wrote an email saying I was sorry for the confusion (although it wasn’t my fault) and reiterating my interest in the job.

After that, I got the standard “we are pursuing other candidates for the position” email from said HR lady. Never did she say she was sorry for calling me in by mistake, her mistake, by the way. Must be nice to be totally incompetent yet still have a job. Considering it was her mistake, she should have contacted me first, not the other way around.

I’m sure she is busy, but her only job is to schedule interviews. That’s it. And she can’t do that without messing up!

But I don't regret going after the job, despite the hurtful outcome. As any unemployed person would do, I pursued a viable employment opportunity and acted professionally every step of the way. The same cannot be said of the moron of an HR person I encountered. I lost out on the job, but the company also missed hiring a skilled, experienced, hard-working individual.

Yes, I’m disappointed, but more than that, I feel jerked around. Did it ever occur to her that my feelings might have been hurt by what she did?

It’s not like I have any recourse. I wasn’t hired at the company, so who do I complain to? To her, I’m just another unemployed loser not worth the most basic of common courtesies: an apology for hurting my feelings and inconveniencing me because of her mistake.

Alas, jobless people don’t have feelings or rights, according to HR people and most politicians.

I guess I’ll never know why I wasn’t chosen for the job. Did I flunk the test? Did I have too much experience for the job? Or too little experience for what the company was looking for in this particular position?

Unemployed job seekers face many disappointments and frustrations in their search for new employment. If I hadn’t been contacted—mistakenly—for what I thought was a second interview, I don’t think I would have felt so crushed. At some point, continual disappointment turns into despair. Intentional or not, what that HR women did was cruel, simply cruel, to someone who has been out of work for nearly a year.

And people wonder why it’s hard for unemployed people to feel optimistic. Try being enthusiastic during an interview while you are still trying to recover from the sting of another rejection email. It's not easy.

Most sinister of all, is she one of those HR people who reject applicants simply because they were laid off and are currently out of work? (See: “No Unemployed Need Apply.”)

Well, bitch, I worked at a company for 16-plus years. One day, I was taken into an office, told the company’s revenues were down (not my area of responsibility, but, hey, someone else has to take the fall for management’s stupidity); therefore, my position was being eliminated, so pack up your desk and leave.

I did nothing wrong. I was a good worker. But unlike someone who can’t make interview appointments correctly, I had to suffer the consequences of someone else’s incompetence.