If Everyone Is Hiring, Why Can Nobody Get A Job?
Summary
TLDRThe video script delves into the paradox of job scarcity amidst millions of openings, highlighting the increased barriers to employment. It discusses the rise of applicant tracking systems (ATS) that dehumanize the hiring process, the prevalence of 'ghost jobs' that never lead to hiring, and the role of recruitment agencies that exploit the job market's complexities. The script criticizes the shift towards questionnaires and tests over interviews, suggesting these methods test compliance rather than capability, and underscores how these changes disadvantage job seekers, creating a frustrating and often futile search for employment.
Takeaways
- π The job market has become more competitive with the rise of the internet, leading to a higher entry bar for jobs and less personal interaction in the hiring process.
- π A college degree, once a guarantee for a good job, is now just the minimum requirement, with companies focusing on the top percent of students and demanding real-world experience even for entry-level positions.
- πΌ The expectation for new graduates to have years of experience is unrealistic, often necessitating full-time work while studying, which is rarely feasible.
- π The internet has globalized the job market, increasing competition and leading to a numbers game where applications are treated as data points rather than individual candidates.
- π€ Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are widely used to filter out candidates based on set criteria, often leading to dehumanization and a lack of personal touch in the hiring process.
- π ATS can automatically reject or rank candidates based on keywords and experience, sometimes disregarding actual qualifications if the 'right' words aren't used in a resume.
- π» The prevalence of 'ghost jobs'βjob listings that don't lead to hiresβwastes applicants' time and creates a false impression of job availability.
- π Companies use tests and questionnaires instead of interviews to screen candidates, often focusing on compliance and the ability to jump through hoops rather than actual skills or fit for the role.
- π The power in the hiring process has shifted from applicants to corporate management, with processes designed to filter out as many candidates as possible early on.
- π¬ The trust between employers and employees has eroded due to the impersonal and often misleading nature of modern hiring practices.
- π’ Despite the challenges, the reward for navigating the complex hiring process is often a job with a wage that hasn't significantly increased in decades.
Q & A
Why is it harder to get hired despite the high number of job openings?
-The script suggests that the job market has become more competitive due to the internet, higher entry requirements, and the prevalence of applicant tracking systems (ATS) that filter out a large number of applicants.
What was the traditional advice given by the Boomers for securing a job, and why does it no longer work?
-The traditional advice was to put on a suit and ask the manager directly for a job. This approach no longer works because the job market has become more impersonal and competitive, with companies using ATS to filter candidates.
What role do college degrees play in the current job market?
-A college degree, once considered a guarantee for a good job, has now become the minimum requirement for most jobs. However, despite this, only a bit over 30% of American adults have a bachelor's degree.
Why do companies now require 'Real World Experience' even for entry-level positions?
-Companies are being more selective, expecting candidates to have years of experience even for entry-level positions, likely due to the large applicant pool they can draw from and the desire to minimize training costs.
How has the internet changed the process of hiring?
-The internet has increased competition by allowing companies to post job listings that can be seen by thousands of applicants instantly, leading to a massive increase in the number of applications received.
What is the impact of using personal phones for business on the success of business deals?
-Using personal phones for business can lead to poor communication, difficulty in managing different aspects of the business, and a lack of seriousness from others, which can sabotage the chances of success.
What is an ATS and how does it affect the job application process?
-An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software used by employers to filter out applications based on set criteria. It can dehumanize the process by turning applicants into data points and may lead to qualified candidates being overlooked.
Why do companies leave job postings up even when they do not intend to hire?
-Companies may leave job postings up for various reasons, such as to appear as if they are growing, to maintain appearances, or to hope to attract a 'unicorn' candidate who is highly qualified and willing to work for less.
What is the concept of 'ghost jobs' and how does it affect job seekers?
-Ghost jobs are job listings that are never intended to be filled. They waste job seekers' time and can lead to frustration as applicants may never receive a response or rejection.
How have recruitment agencies adapted to the modern job market?
-Recruitment agencies have grown in the modern job market, often acting as middlemen to bridge the gap between job seekers and companies. However, they may also contribute to the problem by charging fees and not always providing effective matches.
What is the purpose of aptitude tests in the hiring process, and do they effectively measure a candidate's fit for a role?
-Aptitude tests are often used to filter candidates and assess their suitability for a role. However, they may not effectively measure a candidate's skills and experience, and can sometimes be more about compliance and eagerness to complete the process.
Outlines
π£ The Paradox of Job Scarcity Amidst Abundance
This paragraph discusses the baffling situation where despite a plethora of job openings, securing employment has become increasingly challenging. It highlights how the entry bar has been raised significantly, with even a good college degree no longer being a guarantee for a job. Companies now seek the top students and demand real-world experience for entry-level positions, which is often unattainable for fresh graduates. The script also touches on the dehumanizing effects of the internet on job seeking, where applicants are reduced to numbers and competition has skyrocketed due to the global reach of job postings.
π€ The Rise of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and Their Impact
The second paragraph delves into the prevalence and consequences of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) used by over 97% of Fortune 500 companies. These systems filter out applications based on set criteria, often leading to dehumanization and high rejection rates. The evolution of ATS from simple legal question filters to complex systems that can read and rank CVs based on keywords has made the hiring process more impersonal and numbers-driven. The potential integration of AI into ATS is also mentioned as a concerning development that could further reduce the human element in hiring.
π» The Proliferation of Ghost Jobs and Their Wasted Impact on Job Seekers
This section exposes the issue of 'ghost jobs'βjob listings that are either not genuine or are kept active for extended periods without any intention of hiring. It reveals that a significant number of job postings are either placeholders for internal candidates, a means to maintain appearances of growth, or a tactic to pressure existing employees. The paragraph criticizes job boards for perpetuating the illusion of job availability and benefiting from the listings, even if they are inactive, thus contributing to the frustration and wasted efforts of job seekers.
π The Shift to Questionnaires and Tests Over Traditional Interviews
The final paragraph criticizes the shift from traditional interviews to standardized questionnaires and tests, which often fail to assess a candidate's true skills and experience. It points out that companies like Walmart use these tests to filter out candidates based on their willingness to conform and jump through hoops, rather than their qualifications. The paragraph also suggests that these tests serve to remove human judgment from the hiring process, reinforcing the power of corporate management and further dehumanizing the job search experience.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Job Openings
π‘Entry-Level Positions
π‘College Degree
π‘Real World Experience
π‘Internet Job Boards
π‘Applicant Tracking System (ATS)
π‘Ghost Jobs
π‘Recruitment Agencies
π‘Aptitude Tests
π‘Dehumanizing
π‘Corporate Management
Highlights
Despite millions of job openings, it's harder to get hired due to increased competition and higher entry barriers.
The traditional advice of asking a manager directly for a job is no longer effective in today's job market.
A good college degree used to guarantee a good job, but now it's just the minimum expectation for most positions.
Over 70% of jobs require a bachelor's degree, yet only 30% of American adults have one.
Real-world experience is now demanded even for entry-level positions, making it difficult for fresh graduates.
The rise of the internet has led to a massive increase in competition for jobs.
Job listings on websites can attract thousands of applicants, making it harder for individual applications to stand out.
Using personal phones for business can harm professional image and efficiency.
Nextiva is highlighted as a solution to consolidate business communication into one app, improving professionalism.
The job market has become dehumanizing, with applicants treated as data points on a spreadsheet.
Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are widely used to filter out candidates based on set criteria, often leading to dehumanization.
ATS can automatically reject candidates based on their CV's content and format, regardless of actual qualifications.
Ghost jobs are listings that are never intended to hire anyone, wasting applicants' time and effort.
Companies may keep ghost job listings for various reasons, such as to attract potential candidates or for appearances.
Job boards benefit from ghost jobs as they inflate the number of available positions, attracting more users.
Recruitment agencies have grown despite the internet, often solving problems created by the industry itself.
Interviews have been replaced by questionnaires and tests that may not accurately assess a candidate's fit for the job.
Tests are often used to filter out candidates based on their willingness to comply rather than their skills or experience.
The modern hiring process is criticized for being a numbers game that favors corporate management over applicants.
Despite the challenges, the reward for getting hired is often a job with a wage that hasn't significantly increased in decades.
Transcripts
despite the millions of job openings
that are apparently out there it's
harder than ever to get hired the news
is constantly telling us that companies
are desperate for workers and that
there's tons of jobs just waiting to be
filled meanwhile there's stories
everywhere of people sending out tens or
hundreds of applications without ever
getting a single interview it just
doesn't make sense so what really
happened a turn finding work into a
full-time job but a few decades ago even
when there were job shortages it was
still much easier to get a good job the
advice the Boomers give of putting on a
and asking the manager for a job really
worked all it took was enough tries
before you finally met someone who liked
you today you could try this thousands
of times and you probably still wouldn't
get a chance one difference that's easy
to notice is that the bar for entry has
gotten significantly higher for most
jobs before 2000 a good college degree
was almost a guarantee of a good job
companies would compete with each other
to get the most recent graduates they
were forced to offer a wage that could
support a family if they didn't they
wouldn't get any employees but now the
tables have completely turned and
they're only really interested in the
very top percent of students what used
to amount to a free entry ticket has
become the very minimum of what they
expect despite over 70% of listed jobs
requiring a bachelor's degree only a bit
over 30% of American adults actually
have one but you don't just need a good
degree of course you also need Real
World Experience even for so-called
entry-level positions companies are so
picky now that they're asking people who
have just left College to have years
worth of experience or for a salary they
can barely survive on the only way to
get this is to work while studying
fulltime time which is rarely possible
if you need to do an internship for the
field you plan on entering the past
always looks better in hindsight of
course there were still job shortages
and people still got rejected but the
key difference between then and now is
the massive rise in competition because
of the internet if you were a company in
the 1980s looking to hire a few new
employees you didn't really have many
options small companies could only
recruit through inperson events word of
mouth or physical leaflets posted to
boards it was a slow long process with
only a few applicants to choose from
hiring managers had to treat each
applicant like a real person using their
own judgment to figure out who would be
the best fit large companies only had a
few more tools at their disposal with
their size they could get a foot on the
door at colleges or high schools and
Hoover up applications that way but even
then they were still much more limited
so just think about how much this
process has changed in such a short time
if any company wants a new employee all
they need to do is put a listing out on
one of the many websites for That
explicit purpose and this will almost
immediately be seen by thousands and
thousands of people along with a whole
way of different recruiters who will
spread it even more without any barriers
to applying like showing up in person
these jobs can get thousands of
applicants there's no reason not to try
your luck so why not send off 50
applications as it's gotten harder and
people need to send even more
applications to get a chance it's only
gotten
worse if you're using your personal
phone number to close business deals
you're not just mixing work and play but
you're sabotaging your chances of
success recently I've been doing a bunch
of traveling and I've been trying to
operate my business through just my
personal f phone it was a terrible idea
you can't really communicate with people
properly you're trying to manage all
these different sections of your
business with multiple different apps
you lose track of everything it's just
an absolute nightmare especially when
other people notice this and don't take
you as seriously because you're just
working from your phone not only can
this look amateur but you and your team
are probably using 18 different apps to
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your plan it's exactly the same thing
that's happened to dating modern
technology has globalized the potential
pool of competition finding a job or
partner used to be so much more personal
it all hinged on the impression you gave
to the person across from you now it's a
total numbers game how you feel out your
application form or your Tinder profile
has much more of an impact than pretty
much anything else and as a result the
standards have also gone up by ludicrous
amounts on both job sides and dating
sides it makes people in companies think
they have far higher standards because
they have so much more choice the
reality on the ground though hasn't
really changed and the effects this has
had on the job market have been
catastrophic it's led to the whole
process getting much more dehumanizing
for applicants who have been turned into
numbers on a spreadsheet so those are
the biggest reasons why finding a job
used to be much easier than it is today
but the real devil is in the details
even with all of these changes finding
work really shouldn't take hours of
searching in hundreds of applications
the reason it's all so frustrating are
the things that companies have done to
deal with this new reality so let's
explore the different ways they found to
make getting hired even harder today the
problem for companies have been
completely reversed instead of not
getting good enough applications to
choose from they get hundreds or
thousands more than they need every time
they need to hire someone new it means
reading through hundreds of applications
and filtering out all the ones that
aren't suited in a perfect world
companies would put more time and effort
into this but we all know that hasn't
really happened instead they've turned
to one of the most frustrating and
dehumanizing parts of the modern job
market automatic rejection systems today
over 97% of fore 500 companies use
what's refer ref to is an ATS an
applicant tracking system the basic idea
is simple an ATS works like a Civ
filtering out any applications that
don't mean whatever requirements the
employer has set when they first came
into widespread use in the early 2000s
with the rise of the internet they could
only deal with a few basic questions if
someone ticks the book saying they're
not legally allowed to work for example
they'd get rejected today ATS companies
advertise their services to the public
like this is still the only thing they
do companies like Greenhouse lever
workday have to admit their products
automatically reject people it's far too
obvious for them to deny it but they try
to give the impression that it's only a
few legal questions that do this of
course this isn't the case at all
rejection questions by giving the wrong
answer P your CV in the reject pile are
everywhere today in fact there are only
the first herdle an applicant needs to
get P to beat the machine as the
internet becomes the main place to
search for jobs ATS companies had to
adapt they needed to keep up with the
increasing amount of applications so
they added more rejection questions
instead of filtering out the people you
legally can't hire they started giving
companies the option to reject people
based on whatever legal criteria they
wanted your address your experience any
question they ask can make the
difference between getting an interview
or getting ghosted normally they don't
outright reject CVS of course they just
rank them more based on the criteria
they're using technically all an ATS
really does is turn tons of applications
into a rank list of candidates if you
end up on the bottom of the pile though
or anywhere near except the very top
you'll never get looked at anyway and
ATS probably won't automat asically
reject you it will just put you so far
back in the queue that you might as well
not even be there but even this approach
still left too many applications for
companies to look through to fix it they
made the ATS able to read the CV itself
today these systems can go through
applications and pick out certain key
words they want to see if you didn't use
those certain words they wanted you'll
end up at the back of the queue and
eventually get rejected they can also
read how much experience you have in
certain areas making notes of everyone
who doesn't make the cut even today
these systems are far from perfect if
you don't have the same key wordss they
use in the job posting then your CV can
often end up on the bottom of the P
regardless of whether you're qualified
or not similar problems can come from
how you format your CV some templates
don't get read as well by the system
meaning they miss out important parts
and unfairly reject people there are
ways to avoid this like making sure you
use the same words they use in the
advert or using a standard template that
the system will be designed to read at
the end of the day though it's not
something that people should have to do
rewriting your entire CV every time is
part of what makes finding a job in the
mod world so Soul crushing especially
when you just get ghosted over and over
again pretty much every single company
in the west uses these systems now but
even with almost 100% adoption the
situation could still get worse AI is
perfectly suited for use in an ATS it's
already widespread and it makes these
programs far better at understanding
people's CVS and filtering people out so
companies will be eager to cut out just
a little bit more of the human element
from finding new employees as they might
just save a little bit extra on
Personnel costs this is the Croc of the
problem with ATS and how they've taken
over the entire process finding a job
used to be a human experience where you
were in at least limited control of the
situation obviously you can make it a
certainty that you get hired but you at
least got a chance to make a unique
impression on whoever did decide by
turning all of the applicants into a set
of data companies dehumanize the entire
thing so out of the thousands of
applicants that usually are for each
good job you have to stand out in spite
of a system intentionally turning you
into a data point on a spreadsheet but
even this incredibly infuriating role of
the DI PR is still the best outcome you
can have when applying to one of these
jobs people talk about the Thousand to
one odds of getting a job once it's
posted and they might think they're over
exaggerating in reality though the odds
are even worse a large part of the
rejections people get are because the
jobs they're applying to don't actually
exist it's a problem that's only been
getting worse the ratio of people
getting higher to job openings in the US
actually fell below .5 in 2023 which
means at least half of all job openings
are for so-called ghost jobs which are
never going to get anyone hired in the
first place so let's explore the
Insidious reason companies keep these
listings up and why so many people's his
time is wasted by them ghost jobs are
everywhere on sites like indeed you can
apply to a job listing and wait
anxiously for a response but after weeks
or months you either get rejected or you
don't hear back at all in a lot of these
cases it probably has nothing to do with
you or your CV instead it was all
probably because the company wasn't
planning on hiring anyone anyway in a
survey of over 1,000 hiring managers
over 2/3 admitted to leaving their short
postings up for a month 10% had left
listings on the internet for over 6
months without filling the role there's
a ton of different reasons that
companies do this today none of which
are a good excuse for the time they
waste sometimes people already know
who's actually going to get the job some
executive Su might need something to do
or maybe they've already decided on an
internal candidate maybe they're just
going to dump the workload on one of
their current employees but need to make
it look like they tried to find someone
else it barely takes them any time or
resources a tool to drop some templated
job listing online and the longer they
leave it up the higher the chance that
they'll hook that magical unicorn
employee that they've been looking for
the person is qualified and experienced
but will probably work for under market
rate and won't ask for any benefits
other times these listings will just be
there for appearances it looks good for
the company if they're growing and
hiring new people for example they might
also think that the current employees
will wonder who's getting replaced and
work harder to avoid it there's a
million sleazy reasons for companies to
create fake listings the job sites will
be happy to take their business and
that's another reason it's such a
massive problem today the job boards
actively won dead listings fake listings
SPO their numbers and let them brag
about the thousands of jobs they have
available given this illusion of Plenty
even when there's only scraps on the
table these websites aren't there to
cater to job Seekers they only need to
do the bare minimum to stay functional
if you're not paying for it then you're
the product not the customer job Seekers
on these sites don't have any Agency for
most it's a choice between using them or
going hungry the real customers are the
companies who post the adverts and pay
for the extras if they want to post dead
listings why would indeed or any other
job board stop them all of these things
have made finding a job that much harder
today it's an excruciating trial of
patients unless you get unusually lucky
early on in your search of course if
there is a problem even when that's been
entirely fabricated an industry will
spring up to solve it middlemen and
recruitment agencies used to be
necessary parts of the professional
world if you couldn't get your job seen
by the right people they could bridge
the gap and find good candidates for the
opening you would think that this
instant communication and the ability to
have your job opening seen by thousands
of people in seconds would have damaged
this industry but instead the
recruitment industry has grown massively
in the past few decades in the UK the
recruitment industry grew to be worth
over 140 billion at the end of 2022 20
billion more than just 3 years before
that 30,000 recruitment companies now
employ over 200,000 people for a
considerable sum they'll eventually find
you a job if they don't just string you
along for more payments even in the best
of cases all these agencies do is
reverse the changes of the past 20 years
and give you a real shot at a job
opening most of the time though they're
only really solving a problem that the
wider industry created for people in the
first place it's a whole lot of money
which only keeps flowing in because of
how hard it is for regular people to do
it themselves now so maybe you got lucky
with automated systems or perhaps you
went through the hassle of dealing with
recruiters but either way you've somehow
got yourself an interview except even
that crucial stage of the process has
been changed beyond recognition while
there may be a short often meaningless
interview to was the end of the process
tons of companies have substituted that
for questionnaires and tests instead
while the questions might vary most of
these kinds of tests are pretty similar
some of them might ask you about what
you would do in an imaginary situation
supposedly to test your critical
thinking others ask the kinds of
questions where you can either lie and
give the obviously correct answer or be
honest and get marked down all of them
though are a complete waste of time it
hasn't stopped anyone from Microsoft to
Walmart all of these companies using
them to S through potential employees in
fact in fact big retail chains are some
of the most infamous companies for just
giving people these tests instead of
ever actually interviewing them why they
need to know your star sign to see if
you can stack shelves fast enough is
another matter entirely but the reason
Walmart is the most enthusiastic about
these tests above all other companies
will become clear soon enough these
tests don't come close to giving
employers information on the skills and
experience and candidates might have
either most people rationally just try
to figure out what answers they want you
to pick the integral question of whether
you'd be a good fit on which the entire
process should depend on has almost been
completely forgotten today even
references are nearly always just a
confirmation that you worked at a
company for a certain amount of time any
information on whether you were actually
a good employee can't be given anymore
because you can sue people who give you
bad references it means that companies
just don't make themselves liable so if
they don't actually measure your
aptitude what's the point of all these
aptitude tests a lot of the time the
actual content of the questions doesn't
matter the main thing they're testing
people on is how eager they are to jump
through the Hoops in the first place if
you can see through the corporate
language and spend the time figuring out
what they want you to say you're already
conforming it's also why there are often
multiple different tests at different
stages in the hiring process the more of
their Hoops you'll jump through the more
likely you are to be a good corporate
drone Walmart's tests have the same
purpose as the humiliating dances they
make their employees do they break
people down just a little bit more
another reason for these tests has
nothing to do with the candidates at all
instead they're in place because the
upper management has no faith in the
people further down the pyramid to
choose good employees once companies
start hiring by questionnaire they can
take Metal Management out of the loop
entirely it means they can put even more
of their faith and trust into data and
spreadsheets over real human judgment
with all of the changes we've seen in
hiring in the past two decades a common
theme has emerged all of these changes
take the power out of the hands of the
applicant and put them into the hands of
corporate management the process of
getting your applications noticed is an
exhausting numbers game either getting
lucky or sending off dozens or hundreds
of of applications is the only way
people can actually survive I looked at
the data if you just applied to a job
through a job board the odds of you
getting hired were about 3% so you got
to apply a lot of different jobs in
order to have a chance to get them and
you're going to get lots and lots of
just no responses even if you do get
through the first stage employers will
happily waste months of your time
they'll put you through endless
different stages of interviews tests and
trial periods or to just ghost you after
they choose somebody else it's a truly
dystopian part of our modern society
that all of these barriers have been put
in the way of people simply surviving
and the reward at the end of this uous
journey is just usually a job that pays
the same wage as it did 20 years ago
before all of this even happened in
today's economic climate it's a question
of survival every paycheck can make or
break someone's entire life these
artificial delays have done serious
damage to society and eroded what little
trust there was between employes and
employees so you can play nice to try
and dupe the system but never really buy
into any of the restur about family or
trust don't fo yourself into thinking
these companies actually care about you
or an equal system or any other garbage
it's a myth that everybody's hiring as
it's been shown repeatedly that there's
much more to this equation that first
meets the eye
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