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    MsxHHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:26am

    OH MY GOD. This is exactly what I hate about the nonprofit world: people who take advantage of individuals who just want to do good in the world. They want to hire subservient lackeys, not employees. Nobody should put in an application to work for jackholes of this nature. Nobody.

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      TimsALotMsxH
      1/10/14 11:48am

      I work in the non-profit world and you are exactly right... I hate my life :(

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      FerminaDazaMsxH
      1/10/14 12:03pm

      Agreed. I'm in the non-profit field, and shit like this is why I stay away from any of the charity/research foundations. They tend to be the worst offenders of having ridiculous overhead on donations so they can supply a coterie of incompetent "executives" who then expect entry-level workers to do their jobs, on top of what the person was hired for, without any further compensation.

      I'll stick to social justice and activist groups. I did a stint at one of the "non-profits" that somehow align with the tax code but don't do anything beneficial to society as a whole, and the better pay compared to other similar positions did not make up for the fact that it was absolutely soul-sucking, thankless work. I don't need much money to support the type of lifestyle I like, and I'd rather eat ramen and see actual progress than have expensed sushi lunches once a week and feel like I serve no purpose whatsoever.

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    benjaminalloverHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:36am

    I think this is over the top, but I honestly wouldn't have a problem or really think too much of it if I were given this mystery task as part of an interview. I would enjoy the challenge- it's a great way to show off your leadership, problem solving, personality and skills.

    To me the more problematic aspect is when the interviews bleed out into going to the bar for drinks with the potential bosses. Even if you've nailed the 5 interviews and the surprise dinner task, you'd feel obligated to go so that you didn't miss out on a final chance to seal the job. I am not going to get drunk or spend my own money to suck up to an employer, and it seems like a really stupid position for the employer to put them in.

    The other problem is the 4 month process. I know it isn't out of the realm of average, but it defeats the purpose when all your top candidates have taken other jobs because your hiring process is foolishly long.

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      festivusazilibenjaminallover
      1/10/14 11:49am

      If you wouldn't have a problem with being asked to cater a dinner for free as part of an interview, you are part of the problem. Stand up for yourself. That is some degrading shit and Operation Smile should be embarrassed for asking people to do it.

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      AMownLawnfestivusazili
      1/10/14 12:00pm

      Took the words right out of my mouth. What the fuck is this world coming to?

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    jlpubarchHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:22am

    Does the job description include:

    May randomly be required to be a house servant. Prepare meals, travel at own expense, wine and dine senior staff, etc. No compensation.

    Seriously, this isn't a job interview, its a blatant attempt to bypass paying people for normal services.

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      pussygalore134jlpubarch
      1/10/14 11:38am

      But you know what we need? Less government regulation.

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    SequaciousliciousHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:31am

    Other than the sheer absurdity of the interview process, what on Earth could you shop for, prepare, and serve 40 people in only 2.5 hours with $350?
    Hawaiian punch and pizza rolls, and Debbie snack cakes???

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      benchandbarSequaciouslicious
      1/10/14 11:42am

      There are actually three meals I could cook on such notice, thanks to participating in meal based charities. There's the chili with hot dogs (I don't think that would go over as well in the OS group), the chicken pot pie like casserole (chicken, giant cans of vegall, cream of chicken soup, bisquick), the chicken taco casserole (canned black beans, jarred salsa, canned corn, nacho cheese product, chicken, served over rice with nacho chips). Ie, something where everyone doesn't get an individual piece of meat and the meat can be baked or boiled then added to something else for flavor.

      Note: This cannot be done without a nearby Sam's Club.

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      coleySequaciouslicious
      1/10/14 12:05pm

      According to the post they went with tacos. There was also a choreographed conga line dance because they had the same budget for "entertainment"

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    UnabashedHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:57am

    remember: if they treat you like shit at the interview, it will get worse once you work there, and you will want to kill yourself by week three. Although no interview I have had approaches this level of calculated deceit and obvious derision for these entry-level workers, I have had crazy stuff happen lately. For instance the other day I went on a "job interview" where the executive staff who met with us in a group (surprise! It's a group interview!) seemed completely unprepared and didn't explain anything about the job, disappeared for an hour while we all sat there, and then one by one asked for a urine test. This is before a job offer or even any discussion of the duties or my qualifications. I walked out even though I don't use any drugs. It's really OK to just walk the fuck out of these situations. You will never regret it.

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      iangillansillegitimatesonUnabashed
      1/10/14 12:28pm

      100% correct. I'm there to interview for a paying position, not to amuse strangers by leaping through hoops for them.

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    La.M.Hamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 12:19pm

    I attended a screening interview for a marketing firm. They told me that I had made it to the next round, the next round being an 8 hour "field interview". What it sounded like to me was a free 8 hours of free labor for them. Since there were about 15 other people in the lobby when I left, I figured they would all be doing "field interviews" with me, so I decided not to participate.

    I built a team of 8 people to run a program for me. Our interview process was intense, with a panel, a direct service test and a writing test. In all, candidates probably spent at least half a day interviewing for relatively low paying positions. But every piece of the interview was relevant to the actual duties of the job. And it was important to me to actually see people demonstrate the skills I was looking for.

    While TS interview technique is ridiculous, it is a great way to get the exact type of people you are looking for on your team.

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      MuscatoLa.M.
      1/10/14 1:36pm

      My partner has been interviewing, and I am flat out amazed at the number of sales and marketing scams and near-scams there are out there, many preying on extremely vulnerable people who for one reason or another face obstacles in the increasingly complicated job-search process. Many do this kind of unpaid labor nonsense, and some do a lot worse.

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    LaZodiacHamilton Nolan
    1/10/14 11:23am

    As someone who works catering at a bar, I can mostly assuridly tell you that she's being a fucking liar when she says it's "fun" to have a dinner for 40 sprung on you with no prior information.

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      housewifeHamilton Nolan
      1/10/14 11:21am

      Outrageous. Surely there are laws against this kind of exploitation.

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        60201housewife
        1/10/14 2:31pm

        This article overlooks the childish mind games the candidates were subjected to during the actual interviews:

        I recently had a job interview for an entry-level program coordinator position. I walked in and there was a panel of interviewers sitting behind a table but there was no chair for me. This was the third of five interviews as part of an all-day interview process, and every other session had a clear chair for the interviewee. There was a chair shoved into the corner, and after I introduced myself to everyone, I said something along the lines of “If it is alright, I’m just going to grab this chair” and pushed the chair into the proper position. It made the whole interview process feel like a mind game.

        I almost think the whole chair thing is more insulting and demeaning than the forced labor catering.

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        ZeonCharhousewife
        1/10/14 3:56pm

        I know in California at least there are limits to how long they can legally keep you for a "working interview."

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      SadTrombonezHamilton Nolan
      1/10/14 11:24am

      How out of touch are these people? During my 3 stints of unemployment in 15 years I can tell you that it is very stressful. Going through the hoops of the employment process is bad enough, not to mention multiple phone interviews, onsite interviews and panel interviews in which you constantly are in a state of preparation, recitation and somewhat forced positivity. Asking candidates for a menial position to put in a final 12 hour day, including shopping for (and then cooking for) complete strangers, is totally asinine. Completely out of touch with the modern man (or woman's) struggle. I'm guessing every candidate here was 23 and straight out of college.

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        coleySadTrombonez
        1/10/14 11:34am

        Or, exactly in touch in the worst way. They know exactly what the current job market is like, otherwise they know they would never get away with this "dance, monkey, dance" style of interviewing.

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      JlynnDCHamilton Nolan
      1/10/14 11:20am

      At 5, they simply announced that our group activity was to shop for and prepare a meal for 40 with entertainment, to be served at 7:30 at the director's house.We were given a budget of $350 and information about food allergies in the group.

      Are we sure they weren't secretly auditioning for Top Chef: Charity Edition?

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        DirtbagSurferJlynnDC
        1/10/14 12:11pm

        They should have split the money and bailed.

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        MrsAmyDirtbagSurfer
        1/10/14 5:38pm

        I'm actually shocked that this has never happened.

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