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Hong Kong employers ‘tortured’ by summer job applicants

After going through the peak season for employees to jump ship - the post Lunar New Year period - it seems there is another tough task ahead for the HR department: hiring fresh graduates. Summer is here and it is time for graduates and interns to experience life at work.

In a recent post on Heawork, Hongkongers shared how the new additions to the workforce torture employers during the hiring process.

To better communicate with young job applicants, more and more employers are using Whatsapp to get in touch with them. But one restaurant boss who does so said it's a disaster.

According to the boss, many applicants texted him in the middle of the night. Not only does this affect his sleep, it also left him wondering if a person who is awake at 3am is going to show up on time at work in the morning.

Then there are lazy or impolite applicants who never type more than three words in a message. Below is a recap of an exchange between the boss and an applicant.

Boss: Please tell me something about yourself.

Applicant: I am Jerry.

Boss: Do you have any related experience?

Applicant: No

Boss: Why do you want to apply for this opening?

Applicant: To gain experience.

Then there are applicants who send questions to the boss non-stop. "Can I come to work tomorrow?"; " Can I wear jeans?"; "Can I bring a friend?". The boss doesn't have all day to answer questions from job applicants, he has work to do!

The boss tried to accommodate the young people but ended up in despair.

Another employer shared his frustrating experience trying to hire a university intern. He tried to set up an interview with the applicant in May, but the applicant said no because he was still attending class. The interview was rescheduled to 1 June. On 31 May at 10:30 PM, the applicant texted the employer he had received another offer.

He then went on to ask if the employer still wanted to meet with him. The employer asked him if he had already accepted the offer. He said yes, leaving the employer speechless.

Adding to the misery of employers, last week, a junior software developer shared on Reddit he accidentally destroyed the company's production database on his first day at work and was immediately fired.

If human resources practitioners are not careful with the selection process, there is a chance they will end up with immature and unprofessional employees who will drive the office crazy.

Photo/ 123RF

ALSO READ: Hong Kong boss: Never hire graduates with third class honours

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