Job search red flags

Dr. Helen Ofosu 2:57 PM Career coach and HR consultant

Companies can ask questions that make it obvious they tokenize racialized workers. Even if it’s framed as “What can you bring to this role as a diverse candidate?” You wouldn’t ask a redhead what their hair colour brings to the job.

Tiana Field-Ridley 2:59 PM Mental Health Commission of Canada

How long is the interview process taking? Is it stretched out over weeks and weeks? You then have to question how fast things move internally and how long it will take to get stuff done.

Sarah Corboliou 3:02 PM employee success at Unito

Look at whether the company employs a lot of parents who can grow in responsibility. Even if you don’t plan on being a parent yourself, that can be a good indicator of a company’s commitment to work-life balance.

Allison Venditti 3:18 PM HR expert and advocate

One big red flag is made-up titles and unclear job descriptions. Watch for words like “rock star,” “sharpshooter” or “other duties as assigned.” Customer-success unicorn? Great, I’m an HR turkey. Let’s chat.