Questions about anything

[D'Snowth]

So I was reading this article this morning about a girl who was going out for a job interview: she had an initial phone interview, then there was a second phone interview that was to determine a forthcoming face-to-face interview. Anyway, during the second phone interview, the girl asked how much she would be getting paid, to which the company then canceled the face-to-face interview; the girl took her story to the news, and now the internet response is in favor of the girl, saying she did nothing wrong, and lashing out against the company for clearly not caring about paying their workers and for looking for people to hire for next-to-nothing.

I'm sorry, am I missing something here? Because when I was growing up and entering adulthood, and people were teaching me about what and what not to do during job interviews, I was always told asking about salaries or anything like that was one of the questions you never ask during an interview, because it's not a proper thing to ask - especially if you don't even have the job yet. Salary and payment discussions are supposed to come after you're hired and your employer discusses these things with you.

So . . . I mean, how, exactly, is the company in the wrong for turning down the girl for asking a question she's not supposed to ask in an interview? And how is the girl a victim for asking a question?

 

[newsmanfan]

I'm sorry, am I missing something here? Because when I was growing up and entering adulthood, and people were teaching me about what and what not to do during job interviews, I was always told asking about salaries or anything like that was one of the questions you never ask during an interview, because it's not a proper thing to ask - especially if you don't even have the job yet. Salary and payment discussions are supposed to come after you're hired and your employer discusses these things with you.

It is considered perfectly acceptable to inquire about the salary and benefits offered. Generally, the employer should offer that information right up front; a company that not only didn't do so in whatever the initial job posting was, much less by the second interview, sounds like a skeezy fly-by-night outfit to me.

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

Why would you not want to know how much money you're getting when you look for a job? Isn't money the main reason most people get a job in the first place ? I think employers absolutely should be upfront and honest about salary.

 

[D'Snowth]

It is considered perfectly acceptable to inquire about the salary and benefits offered. Generally, the employer should offer that information right up front; a company that not only didn't do so in whatever the initial job posting was, much less by the second interview, sounds like a skeezy fly-by-night outfit to me.

Why would you not want to know how much money you're getting when you look for a job? Isn't money the main reason most people get a job in the first place ? I think employers absolutely should be upfront and honest about salary.

I guess I'm just from another time, because I was always taught to never ask that question during interviews, because it was not considered proper or tactful . . . y'know, like asking a woman her age and such.

 

[newsmanfan]

I guess I'm just from another time, because I was always taught to never ask that question during interviews, because it was not considered proper or tactful . . . y'know, like asking a woman her age and such.

That is very old-school, and not wrong...however, it's pretty much expected these days that a company advertising an open position will list the salary, and often benefits as well, before they even start interviews.

 

[MikaelaMuppet]

Why do people not want to show their faces? Like on the news for example.

 

[fuzzygobo]

I guess I'm just from another time, because I was always taught to never ask that question during interviews, because it was not considered proper or tactful . . . y'know, like asking a woman her age and such.

It's a delicate matter sometimes in interviews. Usually going in, you have a rough idea what the job will pay. But companies use that as leverage in their favor. One job I landed, was between me and one other candidate. We both knew the job paid between 30 and 35K. We got into a bidding war, and I got the job only because I bid about a thousand dollars less.

You don't always get paid what you're worth, but what the job is worth.
Again, that works to companies' advantage.
They pay you just enough so you don't quit.
You work just hard enough so you don't get fired.
Great deal, ain't it?

 

[newsmanfan]

Why do people not want to show their faces? Like on the news for example.

Various reasons. Backlash, usually.

 

[MikaelaMuppet]

Various reasons. Backlash, usually.

Backlash? What does that mean?

 

[newsmanfan]

Backlash? What does that mean?

Ok, here's an example:
Say a witness to a crime is interviewed at the scene by press. Maybe there was a gang hit, and a woman saw it. They'll black or blur out her face on-camera so that the rest of the gang doesn't learn her identity and retaliate if she ends up being a witness for the cops.

Or maybe there's an uproar about gay couples at a high school prom. Perhaps a teacher is interviewed on the news, and states they're in favor of more tolerance at their school. If they're recognized on camera by someone who violently disagrees, that teacher could then become a target for a hate crime.

Plenty of reasons why someone might not want to be recognized. People just arrested but not yet proven guilty are masked-out on tv news to prevent any damage to their reputation should they be found not guilty.