I am writing this because I have seen far too often very skilled and talented people get treated badly because of the faults of others.
I’ll give you an example. A year ago a company contacted me to work for them and it was a good fit. I however could not work for them because they insisted that I needed to come to HQ even though it was a remote position for training. I am claustrophobic and I shared that I would be unable to take a plane and a car that distance would be a several day affair. It just wasn’t the right fit.
A week or two later someone from my network got the position and I was thrilled for them. Then a few weeks ago I see that person accepting a new job. Curious I reached out to that person and asked what their experience was with the company and shared mine. They said that they legally couldn’t talk bad about the company and it was clear what happened. They said the position was closed.
Now this person had worked for them less than a year and it wasn’t their fault that their position was closed. I have worked for companies that had financial issues and they also closed positions and it wasn’t the employees fault was it?
I have also worked for companies that were toxic and treated people disrespectfully and illegally. I shared that I had been yelled at, and this happened at many companies that I worked for. Is a worker a “job hopper” if they leave a toxic situation?
The truth is that recruiters and hiring managers need to understand is there are lots of sick companies out there, and the only reason people stay with a job is because they need the money. I worked at companies I should have left on the first day and there were red flags that I should have listened to.
Job hoppers are also perceived negatively if they don’t get a chance to respond why they have different jobs. Some people are talented enough to be a consultant, and work for many companies. Some people like to grow their skills, and want to move on when they feel they have learned what they can at a company.
This is not to defend me, but rather to give you some things to consider before you rush to judgement and write someone off as unreliable. People want to be stable and aren’t always given the ability to succeed.