Staffing Advice

Due to the market, many are on job hunts these days. It also means there are people out there willing to exploit this in a less than honest way. Enter the “scammers”. They will attempt to squeeze money out of you at some point in exchange for no service and a lot of promises that sounds too good to be true.
I will use a personal experience as an example. Before my internship, I was on the job hunt just like everyone else. I found security guard training on Craigslist and decided to check it out. The first shady detail that came up was that their address appeared on Google Maps as a shoe store. Being desperate for a job, I went to find the location in person. It was a small door behind a bank. Since I was already there, I went downstairs to what looked like an under-maintained dark basement. The paint and plaster on the walls was chipping, if it wasn’t already gone.
I was eventually called upon for the interview. I stepped into the interviewer’s office/closet and took a seat. His office was shared with an assistant who worked in a tight little corner of this closet. As he interviewed me, I noticed all the certificates on his wall looked exactly the same. It also looked like something one could make using Microsoft suite and maybe some Photoshop. The certificates also lacked any kind of gold seal or special print.
If that wasn’t odd enough, they immediately asked for $90 for drug tests and screenings. They went on to explain their “pay what you can” training classes “guaranteed” to get you a job for a mere $300. Because I really wanted to work, I decided to pay the 90 dollars, but after some research, I wanted my money back. My friend pretended to be a career advisor and together we managed to get a refund. The last and final unsavory detail is when my interviewer’s boss began talking to him in the most unprofessional manner. After leaving with my money and demanding my files be destroyed, I discovered that there have been other people who have been scammed out of 398 dollars from their security training without getting any benefit what so ever.
In the end, it really comes down to a judgment call and common sense. If something sounds too good, it most likely is. One of the first signs of a “job hunting scam” is that they are asking you to pay them money! The object of getting a job is to earn money, not PAY money. Be cautious and use your best judgment!