(Names but not home addresses are withheld to protect the left wing, soulless corporate brass.)
In the fall of 2004 when I still lived in Georgia, a receptionist at Baby's Dream Furniture (BDF) contacted me, after they had seen my resume on CareerBuilder.com, to set up a job interview for their sales coordinator position. I gladly accepted, despite being overqualified. I was fine with starting at the bottom and working my way up, since I did not have retail experience at the time but did have 4 years management experience.
I thought the interview went fairly well but I wasn't sure. Two weeks had passed and I had not received an answer from BDF. Shortly after that, the receptionist at BDF contacted me for a second interview and I was thrilled.
After my second interview, the receptionist informed me that the president of the company wanted to take my husband and me out to dinner to get better acquainted after having hors d'oeuvres at his home. I accepted. At the time, BDF employed approximately 200 people, so the company wasn't that large.
I thought the dinner at a gourmet restaurant went fairly well. My husband had been severely injured overseas while in the military and has 15% of 3rd degree burn scars on his face, neck, left arm and hands. Medical and dental care for either my husband or me was a non-issue since my husband was active duty military injured in the line of duty. As a courtesy, I told the receptionist about my husband's injuries so she could tell the president ahead of time. I didn't want him and his wife to be shocked and uncomfortable upon meeting my husband.
At the end of the night, the president simply told me that they would be in touch with me.
Imagine my surprise when less than 2 weeks later while doing a job search on Careerbuilder.com while out-of-town, I see the very job I interviewed for twice listed AFTER the date of the dinner. When I returned home, I found an envelope with BDF letterhead and immediately knew what it was. Companies don't send you letters when they intend to hire you. I opened the envelope and sure enough, it was a generic rejection letter saying that they decided to pursue other candidates. Granted, I do realize that companies are not obligated to tell me why they do or don't hire people. But to lead me on for almost two months for a job that barely paid over $30,000 a year and then discard me?
I was stunned and angry to say the least, and I still am. That's why I'm filing this over a year later. I also tell anyone I know who is in the market for baby furniture this story.
I asked a senior Employment Assistance Manager with the federal government his opinion of this charade. He told me that the president of a company doesn't invite you and your spouse to his home and then to dinner if he/she is not going to hire you [then shook his head in disgust]. So it was something that occurred during the evening that made the president change his mind.
In my opinion, it's pretty bold/ballsy to invite a prospective employee that you barely know to your large, expensive home, show him/her where you live and then dump him/her two weeks later.
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