Like the other gentleman in GA, I too fell for this bait-and-switch tactic. To be a little more indepth, here is the way their little game is played:
First, they post a FAKE job on CareerBuilder or HotJobs or Monster under the name of VANARA. This Vanara company is purported to be a recruiter of sorts.in my case, I responded to a posting for a Fleet Manager position in Grand Prairie, Texas.
The following day I get an email from Carina Zaragova, a "recruiter" from Vanara. She praises my credentials endlessly (how nice of her). Then she states that, with all of my sensational skills (paraphrasing here), I would be better off approaching these companies directly, rather than through a recruiter. Hmmm. Should have been my first red flag, but instead, I took it as a blow-off; you know, the typical thanks, but no thanks response. I should have realized that NO recruiter would EVER steer you away from their services. I continually kick myself for not seeing this earlier. She stated that I would get many more offers by pursuing potential employers directly and a good source of information would be TransportationCrossing.com (linked). I ingnored the email.
The next day I get another email from Carina. This time it makes no mention of my superb experience and all that.instead it is completely focused on the TransportationCrossing site. I click the link. It's another job-site. This one is however, fee-based. I signed up for the free trial to check it out.
After a few days I found that this site has nothing on it that you cant find on CareerBuilder or Monster. The only difference is they charge a monthly fee to look at from their site. I called to cancel my membership. They agreed initially, then as luck would have it, they were going to extend my free period for 90 days. Wow, I feel special now.
Look, I dont want to discredit the actual service they provide. Perusing through countless, brain-dead jobs on the major boards can be tiresome. This service pools all of the related jobs from the major boards, and puts them in one spot for you. Sounds like a useful tool for those who need it.
What I cannot stand is unethical, bait-and-switch tactics. Posting a FAKE job, only to lure unsuspecting jobseekers to their fee-based service is a chicken-sh*t way to do business.
I've been in transportation for 15 years now. I have developed a reputation with my clients for doing what is fair, right and decent. My clients expect that of me and I expect it of anyone I do business with. What these people are doing is not fair, right or decent. Despite the extended trial period I was so graciously given, I have terminated my relationship with this company. I do not want to associate with anyone like them.
Oh, and CareerBuilder is going to pull their job ads. The major boards charge a small fee for posting jobs. Advertising on their sites is a hell of a lot more expensive. What TransportationCrossing is doing is circumventing the advertising costs on these sites by instead, posting fake jobs at a cheaper rate. I brought this point to CareerBuilder's attention this morning and they are going to pull their postings.
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