Wierdest or Worst Job Interview Experiences??

[lumpkin]

Yeah, it''s an older thread, but I''m new to this forum and I have a few minutes (avoiding that laundry, LOL!).

I don''t really have a funny interview story, but I have an interesting temp story. I used to temp while I was in college and I got a job at a firm that was owned, managed and almost entirely operated by women. Cool, huh? The first day I was there they told me about "the schedule." Twice a day for two hours was "Quiet Time." Yes, I kid you not. An elevator music doorbell would sound over the intercom and no one was supposed to take calls, talk out loud (whispers only, and only when necessary to complete a deadline), or make any noise that might disturb their coworkers for two hours. I''m not a loud person and when I''m busy I don''t need to visit, but it was difficult to be silent for two hours. Once I accidentally muttered under my breath when I lost my work on the computer and the person in the next cubicle shushed me. I worked there about two weeks and I was very creeped out. Very glad to move on to the next assignment, LOL!

 

[Mara]

lol lumpkin...your story reminded me of all my weird temp assignments when i was working my way through college. i worked at some cool places and some weird ones too! but the weirdest thing was that all my assignments used to RAVE about me. not tooting my own horn here at all, because i was always like baffled as to why they were so impressed with me. they would say things like wow she's awesome, she works quickly and efficiently, she's smart, she's proactive, she finishes tasks before the deadline etc. i used to think... hello i am just doing my job?!?!

anyway...it wasn't until i was older and in corporate positions of my own and would sometimes hire assistance for projects that i found out just how flakey and lazy some temps can be!!! showing up late, not showing up at all, not calling, working slowly since it was by the hour pay, or not wanting to work on tasks...it was like a lightbulb. i did know some other gals like me working through college and we all were baffled as to why everyone was so impressed with us because we just flat out did our jobs. i think that many temps can give that whole 'temporary industry' a bad name unfortunately.

i think one of my weirdest temp jobs was when i went to work for RJ Reynolds, the tobacco company...they have an office in san jose and i was i think 19 or 20 and in college...but i was working full time for summer and my agency placed me there. i didn't know what they did til i got there that morning. i did data entry and some project management kinda tasks, and it was the oddest office. practically everyone smoked!! the first day, the receptionist, who dressed much like trailer barbie (though she was really sweet) told me that i could get boxes of cigarettes for free...did i want any? i was like...ummm no thanks i don't smoke.

everyone was really nice there, but i could not wait to get out of that office! i felt really bizarre working for such a big tobacco name when i couldn't stand cigarettes. i ended up landing another contract at adobe about 3 weeks after starting, with way more money for the summer, so i made up some story about how my parents had surprised us with a family vacation for the summer so i had to quit because i'd be gone for 3 weeks. it was pretty outlandish in terms of a story (my family never went on big vacations!) but i didn't want to fess up since they were all so nice. but there was no way i was passing up a summer at adobe for potential lung cancer office. they were sad i was leaving and asked me to come back and work part time for them when the school year started. i was like..yeah okay i will call you! BYE.

 

[fire&ice]

That''s funny. For the most part, I enjoyed temping - but once in a while a dozy assignment came along.

I was on assignment in the trust research department of a major financial institution. The people were sooooooooooo odd! I asked one of them where the bathroom was. She was like all mortified. She said "You know you have to wait until your break time to go!". I was like - No - I''m an adult. I can use the restroom as needed. I was looked at like a leper all day. I called and asked to be reassigned.

 

[rfath]

Huh.. you mean it''s not typical for your interviewer to ask if you''re married or in a committed relationship (because they didn''t want someone running off to be with someone, as he explained it to me when I gave him the stink-eye for asking)? Or the supervisor who managed to not notice your wedding and engagement rings during the whole interview process (talked to him three times on three separate occasions!), then looks at you stunned a few weeks into the job, wanting to know if the rings were a ''new'' thing. He didn''t talk to me much after that...

Had one woman ask me if I was planning on getting pregnant because she didn''t want to pay for anyone''s leave. This after telling me she''d just gotten back to the lab after having her second child...

A few jobs ago, the PI for the lab wanted to know during the interview if I ate meat. Eh?

I''m currently looking for another job... I''m really worried what sort of stories I''ll be adding to the weird list.

 

[lumpkin]

Mara, I know what you mean about hiring temps. They are not always the most industrious folks. I am frequently shocked at some people''s lack of work ethics, temps or not.

I don''t mind interviews but I haven''t had any really bad experiences. Except one where they wanted to pay about $2 over minimum wage and but wanted a ton of qualifications that should garner much higher pay. That was interesting.

I had another interesting temp job at a big name telecommunications company. Oh My God. They pay well, but it just wouldn''t be enough, LOL! They had some really nutty people there. There was this one guy who would peak over the top of my cubicle with the tips of his fingers kind of hanging on to the top and make google eyes at me. No, he was not hitting on me, this was his idea of a greeting! Later he proceeded to tell me that his teenage son likes silk underwear because it "feels awesome!" Again, not hitting on me, just entirely TMI. Then there was this one guy who always wanted me to type up his shipping labels. If the X was not exactly in the center of the square he''d have me retype it. It had to be EXACTLY in the center, horizontally and vertically, and a hairs bredth was too off. Then there was the woman who was clearly too ill to be at work. She brought a blanket in with her and while I was handing her a requisition her nose literally dripped on her desk. I could go on and on and on. It was by far the assignment with the weirdest people in it. Even at the place with the doorbell and lady coming over the intercom saying, "Quiet time is now in effect" the people were fairly normal to talk to. Fortunately, all my other assignments were pretty uneventful.

 

[lumpkin]

Date: 10/6/2006 12:21:16 PM
Author: fire&ice

That''s funny. For the most part, I enjoyed temping - but once in a while a dozy assignment came along.

I was on assignment in the trust research department of a major financial institution. The people were sooooooooooo odd! I asked one of them where the bathroom was. She was like all mortified. She said ''You know you have to wait until your break time to go!''. I was like - No - I''m an adult. I can use the restroom as needed. I was looked at like a leper all day. I called and asked to be reassigned.

Isn''t it amazing that this would be a foreign concept to them? This reminds me of that telecommunications place. During my 6 week assignment there I had to go to the doctor and have a biopsy (turned out fine) so I didn''t go back to the office that day -- I didn''t tell the the details, just that I needed a sick day. The next day I had about 10 people come up and say, "Oh, are you all right? We were soooo worried about you!" Apparently, you weren''t allowed to take sick days unless you were on your death bed. I think I have a good work ethic, but geesh, if you need to be out of the office it shouldn''t be a federal case. And you should be able to go use the facilities as needed.

 

[innerkitten]

I''ve had a few. In Tokyo while I was interviewing for a job the guy interviewing me started to get undressed!! Of course I left.
He was a friend of a friend and when she mentioned it to him the next day he denied it. Actually most of my weird job interview experiences were in Tokyo!

 

[Munchkin]

This sort of fits in this thread, and I found it hysterical.

My Dad has a private law practice. He is a brilliant man, an incredible attorney, and a nightmare to work for. Seriously, he is one of those people who is always thinking 5 steps ahead and barks at you when you don''t keep up. I quit every summer he asked me to work for him. To be fair, however, he recognizes this and his secretary makes 10k more a year than I do. That is with my masters from Yale and a career as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. I would be bitter if I thought I could hack working for him.

So, his secretary needed several weeks off, and he hired a temp. The temp "got lost on the way to work and ran out of gas."

Wait for it...




She had been working there for two weeks! Lost my ass!

 

[lumpkin]

Oh, Munchkin, she got lost AND ran out of gas. After two weeks of working for him, LOL! Oh, my, she REALLY didn''t want to go to work that day. Probably hoping he''d ask for a different temp, LOL!