If you’re looking for a job, you might have noticed that some postings seem misleading – or maybe even too good to be true. At the same time, some employers don’t realize the value of a well-written job posting. If you’re looking for a job or plan to start the search soon, here are some red flags to look out for in job postings to help you decide if it is the right opportunity before you apply.
Salary Range isn’t Listed
When job hunting, salary is one of the top factors you consider before applying. Will the position pay enough to cover your cost of living needs? Allow you to live comfortably without worrying about finances? If a post doesn’t include the salary range for that position, it could be a red flag. For many candidates, omitting that information implies that perhaps the salary range is low.
If a job listing doesn’t list an estimated salary, or if it uses vague terms such as “competitive” or “negotiable,” you should be cautious. If you’re having trouble finding information on compensation, try searching sites such as Glassdoor and PayScale, which provide information on salary by company and by job title. These sites can also help you identify a pay range you could expect with your previous experience – knowing your worth can help you find the right opportunity quicker!
Spelling and Grammar Errors
Just like employers expect you not to have any spelling or grammar mistakes on your resume, hold them to the same expectation. It’s essential to keep an eye out for spelling and grammar mistakes in a job posting because they can make you question the professionalism of the organization. A well-written and professional-looking job posting is just as important as the responsibilities and salary description listed to attract highly qualified candidates.
A Long List of Qualifications
If you’re searching for jobs, it’s common to see ads with multiple bullet points of requirements and qualifications. This is normal – even expected; a red flag is when this bulleted list is in the double digits. When a long list of qualifications is present in a job description, it may be an indicator the employer will stretch you too thin or doesn’t have the proper resources for you to perform the job effectively.
It could also mean that the company hasn’t figured out what it’s looking for in a candidate—which is a problem because you’ll be set up to fail. The company may be trying to cast a wide net in hopes of finding something that sticks or may be expecting one person to do multiple jobs under one position name/salary. This kind of posting is a red flag for job seekers because it can set you up for failure by expecting you to be good at everything.
No Mention of Paid Time Off
Some employers didn’t offer paid time off in the past, but they’re starting to see the benefits of offering some paid time off. It gives employees more flexibility by using it to deal with personal issues or as an opportunity to do things they’ve always wanted to do—travel, volunteer, etc. This is because everyone is emphasizing a healthy work-life balance. Without paid time off, it can be challenging to take care of things outside of work and handle emergencies that come up unexpectedly. In general, when a company offers paid time off, it shows the employees that they value you as workers enough to give you what you need to succeed at your job.
Browsing through reviews on sites like Glassdoor can be especially helpful if a company doesn’t make paid time off readily available in its job postings. Even when you cannot find anything specific about the company online, seeing paid time off mentioned on other postings will tell you that this is another standard benefit that most companies offer. Reading these comments can also give you a lot of insight into how employees feel about their companies and whether it is a good fit for you.
No Mention of Paid Sick Leave
When a job posting doesn’t mention paid sick leave, it sends a message that the company doesn’t care about its employees’ health, which is problematic for several reasons. One ill employee who comes to work and infects everyone can bring down productivity and morale.
If you notice that there’s no mention of paid sick leave in the job posting, it could mean several things: either they don’t offer paid sick leave at all, or they’re assuming that you’ll be taking your vacation days or personal time if you get sick and need to stay home. Either way, the fact that they didn’t include it in their posting shows employee health and well-being aren’t valued.
A job posting is one of your first encounters with a potential employer. Therefore, learning all you can about a position before applying, going through the interview process, and potential employers is crucial. By identifying and paying attention to these subtle clues, like missing information around salary, PTO, and sick days, as well as unprofessional formatting or unrealistic qualifications, you will be able to find the right role.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
Balancing personal and professional life can often be challenging, but the reality is our work and life have to coexist in harmony. Openness in the workplace is a major key to well-being, lower stress levels, and good physical health. If you want to create an atmosphere of openness in your workplace, acknowledge employees when they bring up problems and provide opportunities for them to speak openly about their issues.
Creating such an atmosphere will lead to happier and more productive employees. Here are five tips if you want to know how to develop a culture of openness in the workplace.
Understand Mental Health
Creating a culture where employees feel comfortable discussing their mental health with you should be one of your goals as a leader. You can learn to identify signs of different disorders in your workplace. There are resources for educating yourself: books, websites, and talking with others about their experiences. This will make you better equipped to support your team members or direct them toward help when needed. Some people may exhibit changes in their behavior. They may have trouble focusing on tasks and making decisions. Others might not be able to complete even basic tasks, while others might not be as productive as usual. You’ll want to be aware of these patterns and changes in your employees’ behavior and appearance; this will help them get help faster and avoid potentially dangerous situations.
When leaders recognize mental health issues, they create a workplace that fosters open communication. When employees feel comfortable discussing their problems and know their managers will address them in a practical way, the stigma associated with mental health issues is reduced. Listen to your employees’ concerns and recognize when they may need additional support, and encourage open dialogue about mental health. Help employees find resources that allow them to get the care they need. The most important thing you can do is let them know you care and want them to get better.
Talk About Mental Health Openly
You can encourage employees to open up about their mental health as a leader and make it known that they can talk to you if they are struggling, whether at work or not. An excellent way to start the discussion is by holding workshops on dealing with stress at work and how it can affect people’s lives outside of work. These workshops will allow your employees to feel comfortable discussing about their mental health issues if they have not already done so. This also gives people a feeling of anonymity where they don’t have to worry about being singled out or judged.
When employees come to you with a problem, listen carefully and openly, and be sure to hold regular meetings where you discuss mental health. During these meetings, let employees know that the workplace is a safe space for them to share how they’re doing. If the employee is comfortable with it, hold one-on-one sessions and allow them to share their thoughts and feelings. If you think an employee is in a dangerous situation with their mental health, encourage them to use your employee assistance program (EAP), make an appointment with a therapist or counselor, and offer time off for treatment or recovery. In addition to one-on-one meetings with employees, employers can ensure that positive conversations about mental health are part of the workplace by sending weekly emails reminding employees that talking to professionals is okay if they struggle with mental health. Leaders can also consider posting information on notice boards reminding people that professionals are available if they need help or have questions about their mental health.
Show Your Vulnerable Side
As a leader, you may feel that you must appear to have it all together and show vulnerability as a sign of weakness. However, this mask can cause employees to feel isolated and afraid to share their weaknesses or fears with their superiors. If you want your employees to feel comfortable confiding in you when they’re feeling stressed out, then you need to be willing to admit to them that even leaders have challenges too.
You don’t need to confide every detail about your personal life with your employees, but you should be willing to share some details. By being open about the challenges you’ve faced and learned from, you create an environment in which your employees will feel comfortable discussing their setbacks. When they do, they’ll help build trust that will make it easier for you as a leader to work through issues as a team rather than keep things bottled up inside until they become huge obstacles.
Embrace Mistakes
Sometimes, people learn more from mistakes than successes – especially in an environment that doesn’t punish failure but instead treats it as an opportunity for growth. When an employee makes a mistake, it’s tempting for leaders to spend hours clearing up the blunder and put that person on a project with less responsibility; however, taking this approach can backfire by discouraging the rest of your team.
When employees take risks, they learn valuable lessons. Encourage them to try new things and be prepared to guide them if their attempts don’t work out. If someone comes to you saying they have a great idea but aren’t sure if it will work, you might encourage them to get their vision out there and see what happens. It’s essential for people to remember that mistakes are not failures—failure is when you don’t learn from them. As your employees grow professionally, they’ll also create a culture of openness—where more people feel comfortable admitting their mistakes so they can learn from them and prevent them from happening again.
Create a Transparent Environment
Being transparent in the workplace is important. Without transparency, miscommunications can lead to lower employee morale or poor performance. A transparent workplace recognizes each employee’s hard work and achievement. This builds trust between management and employees, making everyone feel more seen and heard. When information about projects, goals, and deadlines are shared with all levels of staff, everyone feels involved and invested in their work. When everyone knows the expectations, there is no confusion about who needs to do what or when it needs to get done. This kind of environment promotes healthy communication between all individuals involved. It provides a framework for open dialogue about changes or updates, which can reduce the need for micromanagement by supervisors.
When everyone knows the expectations, there is no confusion about who needs to do what or when it needs to get done. This kind of environment promotes healthy communication between all individuals involved. It provides a framework for open dialogue about changes or updates, which can reduce the need for micromanagement by supervisors.
Creating a transparent environment where all employees feel safe participating in constructive discussions about what’s happening inside a company is essential for leaders who want to create an innovative, productive workforce. Transparency with employees isn’t just a matter of good business—it’s also the best way to promote a happy and healthy work environment. People aren’t afraid of saying things that might be unpopular or being heard that others don’t agree with. By addressing issues openly and not simply with other managers, leaders can inspire more productive debates and allow everyone to air their concerns. Sharing company metrics allows all employees to see where they stand and make realistic career plans.
Openness in the workplace has many benefits, including increased trust, respect, and cooperation among staff members. By understanding mental health, speaking openly about one’s struggles, showing vulnerability, embracing mistakes, and creating a transparent environment, leaders can help foster a culture of openness in their organizations.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
A performance review is a chance to share your accomplishments, discuss any challenges you’re facing in your job, and identify opportunities for developing new skills. If you’ve taken the time to prepare for your review, you may feel good about what you’ve accomplished and where you stand at work. If not, you may dread having this conversation with your manager.
Here are a few tips for preparing for your next performance review, so you can feel confident and self-assured when you walk into the meeting.
Review Goals from the Previous Year
When preparing for a performance review, your first step should be to revisit the goals you set last year. You should include specific goals, measurable results, deadlines, and a detailed outline of steps to follow as well as account for potential setbacks and have built-in ways to handle them effectively. You also should revisit your goals throughout the year so adjustments can be made as necessary. In the end, your manager wants you to be prepared for review. It’s not just about what you’ve accomplished but how much you’ve thought things through and made progress toward achieving your goals.
It’s important to remember your performance review is a chance to reflect on how you’ve been doing—it’s also your manager’s chance to look at the goals you set for yourself and how you achieved them. If you did not reach your goals on your last performance review, examine them with your supervisor and ensure that you did everything you could to have tried to meet them, and then also evaluate whether you have realistic expectations in the future.
Looking back on your goals, are there any areas in which you struggled to meet expectations? If so, don’t be afraid to ask questions or request additional guidance—the more effort you put into reviewing your goals, the better prepared you’ll be for this next performance review.
Track of Your Achievements
You want to stand out in the eyes of management when it comes time for your performance review. Ensure you’re doing more than just the bare minimum when you’re on the clock. Think of positive examples from your history demonstrating how you’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty. If you don’t have these available examples, now is an excellent time to start tracking them.
When it’s time for your next performance review, review your list and be ready with details on each accomplishment and summarize your progress through the year. Include a general description of each task, including the date it was completed, the name of the project, and a summary of what it entailed. If your manager is a “big picture” person, you can save time by skipping the minor details and reporting only the essential facts and figures.
Create a Communication Strategy
You should be consistently communicating your project statuses transparently and efficiently with your supervisor. If your manager prefers more frequent updates, send the information monthly or weekly as they desire. This helps keep the feedback loop strong, so you and your supervisor on continually on the same page with your goals and expectations.
If your manager doesn’t give you regular feedback throughout the year, it’s up to you to ask for periodic updates on your performance. It’s not productive to spend an entire year focusing on a goal when you discover the objective was the least important to the person who manages you. In this case, you may have to schedule some time with your manager to ask brief but essential questions about your performance. A best practice is to have bi-weekly check-ins with your supervisor so you can update them on where you’re at with your goals and projects.
Ask for Feedback Consistently
To ensure that your performance review is productive and effective, you should actively seek feedback from your manager. Meet with your direct supervisor early and be sure to discuss any challenges and accomplishments you have managed throughout the year and not just at your performance review. Review your successes, confirm that you’re on track for the year, and ask if there are any specific areas in which you need to improve.
Annual performance evaluations allow you to showcase what you’ve done over the past year, so be sure to review your goals from last year, keep track of your accomplishments, create a strategy for communicating your achievements, and ask for feedback. That way, you’ll be prepared and ready for your next review.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
The term “quiet quitting” refers to an emerging workplace trend. Employees stop doing tasks they aren’t being paid for—like staying late, answering emails at night and on weekends, and taking on additional projects without getting the extra pay or recognition they deserve—and prioritize their well-being over their company’s. Many people feel underappreciated at work and frustrated by dead-end jobs and low wages that can’t keep up with inflation. This trend is an emotional response to two years of worrying about the pandemic, a possible recession, and political bickering.
To keep your employees engaged, congratulate them for their achievements and praise them if they go above and beyond. Letting employees know you value them as people can do wonders for employee retention. The more employees feel valued, the more engaged they will be in their jobs – and that can only help you, your team members, and the company’s success. To get quiet quitters engaged again, leaders must find ways to make every employee feel valued and appreciated. Instead of trying to combat disengagement, organizations should reduce the phenomenon of “quietly quitting” with these four strategies.
Create a Safe and Supportive Workplace
Providing a safe and supportive environment is a critical skill for any manager. An environment where employees feel free to try new things can lead to higher productivity, innovation, and better decision-making. The idea behind this management philosophy is that when employees don’t have to worry about being reprimanded if they fail, they are more likely to take risks and learn from those experiences. When creating this environment of trust, it’s important to remember that it takes time and effort on behalf of managers—they need to invest in their team members to create this trusted bond between their employees.
When a worker feels stuck in their career, it may be the reason they’re quietly quitting. To address this problem, management could provide career services that help employees find fulfillment in their jobs, such as mentoring or coaching. The company could also offer employees upskilling opportunities, teach them new skills, and train them to get to the next level.
Trust Your Employees
Hiring the right person is hard enough; once you’ve found that person, don’t make them feel like they’re under a microscope by micromanaging them. Some workers are morning people, while others work better in the afternoon. Providing a due date helps employees put in the time when they are most productive. This does not mean employees have complete freedom from schedules, but it allows them to adjust their agendas accordingly. Look for ways to improve your employees’ lives by addressing not just salary and benefits but also their happiness and fulfillment in the workplace. If an employee seems uninterested or unmotivated, ask that person how you can help.
Managers may have an idea of how people should complete their tasks, where and when to do them, and the result. However, there is sometimes a disconnect between what’s best for the company and what’s best for the employee. Some might think that if someone isn’t in the office from 9-5 every day, they aren’t working hard enough. Or that if an employee is unavailable to answer email 24/7, they aren’t dedicated enough. But this isn’t always true–some people would give up a few extra hours of sleep and tolerate additional stress at home if it means feeling more fulfilled at work. If you limit your employees’ ability to organize themselves, you’re not just impacting their productivity but their quality of life and work.
Check in with Employees Often
As a manager, you may not be able to interact with each of your employees regularly. If this is the case in your workplace, you could lose sight of how they feel about their work and what’s going on in their lives. If you encounter this situation, it’s vital that you meet with each employee individually— once a week or once every other week. This will allow you to learn how each person feels about their position and what’s happening in their life. Questions like “How are things going?” can help identify if someone is experiencing a problem and needs assistance. By listening to their response and asking follow-up questions, you’ll be able to determine if there’s something wrong and offer any necessary help.
To maintain a productive team, you should be proactive in staying connected with your team members and letting them share their concerns early on. By checking in with employees, leaders can help them if they have a problem. They can also spot potential issues before they become significant problems and address them before it’s too late. Stay vigilant for any signs of burnout, depression, or other mental health issues.
The “Stay” Interview
A “stay” interview is a way to keep employees engaged with the company. This should be proactive rather than reactive—for example, it could happen during an annual review or when an employee’s productivity has declined. The goals of a stay interview are: first, re-energize your employees about their work and career. Second, help them think about their career goals and how you can work together to achieve them so they can stay at the company. Lastly, identify any roadblocks between them and their goals so that you can address them before they become frustrated enough to leave.
The format is a friendly, informal conversation. The manager could kick things off by sharing some of the great things the employee has accomplished at the company. Tell the employee that you are proud of their work. Let the worker know about your plans to promote them within the company. Managers should frame this conversation as an opportunity to make workers happy and allow them to flourish in the organization.
Managers are in a tough spot when it comes to employees who have disengaged from their work—no matter how much effort you put into reaching out to them, it can be hard to get them involved again. The best way to engage a quiet quitter is to create a psychologically safe workplace, trust the employees you hired to get the job done, check in on how they are doing, and conduct “stay” interviews. Businesses and employers must adapt to new work cultures to maintain their organizations. Following these strategies can help companies prevent employees from quietly quitting and re-engaging their team members.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.