unfairly lost chance for job

[mbc]

What is the name of your state? Alabama

I applied for a job and went through the nterviewing process. the interview went very well & the person I interviewed with was very impressed. I was told a decision would be made within 3 weeks. 2 weeks later I received a call from HR asking for the name of the univ. that I attended and type of degree I received. They needed to continue with hiring process and verify my degree. I never heard from them again. Today, I called and was told the position was filled. I asked was the reason I was not chosen due something my previous employer may of disclosed. They said they normally don't give out this information but they let it out that it was because they never received verification of my degree. They said they submitted an on-line request from the univ but never head anything. They said they tried doing a following up through the web but was told that it was pending. They never attempted to call the univ or call and tell me that this information was missing and needed to proceed because it is "not in their procedures". Since they did not get this information, they dropped me from the list and I lost my chance for this job that I was highly qualified for and had a very good chance of getting. What rights do I have?

 

[cbg]

Few if any. While it may be unfair, they did not break any laws; they did not fail to do anything that they are legally mandated to do and there is no guarantee that you would definitely have been the one to receive the job even if they had received the verification.

 

[mbc]

But if this verification process is "required"as part of their hiring process and they have to have this information to continue on, shouldn't the applicant be told that this is information is "required"? If I had been told that this information was required and they were having a hard time getting it, I would of called the university myself. In fact, the unversity said they were having some computer problems and would have given this information over the phone if they had called and told them they were having problems. HR dropped the ball. Is there not some type of neglet here?

 

[Beth3]

No. Sorry.

Personally, I would have called the candiate and told them we were having difficulty getting verification of their degree or whatever but no law compels me to do so. I'm afraid you're going to have to chalk this up to "things just didn't work out." What you don't know yet is if it's for a reason - like a fabulous job that's going to present itself shortly that you wouldn't have pursued had you accepted this one.

 

[mbc]

That's easy for you to say. You have not been unemployed for 5 solid months and trying to support a family of 4 and pay a mortgage. My field is specialized and jobs do not come across that often. This was not just a "job" that I applied for and can pursue another one of the same kind and amount of money tomorrow or next week. This was a job that was going to provide an income for me and my family before my unemployment runs out. I would of been satisified if I had been rejected because I was not qualified for this job. But I was never given the chance to be rejected for that reason. I was no longer a candidate simply because of "information" that was not completed. Needing to verify my degree was never disclosed as a "qualification" for this position to me. Yes, I would of assumed that this would be checked but not that this automatically disqualified me for this job just because they did not get it. When I asked them if there was a specific date that they needed this information by to continue the hiring process I was told no, just ASAP. This tells me that I was discriminated against simply because they did not take the time to get the information that they needed and the information was very easy to be obtained. Now I am running out of time on my unemployment compensation and I have to start at ground "zero". You can't tell me that this "neglect" cost me my chance for this job and that there are no legal grounds for this. How can this not be considered a form of discrimination?

 

[cbg]

I don't see how it can be considered discrimination at all, but even if it is in the dictionary sense, it is not illegal discrimination. They didn't eliminate you from consideration because of your race, or your national origin, or your gender; they eliminated you because they were unable to get all the information they needed on your background. That is NOT going to be illegal no matter how unfair you may (even with justification) feel it to be. NOTHING in the law required them to do anything more than they did, even if you feel that they should have.

And for your information, I have in my time been unemployed for over a year, so don't tell me I don't know how it feels.

However unfair you may think this to be, you simply do not have a legal case.

 

[mbc]

The business asked me for the telephone number of the university that I attended and spoke to an individual who informed them that the unversity takes care of this information via the internet. After the business did not receive the information in an "appropriate" time frame, they tried again via internet but was unsuccessful. They never attempted to call the number that I gave them to the university again or me. How is this not discrimination by law? Can discrimination go beyond race, gender or national origin? Can a company not be held liable because they just "gave up" trying even though all avenues were not pursued? If this information is "required" in order to get a job with this company, are they not required by law to post this somewhere? Also, if there is a problem obtaining it, is there not a law that a business must tell the candidate that you have been disqualified because we do not have the information? The terms that they used to disqualify me were discriminating. It had nothing to do with lying on my application or me not meeting the requirements for the job. Had I known that this information was not obtained and needed for me to be continued as a candidate for this job, the information would have been obtained and I would have been considered. That should be legally wrong.

 

[HomeGuru]

Here is what you need to do. Make a copy of your degree and transcripts. If you do not have this request originals from the university. Also request a letter from them confirming your enrollment at the school and the degree earned. Have copies available for prospective employers to have in the event such info is requested.

 

[mbc]

I do have a certified letter from the university that shows my degree and my transcripts and have had one for several weeks. I would of gladly given this to them if they had told me that they needed it. That's the problem..........I WAS NEVER TOLD that this information was needed and never given the chance to give it to them. Please tell me how this is not discrimination.

 

[HomeGuru]

Beth3 and cbg already responded.

 

[withonel]

Tell me how this is discrimination. They attempted to verify your level of education and were unable to do so by the usual means employed by them. Wouldn't it have been discriminatory for them to contact only you and tell only you that they were having this difficulty thus giving you more consideration than other candidates? Are you assuming that they called all applicants with which they were having reference difficulties and discriminated against you by choosing not to call? You haven't presented any proof of that. From what you've written you were treated exactly like all the other applicants, your application was reviewed, you were interviewed however the potential employer was unable to verify your information. That's it. How is that discrimination?
Perhaps the difficulty you have had in securing a new position has something to do with your 'poor me' attitude. 'But it isn't my fault, that's not fair, I didn't know, someone should have told me..' life is full of these situations.
Stop focusing on how to get this business for some perceived wrong and work on finding a job!

 

[HomeGuru]

Amen to that.

 

[Beth3]

"How can this not be considered a form of discrimination?"

Because the LAW defines prohibited discrimination as less favorable treatment based on gender, race, age, national origin, religion, handicap, pregnancy, veteran status, and sometimes a couple of other things at the State level. The law does not define discrimination as an employer failing to tell you they are having difficulty verifying your academic credentials and hiring someone else.

 

[mbc]

I do not need anymore advice from you on this matter.
I've spoken to a lawyer friend here that I know and he's informed me on some other information regarding this matter.
I, like anyone else, am disappointed in the fact that there was "one-on-one" communication going on between me and this business following my interview and we could have resolved this difficulty with a simple phone call to the university. The person I interviewed with was suprised as well to find out what happened.
I know that had this business had all of the necessary information on hand to make a fair decision, that didn't guarantee I was the person who would have been chosen. The woman I spoke to yesterday regarding this situation contradicted herself a couple of times and it basically sounded like she dropped the bomb big time by not properly following up on this information so that I could have been considered.
I don't, nor have I ever had a "poor me" attitude. As mentioned earlier, my field is specialized and jobs in my field aren't available everyday in this area, so when an opportunity comes, I jump on it.

 

[Beth3]

"I do not need anymore advice from you on this matter."

Then why do you keep posting here? You asked several questions. I answered them - which was obviously a complete waste of time. It's not my fault you didn't get the job. It's not my fault it's not against the law that you didn't get the job. The recruiter for the employer may have screwed up. That's still not against the law.