Gen Z Job Applicant Refuses To Do CEO’s 90-Minute Interview Test
Despite this CEO's confusion, many support this job applicant for putting their foot down.
Fizkes / Shutterstock.com After completing an interview with a Gen Z job applicant, a real estate industry CEO quickly took to “X” to bash the candidate for refusing one of his requests — “This email blew my mind.”
In a misguided attempt to call the Gen Z applicant “lazy,” he mistakenly made one thing ultra-clear — he was far removed from the reality of ethical interviews, hiring, and market practices and expectations for job applicants.
This Gen Z job applicant refused to take an unpaid 90-minute interview test, only to be ridiculed by the CEO online.
After completing an interview and moving on to the next stage of the process, a Gen Z job applicant was unsettled when the CEO asked him to complete an “interview test.”
Expected to spend 90 minutes on an unpaid “financial modeling test,” the applicant respectfully declined the CEO’s offer.
“This looks like a lot of work,” the CEO recalled the applicant writing. “Without knowing where I stand in the process, I’m not comfortable spending 90 minutes in Excel.”
In many industries, including tech and corporate real estate, it makes complete sense for interviewees to take assessments and complete projects to illustrate their required skills.
It’s common practice and a standard ethical principle to pay them for their work, however.
The CEO ‘couldn’t believe’ the Gen Z applicant turned down the 90-minute test ‘in this job market’ despite admitting it was unpaid.
While this corporate executive's argument about “the job market” had some merit, his reasoning was off. Why would anyone waste an hour and a half in this tumultuous job market for an unpaid test that’s not guaranteed to land them the job?
If they’re being compensated for their time, that’s an entirely different discussion, but to expect job applicants to give up hours and hours of time during the interview process — for little to no compensation or consideration from leadership — is unfair, unethical, and rude.
Fizkes / Shutterstock.com
“Candidates who spend hours or days working on an assignment without compensation feel exploited and undervalued,” digital marketing expert Natalia shared on Linkedin. “It can create a toxic power dynamic where candidates feel they need to do whatever it takes to get the job, even if it means working for free.”
Not only can this hiring practice be unfair to candidates struggling financially, but it also creates division and exclusion, as the only candidates willing and able to complete these tests have the freedom of money, time, and extra resources to spend completing them.
Not only does this widen the gap in an already tumultuous job market, but it also crafts corporate cultures that intentionally exclude certain groups of applicants and perspectives.
While some argued the Gen Z applicant was ‘lazy,’ others admired their standards, putting value to their time.
“Well, I can tell you where you stand now,” the CEO continued, alluding to his distaste for the Gen Z job applicant’s boundaries. Despite the anger reeking from his social media post, many commenters and other career experts online supported the applicant, suggesting his boundaries were completely justified and smart, to say the least.
“It’s really important that those of us entering companies, especially in this current job market…don’t get taken advantage of,” Gen Z worker Talia shared on TikTok. “I was definitely taken advantage of after going through three weeks of interviews, a three-pronged assignment, and a project with a 24-hour turnaround. It’s so unethical and messed up.”
The comments under the CEO’s tweet suggested that if the applicant said, “I’m good at this and don’t work for free. Give me $1,000 and break this deal down in detail,” he’d have compensated the applicant. However, it’s clear there was some kind of misunderstanding — or clear manipulation — happening here, because why not pay the applicant up front?
Why offer an unpaid interview test, knowing that this kind of work should be compensated, only to ridicule the applicant when they opt out because they feel taken advantage of?
It not only tells of this CEO’s incredible ego but also of the incompetence of many corporate executives in relating to the struggles of Gen Z and other young job seekers in the current market.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a News & Entertainment Writer at YourTango who focuses on health & wellness, social policy, and human interest stories.