Woman Interviewing For A Job At Chick-fil-A Asks If It Was Unprofessional To Walk Out Before The Conversation Even Started
She already waited 30 minutes past her scheduled interview time.
G-Stock Studio / Shutterstock Entering the workforce for the first time can be an intimidating experience. Job interviews are inherently stressful, and your first one ever is even more so.
A 17-year-old girl was ready for her first "actual interview" for a job at Chick-fil-A, but things didn't go as expected.
After being made to wait for 30 minutes, the teen walked out of the job interview before the conversation even started.
In a TikTok, Addison Sharp explained that she had an interview scheduled for 2:30 p.m. at Chick-fil-A. Trying to be as prepared as possible, she arrived 15 minutes early and walked into the fast-food chain 10 minutes before the interview was set to start.
She immediately told the employee behind the register that she was there for an interview, and was brought to a table to wait, as the manager was speaking with another candidate. While sitting there, Sharp noticed the employee go over to the manager and inform her that there was someone there for an interview.
"It's around 2:35 now. I see the manager walk by and grab these two other girls that came in after me and took them back for an interview," Sharp recalled. "I was like, 'OK, cool, maybe their interview was before mine, so when she finishes, she'll come get me.'"
Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Another 15 minutes came and went, and Sharp noticed the manager walk back to the table and sit down with the woman that she was initially talking to.
At this point, Sharp was a bit confused as to why she wasn't being called into her interview, which was well past the time that she was scheduled.
Sharp chose to wait some more, but 3:05 came and she still hadn't been called in for her interview that was scheduled for over 30 minutes prior. "She never came and got me for my interview, so I just walked out," she explained.
Sharp acknowledged that it may have been unprofessional to walk out without saying anything, especially since her interview hadn't started. But, it was equally, if not more, unprofessional for management to schedule an interview and fail to start it on time or even acknowledge the candidate's presence.
Sharp added that she does allow grace periods because there are circumstances where people are running behind, but for more than 30 minutes to pass without being called for her interview was a bit of a red flag.
"I gathered that working there would just not really be the environment for me," she concluded.
Most people agree that the job interview process has become somewhat of a nightmare.
In a 2022 survey from hiring software company Greenhouse, it was found that 60% of job seekers were "unimpressed by time-consuming recruitment processes." Similarly, Gen Zers straight out of school are tanking a lot of their job interviews as well, leading many employers to strive for older candidates.
In a December 2023 study, the New Jersey-based research group Intelligent surveyed 800 U.S. managers, directors, and executives who are involved in hiring. The respondents reported that Gen Z candidates struggle to pick up professional cues, causing 39% of employers to favor hiring older candidates. About 60% of employers said they are willing to offer more benefits and pay higher salaries to attract older workers rather than recent grads.
The job interview process as a whole has caused frustration among job seekers and managers alike, but one of the nonnegotiable aspects of it has always been tardiness. Even as the recruitment process has changed, and more elements have been added to it, being late for a job interview is still something that can hinder a person's chance of being hired.
Just as it's unacceptable for a job candidate to be late, the same should be said for managers.
Nia Tipton is a Chicago-based entertainment, news, and lifestyle writer whose work delves into modern-day issues and experiences.