Lacking social experience, college students often unwittingly fall into employment traps, leaving some struggling bitterly. In response, Zhou Changqun, Deputy Director of the Admissions and Employment Office at Harbin University of Science and Technology, analyzed six common employment traps job-seeking students may encounter and offered strategies for navigating these pitfalls.Upon arriving at an employment agency, staff may lure job seekers with promises of high salaries to attend an interview at a certain company. Shortly after, a representative from the "recruiting company" arrives, conducts a perfunctory "interview," and immediately offers the position. The agency then demands an intermediary fee and a deposit, instructing the applicant to report for work the next day. However, when the job seeker arrives at the "company," it turns out to be nonexistent.
Countermeasure: When encountering this situation, job seekers should first demand to see the company's relevant licenses and certificates. They should also rationally evaluate "generous" salary offers. Legitimate recruitment processes never proceed so casually through interviews. In reality, the hiring party and the employment agency are one and the same, deceiving students.
Trap Two: False information leaves job seekers defenseless.These traps typically lure applicants with promises of easy work and generous benefits. Once applicants are tempted by these offers, additional fees are introduced. Many applicants readily pay on the spot to secure the job. However, upon starting work, they discover that while the job posting advertised a clerical position, the actual duties involve menial tasks like distributing flyers daily.
Countermeasure: Job seekers should assess the authenticity of job postings by researching the company's credibility and the nature of the work. Never be blinded by promises of "high pay."
Trap Three: Impossible Tasks. Completing market research for 40 companies in a single day, stringing pearls into multiple ties within a month...Such seemingly impossible tasks are a common tactic of unscrupulous companies. They aim to discourage applicants from continuing, thereby justifying the withholding of fees paid by the applicants.
Countermeasure: This method is highly deceptive and covert, often leaving applicants unaware they've been deceived until much later.
Trap Four: Deception followed by disappearance.Some unscrupulous companies rent office space to lure inexperienced college students for interviews. Once applicants enter, they use sweet talk mixed with threats and intimidation. After getting the money, they vanish, setting up shop elsewhere.
Countermeasure: If threatened or intimidated, find a way to escape and call 110 immediately.
Trap Five:Falsely Charging Fees Under Various Pretexts. These companies often demand fees for training, administrative costs, uniforms, or deposits, rarely providing receipts. Many job-seeking students, desperate for employment, fall victim to this scheme.
Countermeasure: Charging fees under such pretexts during the hiring process violates labor regulations. Applicants should refuse to pay and file complaints with labor authorities.
Trap Six:Cross-Province Recruitment Scams. Unscrupulous companies often use employment agencies to post cross-province job listings. Since these are out-of-province positions, applicants cannot verify the "out-of-province company's" basic information, and relevant authorities face challenges in investigating them.
Countermeasure: According to labor regulations, cross-province recruitment requires certification from the labor market authority at the county level or above in the company's registered location.