8 Job Interview Red Flags! (Signs of a Bad Employer!)

In this guide, we will give you 8 potential red flags to look out for during your job interview.

If you have a job interview, and any of these 8 red flags come up, then you might decide to not accept an offer of employment with their company.

Because if you do accept a job offer, then you might live to regret it!

Let us know in the comments section below of any negative interview experiences you’ve had!

Please note that the content in this guide is that of our opinion and does not constitute as legal advice. You should always make your own informed judgements and decisions.

If the interviewer asks you any questions that have no relevance to your ability to perform the role to the required standards, be very cautious.

Questions about your marital status, sexual orientation, who you live with, your plans to have a family in the future, or how would you cope with a large age gap between yourself and your colleagues are not acceptable, and they would give us cause for concern.

In some employment sectors there tends to be a higher turnover of staff than others. For example, in call centers and seasonal job positions you will normally see a higher turnover of staff, and this is generally acceptable.

However, if the organization you are applying to work for has a turnover of staff that gives you cause for concern, it might be a sign of a toxic work environment.

The job description outlines what you will be required to do on a daily basis. If there is no job description, or there is a lack of detail, this would certainly give us cause for concern.

It would concern us because we believe it shows an employer to be disorganized, and it could also indicate that they themselves are not 100% sure what they need you to do on a daily basis in the role.

Would you take a job where you didn’t know what your duties and responsible are going to be? We wouldn’t!

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Before applying for any job it is a good idea to carry out some research on websites such as Glassdoor.com.

On these websites you can usually find employee reviews which will give you a bit of an indication as to what it is like working for that organization.

However, always remember that happy employees don’t tend to leave reviews about their employer online, whereas a disgruntled employee might do. Therefore, you may need to take some of the negative reviews with a pinch of salt.

If you are left waiting long after the scheduled interview start time, it might be a sign that the interviewer has little respect for your time.

However, there will be situations where an interviewer is genuinely running late, or something unexpected comes up, in which case this wouldn’t overly concern me. If the interviewer apologizes for running late, this is fine!

However, if the interviewer is 15 or 30 minutes late for the interview without good reason, this would concern us.

If you get the feeling during the job interview that the Hiring Manager is disinterested in your answers to the questions, or if they seem preoccupied with something else, it could be a sign that they won’t be a caring or considerate employer.

Always trust your gut feeling, and if you have any concerns whatsoever, think twice about accepting a job with their company.

At the end of the interview, you will have the chance to ask the interviewer some questions of your own. Some questions to ask include:

Q1. What are the plans for the business over the next few years and how could I help you to achieve them?

Q2. What advice would you give to the successful candidate who wants to excel in the role?

However, if the interviewer doesn’t want to answer these simple questions, or if their answers are vague, it might tell you that they are not interested in your ambitions or your professional needs.

Most people will want to work for a company that is transparent. Therefore, if there is a lack of transparency about the role, about the salary, about the working conditions during your interview, this could be a red flag.

To assess what the working environment is like, if you do have any concerns, simply ask the interviewer the following question at the end of the interview:

What’s the culture like in the organization? 

and

How long do staff typically stay within your organization?

If you’ve had a negative interview experience, please let us know in the comments below!

UNLOCK 50+ Interview 
Questions & High-Scoring Answers Today + Get the insider video tuition for EACH question for FREE!

• The secrets to passing any interview;
• The common mistakes made at the interview (and how to avoid them!);
• Over 50 interview questions to prepare for (and how each is assessed);
• Full answers to each of the questions so you can learn how to deliver successful answers of your own.
• Beating the competition (what you MUST do to be successful);
• Checklists and printable resources;
• All interview answers are verified by our interview panel of experts.
• Instant online access as soon as your order is placed to over 50 interactive modules.

SPECIAL OFFER £97.99 NOW: FREE with a 30-day trial!

Yes! I want to pass my interview!