Recruiter stunned by job seeker’s ‘red flag’ question

A recruiter in Sydney was surprised by a question from a job seeker about whether a call at 7 p.m. from a recruiter was a “red flag” during the job search.

Tammie Christofis Ballis, a specialist recruiter and career coach at Realistic Careers, often provides advice on social media to those navigating the job search or interview process.

During one of her recent live Q&A sessions on TikTok, a particular question caught her attention.

“Would you consider a recruiter call at 7pm a red flag?” asked a social media user.

“Absolutely not. Why would you think that’s a red flag?” Ballis responded.

She explained that if a recruiter is calling you at 7 p.m., it indicates that you are the right person for the job and they want to move forward quickly.

Ballis told news.com.au that recruiters often work outside of regular hours to find the ideal candidate.

Calling after hours also ensures that they are not interrupting your current job, if you have one.

“So it’s absolutely not a red flag, if anything, it should be flattering,” she said.

The response to the video left the Sydney-based recruiter even more puzzled.

Despite explaining why an evening call was a positive sign, many people still believed it was a red flag.

“Huge red flag. Don’t disturb people’s free time outside of business hours. Call during normal hours like everybody else. The audacity of these people,” one individual commented.

“Nah I’d be pissed. After hours is family time. It sets up unhealthy expectations that I’d be expected to work overtime for nothing?” another wrote.

Many argued that it showed a lack of respect for personal time and poor time management on the recruiter’s part.

Others incorrectly claimed that a recruiter calling after 5 p.m. violates the new Right to Disconnect laws.

The new laws only pertain to employees having the legal right to ignore contact outside of hours from their employer or a third party related to their current job.

While individuals can decline a recruiter’s call if they choose, it is unrelated to the Right to Disconnect legislation.

Ballis stated that this mindset “breeds entitlement and laziness”.

However, there were those who agreed with Ballis, stating they would be willing to take a call later in the day if it meant progressing in their job search.

One person mentioned they would “gladly” receive a call at 7 p.m. if it meant a job offer.

Another individual said it was “not a red flag at all”, sharing their experience of receiving an evening call from a recruiter who was excited about their application progressing.

“He apologized for the after hours but said that generally most candidates can’t take calls during business hours as they are working, so he saves his calls for after hours,” they mentioned.

Another individual agreed, questioning why anyone would want to take a call about another job in front of their boss and colleagues.

“Entitlement that they can’t take a call at 7,” another added. “I got a call at 9.30 p.m. after a text message the other night about booking a final interview for a job! Hell yes I’m now preferred candidate and I slept well without worrying! Stop being precious.”

The job market is competitive right now, with Ballis mentioning that there are often hundreds, if not thousands, of applicants for a single job.

According to her experience, if individuals are complaining about something as simple as answering a phone call outside of work hours, it might hinder their chances in the long run.

“When everybody’s whinging that 1,000s of people are applying for jobs, if you’ve got an attitude problem that someone is calling you at 7pm … you’re not going to succeed at life. It’s literally that simple,” she stated, adding that this behavior indicates to a recruiter that a particular person may be challenging to work with.

In fact, the Sydney recruiter mentioned that if she tried to contact someone and they requested a callback during work hours, it would raise a red flag for her.

“It shows that they really don’t want the opportunity and I’m not going to waste my time on someone who’s telling me how to do my job,” she said, adding that she would instead invest her time in an applicant that appreciates her follow-up. 

However, she also mentioned that it “goes both ways” and it is “absolutely” acceptable to call a recruiter after standard office hours.

Ballis has had people call her on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, understanding that it is part of the job.

“People like to bash on recruiters but the agency ones, at least, they’re the ones they work outside of normal hours. It’s not uncommon for them to do 12 or 16 hour days, but that’s why they make the big commissions.”