SPUG: Recruiter Survey (Slightly-Off-Topic)

[Tim Maher/CONSULTIX]

On Fri, Jun 23, 2000 at 10:28:51AM -0700, Marty D. Cudmore wrote:
> 
> A note of caution when dealing with recruiters and recruitment agencies.
> 

(snip)

> I make it a practice that, when submitting my resume to a
> recruiter/agency, to include in my email/fax/whatever a disclaimor stating
> that my resume is for the recruiter/agency's perusal only and that it may
> not be submitted to any clients, other agencies, or recruiters without
> my expressed permission.
>
> Cheers,
> 
> Marty

I've taken it one step farther than that; in the "footer" field of the
printed resume itself (I never send the *.doc file they beg for -- too
easy for them to clone and modify) I print in huge letters "Distribution
of this resume requires my written permission, on a case-by-case basis." 

Sure, they could chop that field off before FAXing it, but at least I'd
force them to commit that physical act, and when I interview with the
client, I can check to see if their copy bears that qualification or not,
as a check against illicit transmission.  Not foolproof, but it gets the
point across to the agency that my resume is not one they want to spam
all over the planet.

One comment on the remarks of other SPUGsters the other day, who said
(paraphrasing vigorously):

	"If the recruiter offers a price you like,
	nevermind about the back-room shenanigans,
	just take the money".

I don't want to have unethical agencies representing me, or to have to
depend on unethical people or crooked companies to comply with the rules
of our agreements.  I'd rather take less money and work for an honest 
agency, and not have to worry about whether my representative would be
at his desk, fleeing to another state, or already in prison when my next
paycheck would come due.

In the story I told the other day about my experience with an especially
incompetent and unethical Eastside agency, I mentioned my disbelief that
they were willing to let me draw up my own 1099-status contract with them.
I should have emphasized that they signed that contract, in my presence,
*without ever even reading it*, which told me very clearly that they had NO
INTENTION WHATSOEVER of abiding by its provisions!  If the client hadn't
been a long-time acquaintance of mine (having taken three classes from me
over a 7 year period), and someone I really wanted to work with, I would
have run the other way very quickly 8-}

I was lucky to complete this contract successfully, and worried every day
of its duration whether the agency would still be there the next.  In 
future contracts, I won't be counting on luck to get a happy outcome!

*========================================================================*
| Dr. Tim Maher, CEO, Consultix       (206) 781-UNIX/8649;  ask for FAX# | 
| Email: tim at consultix-inc.com        Web: http://www.consultix-inc.com  |
| CLASSES; 6/12: Int. Perl  6/15: Pat. Matching  8/14: UNIX  8/21: Shell |
| DAMIAN CONWAY Seminars;  Adv. OO Perl: 7/6,  Parsing with Modules: 7/7 |
*========================================================================*

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