It’s a good sign when a job candidate has thoughtful, pressing questions for the hiring manager during an interview. But look out for anyone who asks these.
The questions a candidate asks can tell you a lot about how they’ll behave on the job. Good questions show a candidate is eager to come to work and excited to learn about the company. But bad ones can indicate they’ll shirk responsibility, fail to make deadlines or have problems with co-workers.
Here are the worst questions a candidate can ask, according to Yahoo! HotJobs:
- “How soon can I move to another position?” — It’s good to find people interested in moving up in the organization, but you also want them to focus on the job they’re hired for.
- “When will I be eligible for a raise?” — This is especially inappropriate now, when many companies don’t know when any employees will be getting their next raise.
- “Can I wait four weeks to start?” — Most companies ask resigning employees for two weeks’ notice. When candidates need extra time without a good reason, that could shed some doubts on their motivation to start working for you.
- “Do you have smoking breaks?” — If time during the day to smoke is a necessity for someone to accept a job offer, you probably want to give it to someone else.
- “Will you perform a background check?” — Someone who asks this probably has something to hide.
What are the worst questions you’ve heard job candidates ask? Let us know in the comments section below.
