Tech worker with 20 years’ experience hits back at recruiter asking why they took a survival job
A screenshot of a LinkedIn post marked with the OpenToWork badge posted on Reddit has talked about a tech professional with 20 years of industry experience spending the past year working a job outside their field and being paid a third of the lowest salary they have made in two decades. On a recent recruiter call, they were asked why.
“SIR. WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS?” they wrote. “PERHAPS IT IS BECAUSE I NEED GROCERIES AND PREFER TO PAY MY BILLS AND NOT BE HOMELESS.”
They went on to call out the same energy behind asking about employment gaps, saying that it shows failure to read the room. “It is humiliating enough that many of us here have lost jobs and careers in our fields. Have you been watching the news? Are you not aware of the mass amount of layoffs in the technology sector? Please do not add insult to injury.”
What the comments said
The post drew a split response: empathy from people who recognised the situation, and pushback from those who thought the reaction itself was the problem.
One recruiter who owns their own agency offered context from the other side: “Recruiters know that most candidates they are hiring are desperate for a job and the industry starts to turn some people into feeling like they’re a god. But these are very typical questions to ask. The questions they asked do not automatically render you not eligible. It’s because they have to go back to a hiring manager to tell them about you.”
One commenter took a harder line on the post itself: “Every question isn’t an accusation. If the answer is so obvious, then it should be easy to answer it professionally and move on. When I see rants like this, my first thought is always about how terrifying it must be to work with this person and be afraid they’re going to blow up when an executive or major client asks a ‘dumb’ question.” Another echoed this: “Would anyone look at this post and think, ‘Great, I’m going to hire this candidate’?”
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But others offered solidarity. “After I got laid off, I found it incredibly difficult to not apply everywhere. I have mouths to feed and bills to pay. You have to look ‘nice’ while secretly screaming inside, ‘I’m desperate for a job’ while applying, interviewing and just trying to survive your day.”
And another summed it up, albeit harshly: “It’s a humiliation ritual at this point.”
Read also: Recruiter’s AI-generated rejection email leaves candidate name and editing instructions untouched
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