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I find it very impolite for an employer to not give any follow-up response to a job seeker after receiving a CV/ after a job interview.

When I was in the position where I remotely interviewed a freelancer, I felt somewhat different, though, when I decided that the given freelancer was not my match. I tried to analyze this feeling prompting me, "it just doesn't fell right to tell the freelancer "I took a look at your portfolio and for the time being I would be looking for something else". That sounds somewhat rude or more precisely out of place - even, though it carries the best intentions to inform the freelancer whether s/he could rely on my gig or needs to continue searching for work.

What I came up with, was that a freelancer, by definition, always has numerous options and resembles a commercial service, a micro-enterprise, unlike the full-time job candidate. That is to say, that the freelancer would be considering other clients in all cases, no matter my decision. This is not the case with full-time job seekers, of course, if they are about to get hired for job A, they should not negotiate for job B, because they may get in the confusing situation of getting proposed job B, before job A, while A being their top desire.

Therefore a freelancer is not really dependent on getting my reply for earning his or her bread. Just the way you do not inform the shop assistant at a given outlet that you chose trousers in the next one, so they better not expect money from you today. It would sound silly above all.

This is what my analysis is telling me, but I cannot be sure. What do you think?

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  • Your "trouser outlet" analogy is a very poor one. Trousers do not cost that much. One trouser doesn't put bread on anyone's table. And generally, you want to reciprocate the effort someone made in trying to sell to you. For instance, I will not reply to someone who didn't bother reading my requirements. I do not reply to spammers. But if someone took the time to understand my requirements, contact me, write a unique cover email, give me a quote, etc. Then, I would feel guilty not sending a quick response back to that person.
    – Stephan Branczyk
    Commented Apr 8, 2020 at 18:27
  • @StephanBranczyk well, in my particular case, my gig was small and it wouldn't have made a big difference. That aside, I am afraid the freelancer may get offended by me telling him/ her I'd be looking for someone else. Some people would rather be told nothing instead of getting a refusal.
    – drabsv
    Commented Apr 8, 2020 at 20:23
  • @drabsv Your last comment is absolute nonsense. It's absolutely expected that I'm not the perfect fit for every job, so telling me that isn't offensive. Not telling me anything is absolutely rude. You are absolutely rude. What's worse, you seem absolutely rude out of stupidity. But maybe you'd rather not know that you are pissing people off?
    – gnasher729
    Commented Apr 12, 2020 at 8:10
  • @gnasher729 maybe I did not express myself clearly enough. What I mean was that some people may get offended by getting a refusal and would prefer that they got no answer at all. Not all people think like you, some of them do think that they had been apt candidates for the job and get angry when told that they would not get it. Maybe you have never stumbled upon such people. Btw, your comment is also rude ;) If I was the way you describe me, I wouldn't have cared to write this whole question.
    – drabsv
    Commented Apr 13, 2020 at 8:41

3 Answers 3

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It would be polite to let the freelancer know. For all you know, they may be planning their work around your contract.

If I organised a tradesman to come to my house to do some work, and I no longer needed them, I wouldn't delay in letting them know.

For some freelancers they do need a steady stream of work to put food on the table. Keeping them in the dark may limit their flexibility in finding other work. You may find it annoying if the freelancer went missing at the last second, so extend them the same courtesy that you would hope to receive yourself.

The polite thing would be to communicate that you won't be needing their services for this project.

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Is it polite to not give follow-up reply to a freelancer?

No, it's rude and inconsiderate. A simple "No thanks, I've decided on a different option" is all that's needed. Case closed and everyone can move on with no loose ends. It takes less than 10 seconds.

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Is it polite to not give follow-up reply to a freelancer?

It maybe not polite to not give a follow-up reply, but it definitely is not professional.

When I was in the position where I remotely interviewed a freelancer, I felt somewhat different, though, when I decided that the given freelancer was not my match.

and

That sounds somewhat rude or more precisely out of place - even, though it carries the best intentions to inform the freelancer whether s/he could rely on my gig or needs to continue searching for work.

It is never a bad idea to reply the freelancer by writing a brief email starting with thanking them for spending their valuable time interviewing. They you can state that unfortunately your company do not see the kind of match it's looking for. Additionally, the company would/could be willing to consider working together in future if a good fit between their skills and a job is found.

You can close by wishing them good luck with other work opportunities.

It's a good idea to ask them if they are okay with company keeping their information on file (this could also be required by law in some jurisdictions) for the purpose of containing for a future work possibility.

Writing this alone shows a courteous gesture without coming out as rude. Let's not forget that a professional alliance may not always be possible, but we are all human beings after all.

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