What is the proper way to deal with a recruiter who calls during work hours?

Question

I have been looking for new career opportunity. Sometimes a recruiter calls me while I am in the office, during work hours.

I am having difficulty in dealing with recruiters. They ask me to describe my current job responsibilities, but I find it really odd to talking in the office. I will ask them to phone me some other time such as during my lunch break or after work, but they refuse to do it because it is not in their work hours.

If I want to leave the office I must go though the lobby. I can't just sneak out of the office whenever a recruiter calls.

What is the protocol here?

Answer 1

Do not talk to them during your working hours. Tell them you prefer to communicate via email. If you think they have something to offer, then you can arrange time off from work, and talk to them.

If the recruiter really thinks you are a likely candidate he will work with you. If they aren't willing to adjust to you, they're just covering the bases in case they get lucky.

Answer 2

Any recruiter who won't talk to you on your time will also try to bully you on your pay rate, the date that you'll start and every other issue. Unless you're desperate, talk to them on you own time and on your own terms. Since you currently have a job, you're probably not desperate, so don't cave in to bullying.

Answer 3

It is not just recruiters who will be calling you. When you start to apply to positions you will have to be able talk to potential employers. They will need to contact you for phone screens, to clarify information on your application or resume, and to schedule face-to-face interviews. Yes some of this communication can and will be done via email, but you need to over come your fear of others finding out.

• When you post your resume on sites like Monster the only contact you should give is a non-company email, that you can see while you are at work.
• When you must give a phone number it should be a cell number. Start taking some non-recuiter phone calls via your cell, and yes exit the open office space. Go into another office, or exit the lobby. I have worked at offices where that is the norm. Any phone call that you didn't want others to overhear was handled this way.
• Don't be afraid to let some of the cell calls go to voice mail if you are busy. Most recruiters or hiring managers will contact you in multiple ways. It is not unusual to see an email right after a voice mail. But do respond quickly when that happens.

Some people use unsolicited contact by recruiters as training for getting through the hiring process. For you the training seems to be related on how to maintain contact with potential employers, without letting everybody in the office know.

Answer 4

YMMV, but I always let unknown numbers leave a message on my cellphone so that I can review and follow-up if it is relevant.

However, it is not uncommon for recruiters to make contact by going through the phone tree at your employer. This is an aggressive tactic. They know many people are very selective about answering their cell phones and that people answer their work phones because it is their job.

If they can't take "email me and I will get back to you if I'm interested" working with someone like that is a bad idea for a few reasons, not the least of which is that it encourages more "boiler-room" tactics to be used on others in the future.

Answer 5

On the recruiter's side, courteous protocol, especially when contacting someone at his workplace during working hours, would include starting the conversation with you by asking if this is a good time for you to talk. If they do so, then the obvious solution is to answer honestly, and arrange a different time to talk.

That you are asking this question suggests that these recruiters are not following this protocol. I would consider this in the "red flag" but not "dealbreaker" in terms of their respect for you. It could simply be ignorance or forgetfulness. In this case, you can speak up and say when it is not a good time to talk.

Your relationship with the recruiter, like all relationships, will involve some give and take on both sides. It's not reasonable for the recruiter to expect you to be available to take calls whenever he place them. On the other side, I don't think it's reasonable to expect the recruiter to extend his workday to fit your schedule.

For communications that do not require synchronous feedback, e-mail is a good solution. Absent that, you can look for a 15 minute chunk of time (perhaps toward the beginning or end of the day or around lunch hour) when you can grab an empty conference room and return some phone calls. Most workdays have times that are less intense than others.

Answer 6

Presumably they are calling you on a cell phone. Just don't take those calls. They will E-mail or leave a message.

Answer 7

I disagree with one or two of the comments about not wishing to come across as rude. I say be as robust as is necessary, especially when it's your and your company's time and resources they are wasting.

If you have not disclosed your work contact number and/or email to anybody then these people have no right to go through your company switchboard, touting for business.

It happened to me recently when a recruiter deduced where I worked from my LinkedIn profile. It would not take a brilliant mind to figure this information out. I told him to remove me from their database and not contact me again. It got a few laughs from those nearby but I consider this behaviour unprofessional, if not unethical. It can make people look like they are openly seeking work elsewhere when they are not.

Answer 8

It is reasonable to avoid upsetting recruiters - or at least avoid upsetting them too hard - simply because one never knows, one may need their help one day.

Accounting for above, still keep in mind that while you are employed (and especially if you are having a job you like), your position in this negotiation is really strong, much stronger than their.

talk to them on you own time and on your own terms. Since you currently have a job, you're probably not desperate, so don't cave in to bullying.

I may not tell them explicitly what is laid out crystal clear in above answer but this is definitely what I would have in mind when negotiating and in particular, when handling recruiter's calls.

From above, it is pretty simple to derive a "balanced" protocol. Since this is a two-way street (you're interested in new career opportunity after all), make a reasonable effort to accommodate.

It's OK that recruiters try to keep within their work hours. It's not OK if this is done "at your expense". As written above (and is worth repeating): do not forget that you are in stronger position.

1. When called, first thing ask how much time they expect it to take.
    
   ^{If they can't tell, politely decline - most likely you're dealing with someone unprofessional. Remain polite since who knows, maybe few years later they will become mature professional and they might land you at the dream job. But now - just politely decline.}
2. If they tell you their expected duration, try to figure a time slot (yes, within your working hours) when it will be convenient to you to be out of office. If you can't figure it immediately, just ask them to call tomorrow to discuss the options.

Well, that's basically it. If they can't talk to you outside of your working hours, try to arrange for a time when it will be convenient for you to be out of office to talk.

Answer 9

In addition to all the great advice you've already gotten, if you do find a recruiter you really "click" with, try to establish a good relationship with him/her. For example, if you aren't a good fit or it's the wrong area of town, but you know someone else who might work, make that connection. I'll actually do this for most recruiters, because it helps my friends/colleagues.

Once you have a good relationship with a recruiter, let him/her know about your ideal job, and then when you get contacted you'll know it's worth dropping everything to talk. It also means that the recruiters who really know you won't be calling you every five minutes for jobs that are not exactly what you want.

Answer 10

I would simply tell them that you're at work and offer some good times for them to call you back. This might mean taking a long or slightly off-schedule lunch break, if that's okay with your current employer.

Even if you can take the call outside the building, it's not generally appropriate to be spending work time on your job search. Instead, I'd leave that for your break.

Answer 11

What is the protocol here?

Just as with any other call, you need to indicate if you cannot talk with the caller during work hours.

Just say "I'm sorry, I can't talk with you during work hours. Can we chat after hours?"

If the answer is "Yes" (as it would be for most good recruiters), then give her/him your home phone number and a good time for a call. Or, get the recruiter's phone number and call at a convenient time.

If the answer is "No", then you can just say "I'm sorry to hear that. I guess we can't do business."

Any decent recruiter will understand and work with you. Personally, I don't bother with recruiters who can't work within my constraints. There are plenty of other recruiters out there who can.

Answer 12

You are important to the recruiter in that he cannot make money without you, but you can change jobs without his help in most cases. So, you have some leverage.

It's most convenient for recruiters to call during working hours. However, if that is not good for you, simply state that. I always tell recruiters:

1. Not to contact me during specific times (for me its working hours or very early mornings).
2. Don't call me from a private number - I need to see the caller's ID I recognize.

If they break that once, remind them about your requirements. If it happens again, simply refuse to work with the agent. If they are not listening to such trivial requests, they won't have your best interest when switching jobs.

Answer 13

This happens to me fairly regularly. Unknown numbers always get redirected to voicemail. Known numbers do too, unless it's from someone who may be calling with a truly urgent situation (spouse, parents, kids' school, etc.).

Be direct but polite with recruiters (or anyone else). My office is arranged such that no less than eight people can hear everything that happens at my desk. When (if) I return a call, I tell them this and then reinforce it with "I have no privacy at my desk or anywhere in the office, so I have to leave the building entirely which may take up to five minutes." You'd be surprised how many understand and are sympathetic to your situation.

Do tell them that you're happy to speak with them, but only if they can pre-arrange a time via text or email. They're going to forget, so if it keeps happening, keep reminding them. Of course, if you have to remind the same person too many times, you may want to reconsider continuing to deal with them.

Answer 14

Wow, getting calls from them at work!? I know you weren't asking but that can't look good, right?

What is the protocol here?

Not to give them you work phone number.

Not to pick up the phone unless it is a number you know.

Call them as early as possible from home the next day before you head out to work, might have to go in late.....