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I recently got laid off in early April. I don't have any savings so I took a job since in late April to pay the bills. The job is in a different field and is about half my old salary, so I have continued looking for new jobs. I don't mention this new job in my resume because it's completely irrelevant to my original field. My resume just says I left my old company in April.

If I get a new job, I'm worried that I may get an offer, and then after resigning from my current job and starting there they find out about my old job (it can be found that I work there through a google search, one of the top results). This will leave me with zero jobs, obviously.

I can't mention I work at this new company because then it will look really suspicious that I want to leave within less than two months. So what should I do? Would a new company even rescind my offer for failing to mention I worked at a company for a few weeks between April and now?

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  • Why not just tell potential employers the exact truth: You took a job not in your field to keep the lights on while you looked for a job you really wanted, such as the one for which you are applying.
    – Patricia Shanahan
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 1:29
  • Wouldn't that look really bad on me that I am willing to abandon a job after less than two months?
    – Joe
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 1:30
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    Can I just say during accepting the job offer that I didn't mention the job because it was irrelevant? A resume is not a legally binding document
    – Joe
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 1:42
  • The answer, and you, basically say the same thing (your first paragraph), you have taken a common sense route. Best of luck.
    – Solar Mike
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 5:05

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People need to work and earn a living. Why would this be a problem? Why would they look "suspiciously" on this? Be honest with your reasons for taking the temporary job. Reasonable people won't have an issue with this.

I'm an IT consultant. If I lost my job and had to take a temporary job at Home Depot nobody is going to look askance at that.

"Why did you take a job in another field for less money?"

"I needed to work and earn a living."

"Oh, that won't do. We're not interested in hiring responsible, pragmatic people."

You're worrying over something that you needn't worry about.

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  • What should I do if I am already in the process of interviewing with a company? I gave a resume with this company missing. What if I get an offer? I was thinking something along the lines of "Oh yes I will gladly accept the offer, but I am currently working at a temporary job to make ends meet, I will need a two weeks notice to quit there". Is that reasonable?
    – Joe
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 2:07
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    I would mention the temporary job during the next conversation with them. "Just to let you know, I'm working temporarily at X while I find a new position in my field and I may need to give notice." I think they'll be understanding about your leaving it off. Make sure you're honest. Don't embellish or make up a story. If they ask why you didn't mention it previously tell them you didn't think it was relevant since it's only a temporary position to fill your income gap.
    – joeqwerty
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 2:11
  • ok, I am terrified of the repercussions tbh, but it's better than losing both jobs
    – Joe
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 2:13
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    It's understandable that you're nervous but you're not lying to them, or trying to scam them, or trying to get over on them. You're working at a temporary job while you find a new job in your field. You didn't include the temporary job because you didn't think it was relevant since it's only a stop-gap. I think you'll be fine.
    – joeqwerty
    Commented Jun 17, 2020 at 2:15

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