6 ms·

There are liability reasons for not giving feedback. If I’ve had a good connection then I will give informal feedback on the phone only.

vernie 9y ago
If the candidate lives in a one-party state your ass is toast!
bob_theslob646 9y ago
Do you mean liability as in liability for discriminatory hiring practices by providing feedback?
- btilly 9y ago
  No. Liability as in the more that you have said, the more likely it is that a lawsuit will be filed based on a misunderstanding of what you did say. It doesn't matter how unlikely the lawsuit is to win on the merits. Fighting in court and discovery both bring costs and distractions that institutions would prefer to avoid.
  - bob_theslob646 9y ago
    Makes sense. I did not know this existed. Thanks, learn something new everyday. Bafflingly to think about... (https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/lawsuits-based-the-hiring-process.html https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/lawsuits-based-the-h...)
  - walshemj 9y ago
    Its more like protecting the company from a Manager going of piste and saying we don't hire xxxx for these sort of jobs.
    - mathattack 9y ago
      Exactly. A manager can say overqualified and the company gets sued for age discrimination.
  - skookumchuck 9y ago
    Companies also tend to settle frivolous lawsuits because it's cheaper. Not giving feedback is not leaving any opening for frivolous lawsuits over the reason given.
bmpafa 9y ago
Most any form of helping someone out carries risks. Part of what makes acts of kindness praiseworthy is the acceptance of those risks for the sake of another person.
- phkahler 9y ago
  >> Most any form of helping someone out carries risks. Really? I've never heard that. Can you give some examples? Preferably ones that seem harmless but could go wrong. I guess providing such examples is my job but I'm too tiered, so help me out.
  - vageli 9y ago
    Someone knocks on your door, bleeding from a wound on their arm. Are the a person in need or an armed assailant waiting to gain entry into your home? A person flagging down help on the side of the road. Are they going to do something while you're in a vulnerable position changing a tire? Most any interactions where "help" is more than verbal information transfer usually lead to situations where the helping party is put into a position of vulnerability. To help someone is to literally "go out on a limb" i.e. put yourself in a precarious position.
    - bmpafa 9y ago
      ^ this. also, there's an entire family of laws[1] designed to protect people from certain risks they take on when they decide to help someone in dire need. These are all extreme examples, but I think the parent post example (not giving feedback b/c of liability issues) is cut from the same cloth. Businesses take liability risks day in & day out. For some, the calculus concludes that (practically) selfless gestures, like giving applicants feedback, aren't worth that risk. That, imo, is a shame. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law
    - cc439 9y ago
      >A person flagging down help on the side of the road. Are they going to do something while you're in a vulnerable position changing a tire? There have been at least 2-3 different murderers who have used that technique in my local area within the last 5 years alone.It's just so wrong that I can't even wrap my head around it.
someone7x 9y ago
And there are competing humanitarian reasons for giving it. The sadness is that our laws choose the institution over the individual.
jriot 9y ago
Everything appears to be a liability these days - that is the problem.
- simonebrunozzi 9y ago
  That is, in the US. I live in San Francisco, but I'm from Italy and have worked (and hired, and fired) people there in the past. I can assure you that all this "legal wall" around everything doesn't really exist in Italy, or at least it's vastly mitigated. As a consequence, I was able to provide detailed feedback every time I rejected a candidate, for example, without even thinking of the legal consequences.
  - calvinbhai 9y ago
    I have had this experience with a few companies I interviewed with in EU, where I got feedback after rejection. It feels so pleasant, yet strange, after having taken it for granted that I'll just get a templated rejection letter based on interview experiences in the US.
  - jriot 9y ago
    Agree this is a US problem and I don't understand why. It doesn't hurt me why you didn't select me. You didn't think I would fit in culturally. Ok, no worries. You didn't think I knew enough of what you wanted to know. Ok, no worries. You didn't like the way I was dressed. Ok, no worries. You weren't really hiring but were just testing the waters. Ok, probably won't apply again but no worries.
    - enraged_camel 9y ago
      >>Agree this is a US problem and I don't understand why. Because the US has very severe issues related to racism, sexism, ageism and many other types of discrimination. So the laws are much tighter, which results in extreme caution and risk aversion on the part of employers.
      - ag_camel 9y ago
kolpa 9y ago
There are reasons for everything. The liability isn't so great that is outweighs the benefit; it's simply that the corporation ascribes 0 value to helping the candidate improve.

vernie 9y ago

If the candidate lives in a one-party state your ass is toast!

bob_theslob646 9y ago

Do you mean liability as in liability for discriminatory hiring practices by providing feedback?

btilly 9y ago
No. Liability as in the more that you have said, the more likely it is that a lawsuit will be filed based on a misunderstanding of what you did say. It doesn't matter how unlikely the lawsuit is to win on the merits. Fighting in court and discovery both bring costs and distractions that institutions would prefer to avoid.
- bob_theslob646 9y ago
  Makes sense. I did not know this existed. Thanks, learn something new everyday. Bafflingly to think about... (https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/lawsuits-based-the-hiring-process.html https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/lawsuits-based-the-h...)
- walshemj 9y ago
  Its more like protecting the company from a Manager going of piste and saying we don't hire xxxx for these sort of jobs.
  - mathattack 9y ago
    Exactly. A manager can say overqualified and the company gets sued for age discrimination.
- skookumchuck 9y ago
  Companies also tend to settle frivolous lawsuits because it's cheaper. Not giving feedback is not leaving any opening for frivolous lawsuits over the reason given.

bmpafa 9y ago

Most any form of helping someone out carries risks. Part of what makes acts of kindness praiseworthy is the acceptance of those risks for the sake of another person.

phkahler 9y ago
>> Most any form of helping someone out carries risks. Really? I've never heard that. Can you give some examples? Preferably ones that seem harmless but could go wrong. I guess providing such examples is my job but I'm too tiered, so help me out.
- vageli 9y ago
  Someone knocks on your door, bleeding from a wound on their arm. Are the a person in need or an armed assailant waiting to gain entry into your home? A person flagging down help on the side of the road. Are they going to do something while you're in a vulnerable position changing a tire? Most any interactions where "help" is more than verbal information transfer usually lead to situations where the helping party is put into a position of vulnerability. To help someone is to literally "go out on a limb" i.e. put yourself in a precarious position.
  - bmpafa 9y ago
    ^ this. also, there's an entire family of laws[1] designed to protect people from certain risks they take on when they decide to help someone in dire need. These are all extreme examples, but I think the parent post example (not giving feedback b/c of liability issues) is cut from the same cloth. Businesses take liability risks day in & day out. For some, the calculus concludes that (practically) selfless gestures, like giving applicants feedback, aren't worth that risk. That, imo, is a shame. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law
  - cc439 9y ago
    >A person flagging down help on the side of the road. Are they going to do something while you're in a vulnerable position changing a tire? There have been at least 2-3 different murderers who have used that technique in my local area within the last 5 years alone.It's just so wrong that I can't even wrap my head around it.

someone7x 9y ago

And there are competing humanitarian reasons for giving it. The sadness is that our laws choose the institution over the individual.

jriot 9y ago

Everything appears to be a liability these days - that is the problem.

simonebrunozzi 9y ago
That is, in the US. I live in San Francisco, but I'm from Italy and have worked (and hired, and fired) people there in the past. I can assure you that all this "legal wall" around everything doesn't really exist in Italy, or at least it's vastly mitigated. As a consequence, I was able to provide detailed feedback every time I rejected a candidate, for example, without even thinking of the legal consequences.
- calvinbhai 9y ago
  I have had this experience with a few companies I interviewed with in EU, where I got feedback after rejection. It feels so pleasant, yet strange, after having taken it for granted that I'll just get a templated rejection letter based on interview experiences in the US.
- jriot 9y ago
  Agree this is a US problem and I don't understand why. It doesn't hurt me why you didn't select me. You didn't think I would fit in culturally. Ok, no worries. You didn't think I knew enough of what you wanted to know. Ok, no worries. You didn't like the way I was dressed. Ok, no worries. You weren't really hiring but were just testing the waters. Ok, probably won't apply again but no worries.
  - enraged_camel 9y ago
    >>Agree this is a US problem and I don't understand why. Because the US has very severe issues related to racism, sexism, ageism and many other types of discrimination. So the laws are much tighter, which results in extreme caution and risk aversion on the part of employers.
    - ag_camel 9y ago

kolpa 9y ago

There are reasons for everything. The liability isn't so great that is outweighs the benefit; it's simply that the corporation ascribes 0 value to helping the candidate improve.