My Inquisition
Like a lot of therapists, I have a full-time position and several per diem jobs that I go to if my caseload is low or when I need extra cash to purchase a large item. Recently I applied to a company that was paying five dollars more than what I'd normally get with a per diem position. I dutifully filed out the online application as best I could, including a detailed resume of my work history and several references.
Apparently this was not good enough. I was requested to provide email addresses to prior employers so a survey could be sent to them and they could rate my skills. I was also asked to provide exact dates of employment I had six years ago. I told the HR person they were lucky I could remember the years I worked for the various employers and it was not high on my list of things to do to provide that information. I directed them to my resume but they wanted exact dates of when I was employed. The company wanted more information from me than the state board did when they did an investigation on me, but that is a different blog.
After several weeks of no contact I was directed, by e-mail, to call a regional director to take a drug test and discuss my hours of employment. By this time I wasn't interested in being employed by the company. If it takes a month (or longer) to be hired on a per diem basis, I lose interest. If the company is desperate and in need of therapists, they really need to speed up the hiring process. If I already have work lined up with other employers, I'm not going to stop and make calls and take a drug test just for the possibility of working for an employer. One of the shortest interviews I had was less than a minute and most of that was taken up by discussing a per diem rate. Once the pay was established, I began work the next day.
How long should the interview and HR process normally take?