Find Verified Jobs at Strong Companies

Ghost jobs, or phantom jobs, are listings on online job boards that are presented to users even though the company is not hiring. They have been a major concern since the advent of online job searches and are one of the most frustrating things about them.

Job seekers can waste hours applying for positions, tailoring their CVs and writing cover letters, for companies that will never email them back.

This leads many to feel the system is broken, or that they lack the skills and experience to get callbacks or offers.

The problem is relatively new, and legislatures often take time to adjust. The legal landscape is already changing, but the pace is simply not fast enough for people looking for jobs now.

In short – because posting jobs online is easy and cheap, and many HR recruiters feel it’s easier to leave openings online indefinitely.

In more detail, employers leave job listings online because:

• Companies want to project growth to investors and the public, so they leave recruitment ads online even when they can’t afford to hire or are even actively laying off staff.
• Employers often post vacancies online to satisfy formal or legal requirements that dictate openings must be made publicly available. Meanwhile, they have already decided to promote someone from inside the company or hire someone through networks and connections.
• HR recruiters who are asked about this often say they simply want to “remain open” and make sure talent can always find its way to the company. In practice, this “evergreen” pipeline does nothing because no vacancies are available. These companies simply keep your data, either for statistical analysis or in case they might one day contact you.
• Often, companies genuinely don’t know whether they need more staff, due to economic uncertainty or financial volatility. In such cases, they leave the ads open just in case.

Rather than use online job posts, we match you with positions that are advertized on official career pages.

In addition, here are several tried-and-tested methods for gauging the validity of a job ads:

• Freshness – the longer a job opening has been online, the more likely it is to be an “evergreen” job posting with no one at the other end. The most trustworthy listings contain opening and closing dates and disappear once the time has elapsed.
• Number of channels – companies that are serious about hiring take the time to post on multiple platforms and open several pipelines.
• Company reputation – job candidates take to the internet to share their experience with any given company.

Our company database ranks companies objectively based on their trustworthiness and their contribution to your career growth.

Learn about our career impact score

JobsHiringNearMe.ai uses verified positions advertised on actual company’s websites instead of job boards. This matters because job boards often posts outdated information. In addition, we rate companies based on reputation and trustworthiness and match you with the best companies in your area, helping you skip companies who could take advantage of you and go straight for those that promote your career.