After looking over every line of the day’s Classified Ads section, you hurriedly take your shower, put on your most business-like attire, check that your make-up is flawlessly applied, tack-in neatly all your personal documents into your attaché case, and rush to the door.
Excited, nervous, and hopeful you get the job advertised in the Classified Ads, you go straight to the address of the office for the job interview.
You are greeted with a long line of fidgety and equally hopeful applicants waiting for their turn to be interviewed. At last, after an hour or so of waiting, the receptionist calls your name. Nervously, you enter the room with a 5-men panel of interviewers scrutinizing every move you make.
After a gruelling interrogation, you are asked to stay awhile for their decision. Although a bit apprehensive, you are very optimistic you will get the job based on your 5-year extensive experience on the job, your impressive resume and recommendations, and the successful way you replied to all the questions thrown at you during the interview.
Two hours passed and you are asked to meet with the HR Officer. In a low but firm voice, he tells you that you passed the interview and they are impressed by your long experience. However, they are sorry that the company is choosing a less experienced but trainable candidate who is several years younger than me. You leave the office seething with anger for the seemingly unfair treatment you are given.
Unfortunately, this is not an isolated case in the hiring of conventional workers in regular offices. This happens so many times to so many deserving candidates for jobs they are most qualified. However, due to minor “flaws” like age, physical appearance, or simply non-conformity to the interviewers’ personal preferences, these poor applicants are turned away.
This sad scenario in hiring workers is slowly evolving into a more democratic way. With the coming of outsourcing companies, people are now hired based more on what they know rather than their physical attributes. Candidates are now assessed on their actual performance on the preliminary tests given them. Factors like age, physical appearance, or even personal take a back seat as criteria in getting hired. With outsourcing companies, experience and skills are given priorities so the truly qualified candidates are hired—a most fair and democratic way indeed of hiring people for the jobs they deserve.