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TD Article: More Employers Pass on Job Candidates Due to Social Media

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

According to a CareerBuilder survey, 51 percent of employers who research job candidates on social media have found content that convinced them not to hire a candidate. This figure is up from 43 percent in 2013 and 34 percent in 2012.

With nearly half (43 percent) of all employers using social media as a decision-making tool in the hiring process, employees need to be more mindful of their activity on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn—not just what they post to their own pages, but also how they interact with others'.

"It's important for job seekers to remember that much of what they post to the Internet—and in some cases what others post about them—can be found by potential employers, and that can affect their chances of getting hired down the road," says Rosemary Haefner, vice president of HR at CareerBuilder.

The survey also found that many employers use search engines such as Google to research job candidates, and 12 percent go to ratings sites such as Glassdoor or Yelp to review candidates' posts.

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Could you have posted an incriminating photo or made an ill-judged comment on your social networks? Here's what many employers said they found that caused them to pass over job candidates:

  • Job candidates posted photos or information about them drinking or using drugs—41 percent
  • Job candidates badmouthed their previous employers or co-workers—36 percent
  • Job candidates had poor communication skills—32 percent
  • Job candidates posted discriminatory comments related to gender, race, or religion—28 percent
  • Job candidates lied about qualifications—25 percent
  • Job candidates' screen names were unprofessional—21 percent.

"Job seekers need to stay vigilant and pay attention to privacy updates from all of their social networking accounts so they know what information is out there for others to see," says Haefner. "Take control of your web presence by limiting who can post to your profile and monitoring posts you've been tagged in."

About the Author

The Association for Talent Development (ATD) is a professional membership organization supporting those who develop the knowledge and skills of employees in organizations around the world. The ATD Staff, along with a worldwide network of volunteers work to empower professionals to develop talent in the workplace.

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