Candidate says recruiter lied to her, forced her to accept job

A woman has gone viral after sharing an unpleasant experience with a recruiter.

TikTok user Mikayla (@mikk022) said in a video with more than 1.6 million views that she was scammed at work multiple times and went through the interview-to-acceptance process in just three days.

@mikk022 do we think she’ll actually call him? #jobsearch #recruiter #joboffer #greenscreen ♬ Soundtrack – Mikayla

Mikayla claims she was initially contacted by a recruiter via LinkedIn to inform her of the potential job, which was a hybrid position. Mikayla responded that she was not interested because she was looking for a completely remote position and offered more money than another offer she had on the table.

The recruiter, who was an outsider and not employed by the company, responded by insisting that the new job would be open to fully remote work, even claiming that they would make up the difference in pay in terms of wages and benefits.

When Mikayla was actually interviewed, she described it as a “very pleasant conversation,” but noted that it was clear the position wasn’t entirely far off. Plus, when she actually got the offer, it was $15,000 less than the amount the recruiter shared.

“I contacted the recruiter and I said, ‘I’m a little confused. It’s not completely remote, and the compensation is much lower than what you originally mentioned,'” recalls Mikayla. “She was like, ‘Yeah, the compensation I originally mentioned was if you had ten years of experience and you didn’t.'”

“I was like, ‘You’re right. I don’t have that. But you have my resume, so I think you’re a bit cheated by telling me that number,'” Mikaela continued.

She said she eventually got an offer from the company at 1 p.m. Wednesday, and all benefit information arrived later in the evening. The company asked her to respond the next day.

The next day, the recruiter called Mikaela to see if she had made up her mind. Mikayla said she was still considering it and told the recruiter she expected to hear back within a few hours.

From there, recruiters called her repeatedly. Mikaela didn’t answer because she was busy with her other work.

The recruiter then texted Mikayla that she needed a response by 5pm, warning that while the company was “really excited about you,” her excitement needed to match, or the company would “need to continue.” go ahead”. Mikayla confirmed she would reply by 5pm.

Shortly after, recruiters messaged Mikayla again, accusing her of “buying” other positions and claiming she was advising the company to go with another candidate. Overall, it took less than 24 hours for Mikaela to receive the full offer.

According to follow-up reports, Mikaela rejected the offer.

@mikk022 Reply to @Courtney Shaughnessy Another role ended up being a better fit for me! #job #jobsearch #recruiter ♬ original sound – Mikayla

In the video, she also defends the “shopping” of a post.

“I think it’s a really good idea to compare all the options and assess the pros and cons,” she explained. “I don’t think shopping is a bad thing when you’re making a decision as big as a career change.”

She also revealed her initial LinkedIn message in later TikTok.

@mikk022 Replying to @zackbackzack Apparently I missed some red flags from the start #job #jobsearch #recruiter #greenscreen ♬ original sound – Mikayla

Users on TikTok supported Mikayla and condemned the recruiter’s actions.

“Recruiter here – this recruiter is not good at her job,” one user wrote.

“I’m hiring and that’s why people hate us. Drop the name,” another added.

“‘You’re shopping’ so do you,” a third pointed out.

“Less than 24 hours is a horrible time limit for people to have a life and a job,” commented another TikToker.

The Daily Dot contacted Mikayla via email.