Perm offer(s) - take the first one available, or stall for as long as possible

[dsc]

I know this is a perm related thread, so feel free to move to general.

As some (most?) contractors here I started applying for perm jobs to avoid having to live off my savings. Basically went through a month of hitting apply to most things which I was a fit for. Landed a few interviews, currently at different stages with three companies:

1. Offer from a small company which does business in an industry I wouldn't normally touch with a bargepole. Pay is OK for perm, wfh unless you have to go to site to test things. Not crazy about the company myself and this would definitely not by my first or even second choice.

2. Big, fairly well known European company, owed by an even bigger US company, application went really fast, in two days they arranged a date for a call, had it today and they want the final stage probably by the end of this week. Work they do seems interesting and it would look good on a CV.

3. Amazon - dragging their heels, but I reckon they have thousands of CVs. Should have the final stage interview(s) within a month.

I've told company 1 that I'm waiting to hear back from two other companies, I can probably stall them till the end of the week but that is it, maybe delay the start by a week as well. Company 2 knows about offer from 1, so might move quickly, or might decide to bin me, who knows. Company 3 probably doesn't give a tulip about my situation, so I doubt they would speed things up. Preference is back to front, so 3, 2, 1.

Any advice? Take offer 1, carry on with 2/3 and just leave if smth works out? Or stall 1 till 2 offers (IF they offer), then maybe leave 2 as well if 3 offers (that would be a mess).

Original plan was to take whatever, then switch to a contract, but I'm 95% sure my industry won't offer contracts for a very long time (if ever again).

[vwdan]

I think the middle of COVID in September 2020 answer is different to normal - i.e., take whatever you've got on the table because you don't know where your next meal is coming from.

Take the offer, and either stick with it or **** them off if something better comes along.

It's not great, I wouldn't usually advocate it but I don't think nows the time to be worrying about much more than getting a paycheque.

[velcro]

Stall 1 until you get an offer from 2.
Forget Amazon, they won't have made a decision by Christmas...

[SueEllen]

Depends on what dodgy industry 1 is in.

However I would stall until you see if you can get an offer from 2.

Then take 2 then take 1.

Forget Amazon. Incidentally because of their drive to recruit more females I have come up in their crosshairs 3 times in the last 5 years and every single time I make it clear I'm not interested.

[LondonPM1]

Depends on what dodgy industry 1 is in.

However I would stall until you see if you can get an offer from 2.

Then take 2 then take 1.

Forget Amazon. Incidentally because of their drive to recruit more females I have come up in their crosshairs 3 times in the last 5 years and every single time I make it clear I'm not interested.

Wouldn’t pay of 1 vs 2 vs amazon be a consideration surey?

If there was a massive pay increase then that changes things considerably

I’ve heard only bad things about amazon. They work you hard and burn you out and the pay is not great

[BlasterBates]

Not sure about Amazon, it isn't Google, sounds like it would simply be system management, being on call 24 hours a day.

[jayn200]

Don't let the first offer expire, take it before it disappears. You might not get an offer out of the other 2. I've turned down an offer when I thought I had another offer lined up just to have the second one disappear.. of course in a normal market that just means another 2 weeks off so not a big deal. The first company is small anyway if you accept and turn it down before start date or leave in your first couple weeks no one will know about it. Might be a little unethical but as already said it's about survival right now.

[GhostofTarbera]

If I was boss at No1 I would tell you to do one


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[barely_pointless]

I'd go all out for #2, #1 is only going to pi55 you off, and while we all hide companies in industries we're not interested in doing again, current situ could persist for a while , in which case you might have #1 on your resume for an ahem "unhideable" period of time.

Amazon all over the place, different direction every month from what I head, big plans, many chief's, sounds like chaos, + they apparently treat some of their lower skilled workers like bots, not something I'd like to facilitate or perhaps collaborate in.

if it all goes pete tong, do 1, leave as soon as 2 comes online

[fullyautomatix]

In the market we are at right now, if you delay and stall on a contract/offer, you are in danger of missing all the trains and end up benching for the next 6 months. It will soon be Christmas time, Dec - Jan would be dead recruitment wise, if you arent sorted by then, you are looking at any income coming in around March next year.