Reply to: Blacklist paranoia

[cojak]

And on that note this thread will be closed.

[Andy Hallett]

Blacklist paranoia

I've never seen a formal blacklist. In reality an individual consultant might not choose to work with you based on a previous experience but if you are valuable to another consultant they will place you.

If any off you genuinely believe you are blacklisted, do an information access request under the DPA.

[northernladuk]

Shirley [sic] you don't need your contractors to give you a "bad name"? You do that for yourself.

Are you going to say anything useful or just let your blind hate for what is a necessary step of the process spoil every comment you make?

Contractors that don't understand the process and can't play the game gives us a bad name.
It is the way it is, you can either go on hating and look like a right idiot or you can deal with it.

I think he makes some sensible points.

[northernladuk]

I could imagine if an agent gets to know you and he knows you jump ship a lot or have a mercenary attitude to your client he is going to pick someone over you. That is business surely. Unfortunately, as has been pointed out, agents don't really care about long term commitments to contractors as the chance a contract role that you can do that appears for the agents allocate client and you are available for is pretty rare.

If their are two identical contractors going for a gig and the agent knows one of them is happy to give notice and the other has seen all his contracts through their choice of who to put forward is going to be pretty obvious. I wouldn't exactly call it a blacklist. The contractor jumping ship has made his bed and has to lie in it.

I am sure the agent that I had a fight with over opt in/out isn't going to to pleased to deal with me again in the short term as I am a problem. If I rolled over, played nice and made their job easy they would be more accommodating as it is easier to do business and I will be less of a risk of ditching the role cause I don't get my way.

[herman_g]

I've been deep inside an agency ( dated an agent for about 5 years ).

The politics of an agency are such that agents form their own little groups and have their own little internal politics - such as theft of candidates from each other.

To believe that a particular agency is cohesive enough to formulate a "blacklist" containing your name and to subsequently expect each independent agent to then to abide by it is nonsense.

As a matter of fact, one agent making a commitment to never deal with you for whatever reason would only make you more attractive to their co-workers .

[BlasterBates]

No there isn´t a black list. The market is just bad at the moment. It´s very typical that even if you are a good match in a bad market there´s another 20 CV´s who are just as perfect.

An awful lot of people have been laid off recently.

[helpFul]

Contractors: "give [an agent] a bad name when [you] are on site"

I only blacklist against people that I know have bad references, I have proven have lied on their CV or who I am confident will give me a bad name when they are on site, regardless of how I treat them. With contractors you are always at risk of a candidate [sic] job [sic] hopping but always just looking "like a contractor", so its [sic] good to avoid them.

I think that is fair enough right? Its [sic] not like I am not working with people because they have a union!

Shirley [sic] you don't need your contractors to give you a "bad name"? You do that for yourself.

[centurian]

Don't know whether they have blacklisted me, but I've certainly blacklisted a few of them over the years

[Wanderer]

After two calls where they wanted me to opt out, no further contact. Think I'll phone them tomorrow!

Give them the opt out and then withdraw it if they offer you the contract... Perfectly legal. Might irritate them slightly though.

[AnonAgent]

I only blacklist against people that I know have bad references, I have proven have lied on their CV or who I am confident will give me a bad name when they are on site, regardless of how I treat them. With contractors you are always at risk of a candidate job hopping but always just looking "like a contractor", so its good to avoid them.

I think that is fair enough right? Its not like I am not working with people because they have a union!

[SimonMac]

I can't believe that you don't think "too deeply".

If your going too spend all you're thyme picking grammatical errors in my posts your in four a long night sew grab a coffee and get too it as their is a **** load of them!

[GB9]

What a lot of nugatory waffle. You got "noises"? Sure you did. What actual evidence makes you "feel" agents have "blacklisted" you? Why not respond just once to this specific question?

The fact that I 'feel' it indicates a subjective view, hence the original question.

If an agent is not considering you for your perfect role it is not because you are blacklisted but because the agent has got some newbie sucker with one tenth of your experience lined up at the client's at a quarter of your rate. The client, of course, cannot discriminate between your skills and theirs, so el cheapo'll get the gig.

Quite possible!

[helpFul]

Not Young Not Gifted and Blacklisted

Gave notice on a previous contract that I worked through them. Now there were good reasons, and I wasn't the only one. Got reassuring noises that they would find something else for me and a couple of roles I applied for they explained I wasn't quite right etc. Fair enough. Anyway, one has now arisen that I am spot on for but nothing from them to date. And this isn't a generic sort of role, this is asking for specific experience that I have but that I doubt few others (if any) have. Hence my paranoia!

What a lot of nugatory waffle. You got "noises"? Sure you did. What actual evidence makes you "feel" agents have "blacklisted" you? Why not respond just once to this specific question?

If an agent is not considering you for your perfect role it is not because you are blacklisted but because the agent has got some newbie sucker with one tenth of your experience lined up at the client's at a quarter of your rate. The client, of course, cannot discriminate between your skills and theirs, so el cheapo'll get the gig.

[helpFul]

The "piss of an agent"?

Its [sic] a subject I have thought about, but not too deeply, yes you can probably piss of an agent, but memories are often short and an agency will probably deal with you if they are bigger than a two man band.

I can't believe that you don't think "too deeply".

[BolshieBastard]

Anyone else ever felt they have been blacklisted by an agency? I'm sure it must happen.

Im certain it goes on. Only the other day I was contacted about a role and agent sent me all the bumf and opt out forms. Told them no, opt in for this one I said.

After two calls where they wanted me to opt out, no further contact. Think I'll phone them tomorrow!

OK it may not be black listing but its certainly black balling.

There was a recent example of this in the contruction industry where it came out a blacklist of construction industry contractors existed.