The Job Market’s Latest Abuse Of Power: The “Apply And Ask To Work From Home Or Freelance Work” Trend

The job market has seen a troubling trend in recent years, leaving many employers confused and irritated. We are talking about a phenomena in which candidates, frequently with little to no intention of working for the firm, seek for a position merely to request work-from-home or freelancing options. This audacious strategy is becoming more common, and it’s time to shed light on its repercussions.

Why is this topic of ‘Apply and Ask to Work from Home or Freelance Work’ a point of concern?

The development of remote work and the gig economy has unquestionably changed the way we worked. With technological advancements and an increased need for flexibility, many employees increasingly expect to be able to Work from Home or Freelance Work. However, individuals who are manipulating the system for their personal advantage, however, have hijacked this trend.

If one looks more closely, one will notice that these folks don’t actually care about working for the company; what they only want is to obtain a work from home or freelance opportunity that they may then take advantage of. Although, this is not wrong, but having hidden secrets from the company is unacceptable. This could involve utilising the organisation’s assets, connections, or standing to advance their personal professional or economic endeavours.

How this audacity of ‘thugging on the name of applying for job’ is costing the employers heavily?

This trend has severe consequences for employers, who are often left feeling frustrated, disappointed, and even exploited. Here are a few reasons why:

The trend is worse enough to exploit the company’s resources

The HR or the hiring team invest significant time, money, and effort into the hiring process of adding a new member to the team. They go through several job portals, take the resumes, which are mostly unorganised data, screen them, prepare the questionnaires keeping in mind the job description, connect with the candidates, take interviews and then select one, two or few, from a pool of candidates.

This selection of one, two or few is also crucial as the onus is on the hiring staff or the team if they select any wrong or incompetent candidate. This whole process not only takes manual effort but also financial resources. When applicants apply mainly for Work from Home or Freelance jobs, it wastes resources that may be better spent on qualified people.

The phenomena of hiring can pave the way to disrupt the entire business operations cycle.

Sometimes, for the selection of candidates for certain profiles, not only the hiring staff or the team but also people from operations and other departments sit on the panel so that they can choose the best candidate for the company. In such a scenario, the person who is from another department, apart from hiring, is genuinely compromising on their own time and work and giving their time in hiring.

In such a case, the cycle of operations sometimes gets disturbed, and then, when the applicant, who is otherwise being told that the company is looking for an in-office position, asks for ‘work from home or freelance work’, then the whole panel gets disturbed as they have left their own schedules to interview a candidate who, at the start only, is giving signals that they will not comply with company standards.

Moreover, these candidates, when they get the response from the company that the company cannot give ‘work from home or freelance work’, try to show excuses that they want to work with the company but are not okay with the company’s in-office position policy. The problem is not with ‘work from home or freelance work‘; the question arises: When they know that the company is asking for in-office candidates exclusively, why are they even applying?

Moreover, now, after all the chaotic situation, if the company’s hiring staff asks them that, even after knowing that the company want someone who can come to the office and contribute to the work, why they have applied, they will again start behaving like, as if they have not read the job description completely. Some candidates even go one step ahead and try to abuse the company’s people, go to the review websites, and try to tarnish the company’s reputation by posting online and fake reviews on various platforms.

The implications for the job market

This trend has far-reaching consequences for the job market as a whole. This type of activities not only disturbs the employers but also results in erosion of trust between parties.

The “Apply and Ask to Work from Home or Freelance Work” trend threatens the fragile trust between companies and job seekers. As this trend grows, employers are likely to become more sceptical of candidates, doubting the sincerity of what they want. This scepticism may lead to a more rigorous and sceptical recruiting situation which will make it eventually difficult for genuine people to get work.

In contrast, job searchers may grow to suspect that companies’ hiring tactics are deceptive. They may believe that firms are merely seeking methods to exploit them rather than provide real job chances. This event will lead to erosion of trust and could lead to outcomes such as lower work satisfaction, an increase in turnover intentions, expectations and voluntary turnover rates, and a wider communication gap between the employer and the employees. If this trend prevails, then it is pertinent to highlight the underlying issues and collaborate towards restoring trust in the job market. Also, this will spike the already increased competition in the intensifying job market for genuine candidates.

As the “Apply and Ask to Work from Home or Freelance Work” trend spreads, real candidates may face more competition for employment. The inflow of applications using this method might result in a saturated job market, making it more difficult for good candidates to stand out.

The most alarming part of this trend is that it can cut off a mass of the most qualified and dedicated people. Employers, tired of drowning in attempts to hire people who only want freelancing or remote work, may not realise it, but support the less honest and more scheming people. This might result in the greatest candidate for the position being overlooked just because they choose to use the standard application method honestly and truthfully.

Finally, this tendency may erode the entire underpinning of the job economy, where meritocracy and talent should be the primary demands for hiring.

This crazy trend will give a bad reputation to the entire ‘work-from-home or freelance work spectrum. 

An important danger to the validity of remote work arrangements is the spread of the “Apply and Ask to Work from Home or Freelance Work” tendency. Workers who actually need flexibility because of family obligations, health conditions, or other justifiable reasons can come under more scrutiny and suspicion. Candidates who are only trying to profit from the trend may unintentionally stigmatise remote work arrangements by abusing the system. After experiencing abuse, employers could be less inclined to approve valid requests for remote labour. Because others have exploited the system, this may turn down the tables for worthy employees who will be denied the flexibility they require. 

In the end, this tendency may have far-reaching effects, eroding the advancements gained in encouraging flexible scheduling and fostering an inclusive workplace.

The bottom line. 

In what can only be described as concerning, the “hire me and I’ll only work from home or work as a freelancer” grew to become such a disturbing scenario where people would flexibly pick only one job and avoid going into any office. This disturbing trend must be restrained and fought against as this has wider issues and long-term consequences for job seekers and employers alike.

Moreover, they must also understand the ramifications of this trend and not indulge in such behaviour, which is exploitative as well; it is, in the end, everyone’s duty to promote a positive workplace atmosphere with higher self-respect. We will all be able to improve the morale in the atmosphere and make it more efficient if we go about this together.