I heard yet again this morning that Monster is allowing companies to post jobs that say if you are unemployed do not apply. (Similar things have been written all year long) I also heard that New Jersey is banning these types of ads in their state. Thank goodness SOMEONE has a brain in their head.

These types of ads remind me of similar ads search firms would run in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s that were “rouse” ads; not “real” jobs but a way to get you to come in and “apply” so these firms could have you in their database for a potential future job. But I digress, and you may not have even been in the workforce at that time.

What really got me fired up is: WHY on this earth would ANY company be stupid enough to post an ad like that? My answer? Because human resources doesn’t want to do their job AND the company obviously doesn’t care about their Employer Brand.

I sympathize with Human Resources departments. I understand that they are overwhelmed with applicants at a time their staff’s have been cut back. The smarter way to keep your employer brand in tact AND find the right applicant for the job is to have a BETTER hiring process.

Part of your hiring process should include some form of job benchmarking and employee assessment of applicants to find THE best person for the role, not just any person.

If you don’t allow the unemployed to apply for your jobs you just might miss THE best person to fill the slot. If you truly care about your company and how it is perceived you’ll stop this nonsense of not allowing the unemployed to apply. In the end you might even feel good about the profession you decided to work in.