If you look at LinkedIn or job sites, you might think there are plenty of jobs in Cluj. But how many of those jobs are real?
Now, you might think, sure, some sites might be free to list jobs, but why would companies pay to list jobs that don’t exist?
According to a local HR expert, there are a few reasons fake jobs are listed in Romania.
- the job advert is a research tool.
Employers might be using the advert to see how many people are in the market, and what skills they have.
But, why would they do that? Perhaps it is to create a later, purple squirrel posting. The company wants to hire from outside the EU, but has to first prove that the skills don’t exist in the EU. So, first they post a fake job, and then, when they find the skills, they repost asking for skills that local candidates don’t have.
Other reasons, mentioned by recruiters outside of Romania, is so that companies can look like they are growing.
While many reporters and recruiters claim this isn’t illegal, I beg to differ. (Not beg like asking for money, beg to differ is an expression in English, meaning I disagree, but it’s a little stronger than disagree.) Fraud is illegal, even if it is accepted by one of our Nato allies. There may not be a specific law about fraudulent job ads, but it comes under other laws.
40 percent of Romanian companies admit to posting at least one fake job! And one in five jobs posted online will never lead to a hire.