{"id":104228,"date":"2025-06-11T15:45:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-11T05:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/?p=104228"},"modified":"2025-06-11T14:48:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T04:48:21","slug":"ghosting-workers-left-in-the-dark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/ghosting-workers-left-in-the-dark\/","title":{"rendered":"The Growing Trend of Ghosting: 12.5 Million Aussie Workers Left in the Dark"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nearly nine in ten Australian workers have experienced “ghosting” after applying for a job, according to recent research. The trend is causing growing frustration among job seekers<\/strong>, as millions of applicants are left in limbo, with no communication from potential employers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While ghosting\u2014a term typically associated with dating\u2014has long been a familiar occurrence in the recruitment process, its impact on job seekers is now being recognised as a significant issue<\/strong>. The lack of feedback from employers is not only damaging to candidates’ morale but also to businesses’ reputations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Scale of Ghosting in Australia<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A report from job site Indeed<\/strong> reveals that nearly 12.5 million Australians have faced ghosting after submitting job applications. The practice has become increasingly common, with one in six workers <\/a>admitting that they rarely hear back from employers at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The issue is particularly prevalent in sectors like retail<\/strong> and hospitality<\/strong>, which attract high volumes of applicants. According to Indeed<\/strong> career expert Sally McKibbin<\/strong><\/a>, the high number of applications in these industries may be a contributing factor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The job market has softened in comparison to a year or so ago, but the unemployment rate is still sitting quite low at 4.1 per cent.But there’s still 48 per cent more jobs on Indeed than there were during pre-pandemic times, which sat quite consistently.” McKibbin said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For candidates, the experience of being ghosted can be discouraging. Yosi Sisaye<\/strong>, a university student from Melbourne, shared his frustration after attending an interview and trial shift at a hospitality chain, only to hear nothing afterward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“It was a little bit frustrating because I felt like I put a lot of effort into the interview and the actual shift,” Sisaye told Yahoo Finance<\/strong>. “Some common courtesy of saying that I didn\u2019t get the role would have been nice”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Impact of Ghosting on Employers’ Reputations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Experts warn that employers who engage in ghosting risk damaging their brand’s reputation. McKibbin <\/strong>highlighted that a simple follow-up message, even to inform candidates that they were unsuccessful, can go a long way in maintaining goodwill. “We all want to know where we stand in this process,” she explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, McKibbin pointed out that businesses, especially those in consumer-facing sectors, must consider the long-term impact of ghosting. Negative experiences can be shared through word-of-mouth, affecting not just the candidate’s confidence but also the company\u2019s public image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an effort to address the issue, initiatives like the Circle Back Initiative<\/strong> have been launched to encourage companies to respond to all job applicants. Additionally, some workers, like Australian software engineer Ricjohn Genoguin<\/strong>, have taken matters into their own hands, developing platforms like Ghostedd.com<\/strong><\/a> to call out companies that fail to provide feedback to applicants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ghosting may have become a widespread issue in the job market, but it also offers businesses an opportunity to improve their recruitment processes. By ensuring clear communication with applicants, companies can foster a more positive working environment and safeguard their reputation in a competitive job market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ghosting has become a significant problem for job seekers in Australia, with 12.5 million workers affected. Many applicants are left frustrated after putting in effort for interviews and trial shifts, only to receive no feedback. This growing trend is not only impacting job seekers’ morale but also harming employers’ reputations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":104231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-104228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-employment","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104228"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":104230,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104228\/revisions\/104230"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104231"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}