Are Recruitment Agencies in Ghana the Job Seekers Friend or Foe?
That
unemployment is one of the major challenges that has bedeviled this country
for decades is not in doubt. The increasing numbers of unemployed graduates is a
very troubling reality. Governments over the years have done their bit to help
create more job opportunities for unemployed graduates. Truth be told,
relatively little success has been chalked in this exercise. The stark reality
is that, the nation`s tertiary institutions are continually churning out
significant numbers of graduates whereas the job market is not expanding that
fast. In other words, there are more graduates than there are jobs. Intense
competition and the ‘whom you know’ or better still ‘who knows you’ syndrome
holds sway.
Another critical factor is that,
many graduates simply do not know where or how to find these relatively few job
opportunities. This is where recruitment agencies come in. What they
essentially do among others is that, they recruit employees for other
companies (they are usually contracted by companies in need of employees).
Patronizing
the services of recruitment agencies
I personally think that patronizing
the services of credible recruitment agencies is one of the viable routes to
landing a good job. Admittedly there are a variety of options open to job
seekers and it definitely makes sense to explore a variety of these job hunting
options. The good news is that they are generally not mutually exclusive. This
means is that, the job seeker can deploy a variety of strategies
simultaneously. It is in the light of this reality I will encourage unemployed
graduates to register with credible recruitment agencies while they explore
other options. In this instance, the job seeker is required to pay a specified
amount, usually called a processing fee. The applicant may be required to
submit photocopies of certificates and other relevant documents. A form (or
forms) is then filled by the applicant who also makes available his or her passport
photographs (usually two copies). The details of the registration process may
differ from one recruitment agency to the other. Once registered, the agency is
saddled with the responsibility of prospecting for a job opening for the
applicant. Once a job opening that meets the applicant’s qualifications and
specifications is secured, he or she is contacted for an interview where
necessary and all things being equal, the applicant`s dream job becomes a job
in reality.
The standard practice in some
quarters is that, once you are employed, the recruitment agency is mandated to
pay your salaries as and when they fall due. This is so because, the company
that contracts the recruitment agency pays the recruitment agency a lump sum
for their services and for the salaries of persons recruited by the agency for
the company. This is a growing phenomenon as many well established
organizations are outsourcing their staffing to credible recruitment agencies.
When
recruitment agencies publish job adverts
One of the ways recruitment agencies
operate is this; adverts of job opportunities are published in newspaper
publications, on their websites or other websites that feature daily job
listings. Once the job seeker applies for the job online, he or she is
contacted by the recruitment agency via email, text message or a phone call and
scheduled for an interview. Ideally, when the job applicant is short-listed and
invited for the interview, he or she is not required to make any siform of
payments prior to the interview (Unlike where the job seeker walks into the
office of a recruitment agency to register for their service). This is the
standard practice of many credible and time tested recruitment agencies in
Ghana (such as L`aine Service Ltd. & Plato Consult). In my experience, I
have landed jobs with the assistance of recruitment agencies that operate this
way. This is in stark contrast to the many interviews I have attended where I
was required to make some payment. As a matter of fact, in all such instances,
I never got the job I was supposedly being interviewed for. It is not uncommon
to find considerable numbers of job seekers attend a job interview for a single
position (or few job openings) who are all required to pay a non-refundable
amount of money with no guarantee whatsoever of getting the job.
I have also discovered that in many
instances, those who are fortunate enough to land the job are required to enter
into a contract with the recruitment agency that stipulates that for the next
couple of months, a certain specified percentage of the successful job
applicants salary is to be paid at source into the recruitment agency`s account.
In many of such instances, the salary due the new employee is relatively low. This
is a sad reality. And there are a host of fraudulent and illegal recruitment
agencies in Ghana robbing many unsuspecting clients of substantial amounts of
money. What should the job seeker do then? With the wealth of knowledge shared
in this piece (and this I must say is knowledge gained from experience), it is
hoped that job seekers will seek the services of credible and time tested
recruitment agencies and exercise caution when contacted for interviews by
recruitment agencies.
Also worth-noting is that, before
one seeks the services of a recruitment agency, it will not be out of place to
conduct some form of research about the company; you may do some Google search
and seek the advice of others who have at one time or the other sought the
services of recruitment agencies. Some job seekers have had bad experiences
with some recruitment agencies whereas others have had great experiences with
such companies. Some have had a blend of the two. Their counsel will be
invaluable. To your job hunting success!!!
Written by Daniel Dela Dunoo
Freelance writer, blogger, published
author, professional marketer and the founder of Top-notch Writing Solutions,
Ghana.
Blog: http://danieldeladunoo@gmail.com
/ http://theroyalwordsmithgh.wordpress.com
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