Lied to in Interview

caliotter3 · Apr 11, 2016

Well, probably depends on where you stand with other prospective employers. Do you still have active applications out there? With the job market being what it is, I would probably hesitate at leaving immediately and then ending up unemployed looking for work. But I would definitely follow up with other applications while still going to work each day at this job. Good luck.

roser13, ASN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

I don't know..... It seems to me that you very carefully spelled out the working conditions that you were willing to accept (very reasonable working conditions) and they just as carefully lied to you. I likely wouldn't stick it out - it wouldn't be worth the daily (hourly?) frustration. At this point, you can take the high road and indicate in your resignation letter exactly what you were promised vs. the reality of the position.

Seriously, do they think that nurses are stupid? That you would never figure out that you'd been lied to? And trying to call a new employee in to work while they're still on orientation? That place sounds scary.

xoemmylouox, ASN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

I wouldn't leave yet. Keep applying for jobs. Just be aware the next position you accept may not be any better.

It's awful they weren't up front, but I'm not surprised. Not too many people would take a job where you are hounded to come in on days off, frequently have to stay over to finish, and have a high turnover rate. They lie because they wouldn't get any takers if they were honest.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

I just accepted a new position in an acute rehab facility.

I worked in acute rehab for five and a half years and have specialty certification as a certified rehabilitation registered nurse (CRRN). There's a reason you were lied to: rehab is not the most attractive or desirable job prospect in nursing. Many rehab facilities cannot keep nursing staff around for long.

The work is physically and mentally taxing, leading to chronically high employee turnover rates for many rehab facilities. The interviewer knew you wouldn't accept the job if she admitted workers drop like flies faster than they do at McDonald's.

Also, the documentation requirements are onerous. If this is an acute rehab facility, the PPS coordinator will likely be particular about FIM instrument documentation because it affects reimbursement rates and length of stay for the patients.

Yes, it may have been unethical that you were lied to. However, nobody would accept the position if they blurted out the unadulterated truth: our working conditions are brutal; we cannot keep people; our employee turnover rates are sky-high; we're picky on the charting; this is not a good place to work...

westieluv · Apr 11, 2016

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply, I really appreciate your feedback.

I did receive an email a couple of days ago from a dialysis facility of one of the Big Two dialysis companies that is literally two minutes from my house (I have a year and a half of recent dialysis experience with that same company) and it is a dream schedule: MWF 5:30-5:30 with no weekends. I would jump on this opportunity in a New York minute except that my work ethic tells me that since I committed to the rehab position, I have to try to stay and make it work. This dialysis company was not bad at all to work for, and I regret leaving. If I had it to do over again, I would not have given up my position with them, and now they are contacting me with this position that I could almost walk to!

It's really hard to commit to the rehab facility after being lied to, that is the problem, plus I actually did tell the dialysis manager when I replied to her email that I had accepted a position at this facility and had already worked a few days. If I contact her today and ask if she is still interested in me for the dialysis position, will she not think that I am a flip flopper and disloyal? If not, I could be tempted into pursuing the dialysis job.

roser13, ASN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply, I really appreciate your feedback.
I did receive an email from a dialysis facility of one of the Big Two dialysis companies literally two minutes from my house (I have a year and a half of recent dialysis experience with that same company) and it is a dream schedule: MWF 5:30-5:30 with no weekends. I would jump on this opportunity in a New York minute except that my work ethic tells me that since I committed to the rehab position, I have to try to stay and make it work. This dialysis company was not bad at all to work for, and I regret leaving. If I had it to do over again, I would not have given up my position with them, and now they are contacting me with this position that I could almost walk to!
It's really hard to commit to the rehab facility after being lied to, that is the problem.

Wow, think really hard about turning your dream job down. Yes, you committed to the rehab facility but they did not commit to you. Is it worth it?

ixchel · Apr 11, 2016

I get the frustration over getting called in, but I otherwise feel it is absolutely none of your business who you replaced or why/when they left. I'm not sure why an interviewer would mention it, and I'm not sure why you care about the gossip following them.

Be better than this. It was one mistake phone call. And maybe your predecessor is a drama queen jerk. Do you.

ixchel · Apr 11, 2016

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply, I really appreciate your feedback.
I did receive an email a couple of days ago from a dialysis facility of one of the Big Two dialysis companies that is literally two minutes from my house (I have a year and a half of recent dialysis experience with that same company) and it is a dream schedule: MWF 5:30-5:30 with no weekends. I would jump on this opportunity in a New York minute except that my work ethic tells me that since I committed to the rehab position, I have to try to stay and make it work. This dialysis company was not bad at all to work for, and I regret leaving. If I had it to do over again, I would not have given up my position with them, and now they are contacting me with this position that I could almost walk to!
It's really hard to commit to the rehab facility after being lied to, that is the problem, plus I actually did tell the dialysis manager when I replied to her email that I had accepted a position at this facility and had already worked a few days. If I contact her today and ask if she is still interested in me for the dialysis position, will she not think that I am a flip flopper and disloyal? If not, I could be tempted into pursuing the dialysis job.

Just saw this. I'd jump ship, but only after completing hiring process.

roser13, ASN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

I get the frustration over getting called in, but I otherwise feel it is absolutely none of your business who you replaced or why/when they left. I'm not sure why an interviewer would mention it, and I'm not sure why you care about the gossip following them.
Be better than this. It was one mistake phone call. And maybe your predecessor is a drama queen jerk. Do you.

I am always interested in learning why my predecessor left. It is a standard interview question for me and if (IF) you can trust the answer, it's always instructive.

Equally instructive is the evidence that HR did lie about the reason. It would certainly be within their right (as you point out) to decline to answer the question, but they didn't. They just lied. Not a place I would want to work for a minute.

Jedrnurse, BSN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to reply, I really appreciate your feedback.
I did receive an email a couple of days ago from a dialysis facility of one of the Big Two dialysis companies that is literally two minutes from my house (I have a year and a half of recent dialysis experience with that same company) and it is a dream schedule: MWF 5:30-5:30 with no weekends. I would jump on this opportunity in a New York minute except that my work ethic tells me that since I committed to the rehab position, I have to try to stay and make it work. This dialysis company was not bad at all to work for, and I regret leaving. If I had it to do over again, I would not have given up my position with them, and now they are contacting me with this position that I could almost walk to!
It's really hard to commit to the rehab facility after being lied to, that is the problem, plus I actually did tell the dialysis manager when I replied to her email that I had accepted a position at this facility and had already worked a few days. If I contact her today and ask if she is still interested in me for the dialysis position, will she not think that I am a flip flopper and disloyal? If not, I could be tempted into pursuing the dialysis job.

If it's bad during orientation, it'll only get worse. Your commitment was under certain circumstances; it sure looks that those circumstances are non-existent. Get while the getting is good!

BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN · Apr 11, 2016

You missed clue #1. You made a demand like that and rather than put your resume in the trash, they called you and offered you the spot. That smells of desperation on their part to me. How many truly wonderful places would let YOU tell THEM what you will and will not work?

Only YOU can allow yourself to feel pressured or nagged to come in extra. You need to own that.[

QUOTE=westieluv;8993434]Has anyone else experienced this? I just accepted a new position in an acute rehab facility. During the interview I was told that I would be replacing someone who wanted to work a different schedule within the company. I was also told that I would only rarely have to stay past my scheduled shift but that most days I would get out on time. I told the interviewer that I will work my five days each week but do NOT want to be called on my days off, as I am not interested in any overtime and she said she would make a note of it and wrote it down.

I am now a few days into orientation and I have learned from the other nurses in the facility that a.) I am replacing a nurse who got fed up with the working conditions and left the company without a two week notice, b.) I will end up having to stay over the end of my shift pretty much every time I work in order to get everything done, and c.) I received a phone call this morning at 6:30 where I was pressured to come in and work to cover a call off, even though I told the caller that I do not want more than five days a week and I am still on orientation to boot. She was not very happy when we hung up.

I feel duped and scared that I have gotten myself into something that I will regret. I do not appreciate being lied to and I think it was unethical to do so. Part of me wants to run before I get in any deeper and part of me feels like I need to stick it out, except that I'm worried that I will decide to do so only to find that I am constantly pressured into picking up overtime, being forced to stay over, and getting nagged to come in on my days off, in which case I will kick myself for not getting out right away. I am not afraid to say NO to the requests for overtime, but if this is an ongoing thing, it will make my life miserable anyway.

What would you do?