How Far Would You Go To Get a Job?

Rachel Slaiman

September 3, 2014

Finding jobs is frustrating enough to the point of that people are almost applying for anything that they think they qualify for. But how far do people actually go? How much would they stretch the truth on their resume just to get a job? Is it moral or is it unethical?

From trying to put each job down to cover up gaps or writing clichés, more and more people are attempting to grab the hiring manager’s attention for their resume. Recently, one person even went so far as changing their name just to show that they were not Latino.

For identity protection, only the first name will be given. The man’s name is Jose, but after applying for months, he was not getting anywhere. He decided to drop the “s” in his name and his name became Joe. After that, interviews came pouring into his inbox.

While there are many other creative ways on getting your resume noticed, the important to remember is to be truthful. What if you changed your name and then you get to the interview to show your ID and the front desk personnel see that it is different? Would they tell the hiring manager? Would they even notice? How would you feel that you changed your name just to get noticed?

Unless there are common names that mean the same thing like “Bill” could be “William”, changing your name puts you into a vulnerable position. You are trying to get the job that you applied for and right off the bat, you are already, in a sense, lying to them and you have not even started yet.

Yes, a job is important. It is how we make a living and how we survive. But it is really worth it to change something as your name just to get noticed? Would it even work?

This issue is about morals and ethics. It is about doing what you feel is right. What would you do?