Would you apply for a job on Craigslist?

That has nothing to do with Craigslist – it’s only that specific job. I’ve gotten tons of jobs through Craigslist, some good, some bad. It’s just a place to advertise; it has no bearing on how good the job is.

In our area, a lot of small offices advertise through there—churches, real estate offices, local businesses. Most of the jobs are part time. Like with everything on the internet, you need to use caution, and check out the the business though conventional means.

Don’t do anything that requires you to send money in order to be considered for a position, or where they ask you to e-mail a photo.

I just got a job off Craigslist. And I’m pretty excited, actually. :)

I did notice one or two ads that were illegal, like they weirdly asked for a photo with one’s resume, but screw them. One of them irked me so badly that I created a Hushmail account just to chastise them for these illegal practices.

Other than that, I’d say most of them are legit and legal, you just have to exercise common sense like anywhere else on the internet.

Why is being asked if you have kids a illegal question?

Thank you. My gut is telling me that it’s a legitimate business, the only problem is that many jobs advertised on Craig list , in my opinions, are shady to a certain extent. I fear we are living in a society where employers will get way with as much s they can and I don’t have time or resources or enegy to deal with shady situations. :(

I just dont know! I know its illegal in Canada for an employer to ask if you are pregnant, or have kids, or if you are married. Those are not legal grounds for discrimination.

@coffeenut Employers aren’t allowed to discriminate based upon your familial situation. Some don’t like you having kids because it means you have a priority larger than being their employee, that you’ll be wanting things like daycare, that health insurance will be a bigger cost, etc. Others don’t want to hire young women who are likely to work for a bit, then get married and have kids and never come back (more of an issue in the 60s, but still around).

@airowDee – I think Craigslist has been somewhat demonized. It’s merely a free classifieds site, which means you get more postings and more job choices, because cost is not a prohibitive factor to the poster/employer. Of course, the downside is that it being free means the riff-raff aren’t kept out, either, but part of what makes CL work is user moderation, just like here on Fluther. That’s why if you see something shady, you should flag it.

I don’t know where you live, but I live in the SF Bay Area, with a very happening CL scene and it’s generally pretty obvious who the scammers are. If you’re ever not sure, when in discussion with an employer, ask them straight out what their company name is, then Google it.

@MissAnthrope Many cities now have a fee for job postings – it’s $25 in my city. Not much, but usually keeps the lowest and crappiest out.

Almost all my jobs have been through Craigslist, lol. Once you’ve been looking on there long enough you’ll be able to see which ones are scams right away. Most are legit. A lot of the receptionist ones are scams though.

This is a bit off topic, but I think it is relevant enough to include it.

If you are having a hard time finding work, try this. Pick up a copy of the yellow pages, and cold call all the companies that are envolved with the kind of work you do, if you are a mechanic phone all the garages, if you are a waiter phone all the restaurants, and so on. Just tell them “Hi, my name is ‘x’, I usually work as a ‘x’, I’m just looking for some work, and thought that while I was at it, I’d call up a few companies in the yellow pages to ask if there is any work going. Do you think I could perhaps talk with the person who is in charge of recruitment please?”

I have done this about 4 or 5 times in my life, 2 of those times it lead to a proper paying job. It’s worth a try, specially if local calls are free. Chances are someone will like your iniciative and snap you up.

Got my current part time job off craigslist…. Most rewarding, arguably the best job, I’ve ever had.

@MissAnthrope Congratulations!

I got my current job and one past job from Craigslist. When I’m looking for jobs, I use every channel available; all the job sites, newspaper ads, word of mouth, and I even send my resume to companies that I’m interested in but which haven’t shown any sign that they’re hiring. Just in case.

The thing about craigslist is that it’s a mixed bag; anyone can post there for free, so you have to sort through the jobs to find good ones. In my case, the ads listed the name of the company, and I knew that I was interested in working there before I applied. Not all of the ads even say what the company is, which makes it much harder.

yes

Depending on the job, yes :)