Robert Half Technologies

[Xavier434]

Summary:

1. Worked with RHT
2. They screwed me over big time
3. I quit
4. Found another agency
5. They rocked

Conclusion: Don't work with RHT and only accept temp to perm offers for jobs that you really want from different agencies.



The story:

I used to work for RHT and I had a very bad experience. First, I am a programmer and they sent me to a job where all I did was data mine all day (boring as hell) for a guy who was the biggest jerk I have ever met. I called RHT after a few months and told them that I want to pursue a programming job and I was very unhappy with this place that they sent me. They said they would look into it.

Turns out I found a different full time job myself. I told RHT about it and gave them the date that I would be quitting. They told me that was great. I asked them if I need to inform the guy I was working for about me quitting or if RHT would handle it. I was told that they would handle it. I really didn't want to tell this jerk that I was leaving because I feared he would just cut me right away.

So that day comes and I go to my new job. Everything seems fine.

Day 2 at the new job I get a call from that jerk yelling and asking me why I missed 2 days in a row. I told them the story about how I informed RHT and they were supposed to inform him. I told him I couldn't talk since I was at my new job but he kept me on the phone for another good 5 min asking me all sorts of questions.

Fast forward 30 min later. I get a call from a supervisor at RHT. They kept me on the phone for another 15 min asking me questions. The guy had the nerve to tell me that "this is not how they do business!" after I told him that I did not want to inform that jerk that I was leaving because I didn't want to get cut early and that I informed RHT about this fact almost 3 weeks prior.

Now, why RHT did not find a replacement to fill in for me I will never know. This is what those temp agencies are supposed to do. In the end, RHT looked bad and I looked bad as well. That is one black mark on my resume I wish I didn't have and there was nothing I could have done to have made it better.

I ended up leaving this new job too, but that was for different reasons entirely. I decided to try a different temp agency who got me my current job where I am now perm and very happy. I had a wonderful experience with the second agency. This agency made me feel like one of their employees instead of another robot temp like RHT does. Believe me, it makes all of the difference.

 

[jandrews]

We use rht for contractors. Honestly, some of the candidates that they do send me dont seem qualified or to fit my criteria and I think mostly they just send whatever they have around in the general vicinity of what you are looking for.

We have had overall good luck with them from a hiring standpoint and found quite a few good employees from the relationship. Many companies dont want to direct hire anymore and 3 month contract to hire positions are more and more common.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: jandrews
Many companies dont want to direct hire anymore and 3 month contract to hire positions are more and more common.

This is very true and very unfortunate for the blue collar worker. Especially the entry level workers. While I understand why companies do it, it really puts the rest of us at the mercy of these agencies. Especially the big ones like RHT. RHT is terrible but they manage to take control of much of the job market (at least here in south florida) leaving few of us with much choice. It worked out for me in the end, but the process to find a good job could have been much easier for me if these agencies did not exist.

 

[akshatp]

RHT is shady. Stay away. They called me in for a meeting prior to setting up an interview, at which they told me lies about what the actual compensation was. After I went for the interview and the company was dead set on hiring me, then all the "stipulations" came out. Such as the "guaranteed 10% Bonus" not being clearly stated in the contract; oh and all of a sudden the hours changed from 9-5 pre-interview to 8-6 post-interview (salary, mind you not hourly)

When i called all of these things into question they put on a serious "car-salesman routine" and tried to get me to accept under their BS terms. I obviously told them to shove it and have never applied for a job through them again.

 

[Drakkon]

I got roped into the possibilities of RHT when i was on a job hunt and like many others i found their practices VERY shady. I talked wiht a guy over the phone and he was more concerned about my pay rate and what contracts i would take on than actual experience. It was when he said be sure to bring my SS card to the "interview" (which i found out was nothing more than a glorified contract signing) that i backed out and said i was no longer interested. Not once did they fully assess my skills. Not once did they ask regular interview questions. They just wanted a body to fill a seet at a company i may or may not like and frankly i wasnt going to go for that.

 

[glutenberg]

After graduating from college a couple of years ago, I was searching for a job and gave Robert Half a try. I was a bit late on the job search because of some family health issues so I was looking for pretty much anything. I had graduated with a Business-Economics degree with an Accounting minor so I was pretty much open to anything in those fields.

I applied to Robert Half and they asked me to come in for an interview. They had two tests that they asked me to take. One of the tests focused on accounting basics and the other on how to use windows office basics (strange test). After finishing that, the interview process proceeded and I met with a team of interviewers (4 women who were abnormally attractive). They all seemed quite nice and eventually my recruiter offered their salaried professional position. I accepted and the next day they called me to let me know they had a position for me.

So, first job out of college they paired me with payroll time sheet calculations. The job itself wasn't that bad other than being unbearably boring and mindless. I spent 8 hours a day adding and subtracting and contacting employees when they filled out their hours incorrectly. The people I worked with were great but the major downside of being a temp was that they really never trusted me with anything major. There was no point of expecting new responsibilities outside of additional clerical work. Overall, the job was a failure.

Fast forward about six months. I applied and received two permanent job offers for legitimate positions. I accepted a job as an analyst at a securities law firm and went to inform my boss (not the one I reported to at Robert Half) that I'd like to give them my 2 week notice. My boss calls up my temp representative at RHI before I got a chance to inform them of my decision and I receive a call from the representative. The lady from RHI spent a good 20 min. berating me for being unprofessional because I did not inform them early on and that they took a huge chance on me by giving me this position as a time sheet calculator. So, after 20 min. of being yelled at, I told them that it was a shame they felt that way. I really didn't need anything from RHI anyways since the people I temped for really liked me and they were the ones I'd be asking for recommendations if I ever needed it.

Moral of the story. If you like being assigned to jobs that you could perform with a 6th grade education and then be told that you should be forever grateful for their generosity in offering you a job that you were so unqualified for, then RHI may be a good fit for you. Good luck on your decision.

Cliffs:
1.) Offered a salaried professional position at RHI.
2.) Worked as a temp for six months and found a real job.
3.) Was yelled at by RHI representative that hired me for being unprofessional because I didn't give them enough notice (I had just told my boss that I would like to submit a two week notice, meaning I'd be around for two additional weeks and that I could be flexible and stay a little longer if they needed me to. Ended up staying for 3 weeks) and that they took a huge risk on me by offering that temp position as a time sheet calculator.
4.) Moved on to a real job and watched the company I temped at outsource their payroll department and then file bankruptcy. Ironically, sued by the firm that I now work for. Good times.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: glutenberg
Cliffs:
1.) Offered a salaried professional position at RHI.
2.) Worked as a temp for six months and found a real job.
3.) Was yelled at by RHI representative that hired me for being unprofessional because I didn't give them enough notice (I had just told my boss that I would like to submit a two week notice, meaning I'd be around for two additional weeks and that I could be flexible and stay a little longer if they needed me to. Ended up staying for 3 weeks) and that they took a huge risk on me by offering that temp position as a time sheet calculator.
4.) Moved on to a real job and watched the company I temped at outsource their payroll department and then file bankruptcy. Ironically, sued by the firm that I now work for. Good times.

The ending to that story was pretty funny.

The first job they gave you doesn't shock me since it is RHT but it really is degrading. It just goes to show how little RHT respects their employees and what they are capable of. Most of the payroll clerks I have worked with never even went to college and a couple were "challenged" by MS Office.

In regards to giving your 2 weeks notice to your boss instead of RHT, that was wrong for you to do. However, it was even worse that RHT did not make it perfectly clear before sending you to one of their clients that you needed to contact them first in that kind of situation. That was very unprofessional and irresponsible of them. Not you. Anyone who has not worked for a temp agency before should not be expected to understand the policies and procedures of that agency unless they are told. Slipping it into a 30 page packet that you are required to "quickly" sign when you meet with them is not enough if the temp agency expects to run their business without problems. Very stupid move on their part.

 

[trmiv]

I get contacted by them all the time. Most recently when I was browsing for a new job while I already had a job. I didn't need a new job, just wanted to see what was out there. They called me and said they had some positions I would be a good fit for, and wanted me to come in for an interview. I asked them to tell me specifically what the positions were, and they wouldn't. I kept pushing and the guy finally caved and said he didn't have a specific position in mind, but wanted to "get me in, and into their system" and he "was sure he would find me something quickly." I told him that I wasn't about to take half a day off work to come interview to get into their system. He kept insisting that I had to be flexible, or he couldn't help. I told him to find me actual positions and then I could "be flexible." I never heard from them again after that.

 

[glutenberg]

Originally posted by: Xavier434

Originally posted by: glutenberg
Cliffs:
1.) Offered a salaried professional position at RHI.
2.) Worked as a temp for six months and found a real job.
3.) Was yelled at by RHI representative that hired me for being unprofessional because I didn't give them enough notice (I had just told my boss that I would like to submit a two week notice, meaning I'd be around for two additional weeks and that I could be flexible and stay a little longer if they needed me to. Ended up staying for 3 weeks) and that they took a huge risk on me by offering that temp position as a time sheet calculator.
4.) Moved on to a real job and watched the company I temped at outsource their payroll department and then file bankruptcy. Ironically, sued by the firm that I now work for. Good times.

The ending to that story was pretty funny.

The first job they gave you doesn't shock me since it is RHT but it really is degrading. It just goes to show how little RHT respects their employees and what they are capable of. Most of the payroll clerks I have worked with never even went to college and a couple were "challenged" by MS Office.

In regards to giving your 2 weeks notice to your boss instead of RHT, that was wrong for you to do. However, it was even worse that RHT did not make it perfectly clear before sending you to one of their clients that you needed to contact them first in that kind of situation. That was very unprofessional and irresponsible of them. Not you. Anyone who has not worked for a temp agency before should not be expected to understand the policies and procedures of that agency unless they are told. Slipping it into a 30 page packet that you are required to "quickly" sign when you meet with them is not enough if the temp agency expects to run their business without problems. Very stupid move on their part.

I had mentioned it to the boss I working for because it just seemed natural to let them know ahead of time as they were the ones that I kept in close contact with. Outside of the once every 2-3 months call I received from the rep, I never heard a thing from RHI. I was about to call that rep too but my boss beat me to the punch and that's when the spiraling domino effect went into play. Oh well, live and learn.

My favorite story from my rep was when she was in Hawaii visiting Pearl Harbor. She wanted to yell at all the Japanese tourists that were there because I guess she felt that they were personally responsible for the attack. Very angry lady.

 

[Mr Pickles]

Our company has two guys working as temps with us. They seem like they know what they are doing, but we lucked out - most contracted people don't know anything. Its like 1/100 are actually qualified with both the technical and social skilsl required to work as an employee at the office. You have to figure, if you aren't sure where your next paycheck will come from next month then you are in the wrong business and need to change your mindset. We've gone through more than a dozen tech's from various agencies, just trying to find people that know how to politely answer phones and generate tickets for the real workers here. It's pretty pathetic.

Try and find a real job if you are going into Tech Support or other similar fields. It is for your own good.

 

[Mxylplyx]

I've always had great luck with recruiters for higher level positions. Not so much when I wasnt very experienced, but inexperienced people are easy to find, so companies usually dont bother with the expense of a recruiter.

 

[Fraggable]

I've interviewed with them twice for the type of jobs a person with an Assicoates' degree would be looking for, and it always went very well. A lot of what they have to offer are part time, contract, or contract-to-hire positions. If you're ok with that they're the best source I know of. If not, you might want to look elsewhere.

And I must mention, the 2 recruiters who inteviewed me were about my age and quite attractive. Asking for a phone # after an interview is probably a horrible idea though.

 

[Fraggable]

Originally posted by: glutenberg
(4 women who were abnormally attractive).

Fast forward about six months. I applied and received two permanent job offers for legitimate positions. I accepted a job as an analyst at a securities law firm and went to inform my boss (not the one I reported to at Robert Half) that I'd like to give them my 2 week notice. My boss calls up my temp representative at RHI before I got a chance to inform them of my decision and I receive a call from the representative. The lady from RHI spent a good 20 min. berating me for being unprofessional because I did not inform them early on and that they took a huge chance on me by giving me this position as a time sheet calculator. So, after 20 min. of being yelled at, I told them that it was a shame they felt that way. I really didn't need anything from RHI anyways since the people I temped for really liked me and they were the ones I'd be asking for recommendations if I ever needed it.

LOL I can't believe it, now I'm starting to think something funny is going on there. I've met maybe 10 total RHT employees and all the females were exceptionally attractive. Like Stepford wives or something.

They made it clear to me that I was to see RHT as my employer until I was oficially hired by the company in a contract-to-hire situation, so I can see them getting mad at you about that. I would have recommended talking to your RHT rep first in that case, they always told me to let them know about your decisions before you actually made them. It only makes sense, they can't have their people moving around without them knowing about it, and you are actually working for RHT most of the time.

 

[Mr Pickles]

Originally posted by: Fraggable
I've interviewed with them twice for the type of jobs a person with an Assicoates' degree would be looking for, and it always went very well. A lot of what they have to offer are part time, contract, or contract-to-hire positions. If you're ok with that they're the best source I know of. If not, you might want to look elsewhere.

And I must mention, the 2 recruiters who inteviewed me were about my age and quite attractive. Asking for a phone # after an interview is probably a horrible idea though.

Oh well there you have it. Attractive recruiters and the swapping of phone numbers for personal reasons afterwards, it doesn't get any more professional then that. Hell, thats practically career-bound right there!

Give me a break. Is ATOT really filled with half assed workers with a wealth of technical knowledge and no hope of holding a real job down?

 

[Fraggable]

Originally posted by: MrLee

Originally posted by: Fraggable
I've interviewed with them twice for the type of jobs a person with an Assicoates' degree would be looking for, and it always went very well. A lot of what they have to offer are part time, contract, or contract-to-hire positions. If you're ok with that they're the best source I know of. If not, you might want to look elsewhere.

And I must mention, the 2 recruiters who inteviewed me were about my age and quite attractive. Asking for a phone # after an interview is probably a horrible idea though.

Oh well there you have it. Attractive recruiters and the swapping of phone numbers for personal reasons afterwards, it doesn't get any more professional then that. Hell, thats practically career-bound right there!

Give me a break. Is ATOT really filled with half assed workers with a wealth of technical knowledge and no hope of holding a real job down?

nonono you took that wrong. I did not ask them for their phone #'s, I was pointing out that that would be a bad idea.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: MrLee
Oh well there you have it. Attractive recruiters and the swapping of phone numbers for personal reasons afterwards, it doesn't get any more professional then that. Hell, thats practically career-bound right there!

Give me a break. Is ATOT really filled with half assed workers with a wealth of technical knowledge and no hope of holding a real job down?

I don't think Fraggable was trying to convince us that RHT was acting professional. He was just telling us his story with a funny twist which happened to not involve him getting screwed over. In regards to your last comment, that is quite the generalization.

 

[glutenberg]

Originally posted by: Fraggable

Originally posted by: glutenberg
(4 women who were abnormally attractive).

Fast forward about six months. I applied and received two permanent job offers for legitimate positions. I accepted a job as an analyst at a securities law firm and went to inform my boss (not the one I reported to at Robert Half) that I'd like to give them my 2 week notice. My boss calls up my temp representative at RHI before I got a chance to inform them of my decision and I receive a call from the representative. The lady from RHI spent a good 20 min. berating me for being unprofessional because I did not inform them early on and that they took a huge chance on me by giving me this position as a time sheet calculator. So, after 20 min. of being yelled at, I told them that it was a shame they felt that way. I really didn't need anything from RHI anyways since the people I temped for really liked me and they were the ones I'd be asking for recommendations if I ever needed it.

LOL I can't believe it, now I'm starting to think something funny is going on there. I've met maybe 10 total RHT employees and all the females were exceptionally attractive. Like Stepford wives or something.

They made it clear to me that I was to see RHT as my employer until I was oficially hired by the company in a contract-to-hire situation, so I can see them getting mad at you about that. I would have recommended talking to your RHT rep first in that case, they always told me to let them know about your decisions before you actually made them. It only makes sense, they can't have their people moving around without them knowing about it, and you are actually working for RHT most of the time.

Oh well, guess I'm at fault in the end. Granted, it's not like they would ever be able to convince me to stay and I ended up staying an extra week to help them transition over to their new system. I was just amused about how angry this lady was and how unrealistic she was being.

 

[Tsaico]

Well, I went though with my meeting with them and overall it seemed positive. I ended up leaving because of their "no compete" clause, which I do some consulting private on the side that I do not want to give up, but if I was straight out of college I would have stuck around based on what happened.

For the most part, the staff was friendly, I told the lady I wanted to speak with the recruiter before I filled anything out and they were fine wiht that. I spoke with the guy about 10 minutes after my appointment, and exlained what I was looking for and what I wanted. Asked about the no compete clause and confirmed it wouldn't allow me to do my own consulting (he did give some scenarios where it would be fine, but I just didn't want to chance it all). Then he also told me that I wouldn't be guaranteed 40 hours a week, but as much as they can assign me. It sounded a little shakey, so I opted out, we chatted a little bit and then went our seperate ways, about 20 min or so total time spent.

 

[Fraggable]

Originally posted by: Tsaico
Well, I went though with my meeting with them and overall it seemed positive. I ended up leaving because of their "no compete" clause, which I do some consulting private on the side that I do not want to give up, but if I was straight out of college I would have stuck around based on what happened.

For the most part, the staff was friendly, I told the lady I wanted to speak with the recruiter before I filled anything out and they were fine wiht that. I spoke with the guy about 10 minutes after my appointment, and exlained what I was looking for and what I wanted. Asked about the no compete clause and confirmed it wouldn't allow me to do my own consulting (he did give some scenarios where it would be fine, but I just didn't want to chance it all). Then he also told me that I wouldn't be guaranteed 40 hours a week, but as much as they can assign me. It sounded a little shakey, so I opted out, we chatted a little bit and then went our seperate ways, about 20 min or so total time spent.

I guess that depends on the positions that are available. The 2 times I went there were about 3 positions they were considering me for, so that gave some flexibility. Sometimes it's a purely contract position which generally stinks, sometimes it's a full time contract-to-hire where it's a great company who just wants to give potential employees a year-long analysis before offering them a career. Sometimes that doesn't include benefits though.

Was the lady attractive?

 

[spidey07]

If they are finding you a full time position with the compensation and responsibilities you desire, they are great.

If you're getting whored out by them like any other "put a body in a spot" contract gig, then they all suck.

A recruiter finds full time positions for you, a head hunter and takes their money on the front end...normally a cut of your starting salary so their relationships can help here as they are directly motivated to finding you the compensation you require.

A contracting company pays you 35 bucks an hour and bills you at 85, essentially making you a whore.

My experience with RHT has been good, but in a head hunter roll. Plus it's a good idea to have a few true recruiters in your network so you can get a feel for the pulse of what is going on in your area.

 

[Fraggable]

Originally posted by: spidey07A contracting company pays you 35 bucks an hour and bills you at 85, essentially making you a whore.

I get 14.5/hr and get billed at 120, what does that make me?

 

[Kelemvor]

There are a lot of companies like that out there. TekSystems, Manpower, Adecco, RHT, etc. They are fine if you are looking for something but 99% of what they have are contract positions that may or may not have the chance of turning into a permanent position. Plus they take a huge cut of the money so you may not get as much as you want. But since it's contract work, that helps too.

And they do help getting a job since if they find work for you, they get more money so they market you a lot depending on your skills.

Also be sure to check our Health Insurance since some have it to offer and some don't.

 

[alkemyst]

Frag, if you are seriously working for only 14.5/hr and they are paying $120 an hour to have you there...I just don't know what to say about that.

We have brought on our two last programming hires from them. We pay $40-50k for this position and I think they charge us about $45/hr for contracts.

It works good to screen applicants as everyone has a million certs and resume fluffs...but when they get in it's as if they are fresh out of Intro to C++.

Also when working with an agency and getting placed on a crappy assignment...it's up to you to pull the plug on it. I have been sent on gigs that was nothing like what I wanted (mostly contract to perm...not a total temp assignment).

It's really the recruiter themselves that makes or breaks you...some recruiters just push the cherry commission assignments or throw good workers on the 'regulars'.

Make sure your recruiter is looking for your interests.

 

[bonkers325]

headhunters / recruiting firms see u as commission revenue. if they think u have the *slightest* chance of being hired, they will hound u. but the second that they realize u wont be hired, u will never hear from them again.

 

[L00ker]

RHT has not impressed me, they in this area seem to do very little in the way of researching their candidates and the positions for which they attempt to place them. In my case they called me at my job (unsolicited and not quite sure how they got my office #) to discuss a position at my company, apparently they didn't realize I was already working for the company they were attempting to place me in... morons...