We often talk about 'red flags' for jobs and companies. What are some GREEN flags?
Posted Feb 27, 2021, 2:11 AM UTC
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They take care of their employees, even if it hurts their bottom line a little
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I feel like that would be a bad business model. Unless it's like a non profit or a government job.
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I mean I think it can go either way - if the impact to the bottom line is small/marginal but you have employees who don't call out/who are more productive at work it might pay out in the long run. Of course its difficult as a business to sacrifice sure profits
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It is only if your goal is short term profit. But long term paying your employees well and having a healthy workplace helps retain your most experienced employees who keep things running smoothly and can help your business grow.
Unfortunately this usually only works out for smaller companies and when HR departments etc come into play people often get reduced to numbers on a spreadsheet.
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The interview includes suggestions about moving to the area & offers to help find you a place to live, etc There is straight talk about salary and expectations.
You can learn a lot by seeing where people are, how they are working (music on, doors closed, 2 coworkers standing in a room together talking, etc. you can tell who has been there a while. So a green light would be meeting long term employees and seeing a vibe in the office that works with how you work.
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Fun fact.... No green flags in Retail
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I worked at a surplus electronics store, and it was a pretty low-stress environment.
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You also interview with other members of your prospective team. This shows that they want a good fit for the team. Poor bosses don't really care about fit. It also shows that they value their existing employees, and aren't afraid they'll say negative things to a prospective employee.
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A really good employee benefit plan. Benefits are expensive. Bad companies try to cheap out of them, but good companies realize they are necessary to attract & keep quality employees. If your company doesn't offer medical, dental, vision, life, STD, LTD, decent PTO, 401k and other perks AT A REASONABLE COST, then maybe v they aren't a good place to work.
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Word of mouth. Good employers tend to have lower turnover, so when positions do open up, the employees often tell their friends first. Also, you'll often hear them talking about the nice bonuses they got, or fun events the company had, etc.
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Lots of long term employees. There's a reason so many people have stayed there 20, 30, or even 40 years.
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When your boss asks for everyone to come in early and somehow notices someone hasn’t eaten so he leaves and brings everyone breakfast. He did call me Harry Potter but that’s okay other people thought it was funny. I usually do self deprecating humor anyways so I totally leaned into it
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If you have a personal friend or acquaintance who already works there and gives you an honest opinion
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Depending on the business, hang out in the lobby a little before lunch time. If people leaving for lunch seem to be in a good mood there's a good chance the work environment contributes to that and they like being there. Employee demeanor outside of the interview room can tell you a lot.
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Reasonable pay and you leave not feeling burnt out.
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When coworkers are willing to help each other out without much question
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If the interview becomes conversational. It shows the interviewer sees you as an equal not as just a potential new cog in the machine.
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Green flags I've had at my current job (barge work)
I can repair and wash my car at the "office" (a former gas station) and my boss has helped me out with a few repairs, as well as had me on the clock for them if I hadn't hit my 40 hours yet.
Making sure I dont get burned out (our hours vary. Ive done a 23 hour shift before and they gave me 2 days off after)
Feeding me frequently.
My interview there was super straight forward.
Putting priority in people who need hours (I was given priority over my older coworkers, as I lived alone and paid all my bills alone)
The Christmas bonus was amazing (say I made 24k in a year, I got a 2.4k xmas bonus)
Didn't care if you slacked off, just do your job (ive taken straight up naps at work)
Big green flags.
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Pants
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If the interviewer is someone on your team, they ask you some personal questions during the interview (what’re your passion, what do you enjoy outside of work, etc). Shows that your boss is interested in people from the get go moreso than robots to get work done
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Paying for parking if you commute. Buying coffee, or lunch once a week at least. Have your health(mental and physical) in mind.
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Guaranteed 40 hour weeks with benefits
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2 weeks of sick time.
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People walking around with genuine smiles on their faces.