The Huge Red Flag And The Job Interview That Wasn't

 It was a chilly, rainy day.  Our heroine, who lives in Virginia, had a job interview scheduled for 11 in Maryland.  Such a commute is not uncommon in her area, but neither is it fast; our heroine had budgeted a little over an hour to account for a Metro ride, a bus or Uber ride, and a buffer to ensure she would not arrive late for such a momentous occasion.

Our heroine prepared extensively for the interview.  She consulted train and bus schedules to ensure that she left home on time.  She prepared herself a large breakfast, so as not to be "hangry" during the interview or on the lengthy trip back home.  She moved the contents of her everyday purse into her professional purse, and then proceeded to double- and triple-check to ensure that she had both her phone and her SmarTrip card.  She donned an appropriate outfit, which is unlike the outfits she would wear were it not for the interview.  Fearing the rainy day frizzies, she even attempted to style her hair.

Our heroine donned her coat, grabbed her umbrella, and braved the rain to walk to the closest Metro station.  She paid her fare at the gate and went to the platform to wait for her train.  She happened to pull her phone from her purse, only to find that she had only moments before received a text message from her interviewer.

Prior to scheduling the interview, the interviewer had inquired as to where our heroine resided and questioned her as to whether she would be willing to make that commute on a daily basis.  Nonetheless, her text message informed our heroine that "something" (unspecified) had come up, and that she would have to move the interview to noon.  And she sent that message after our heroine had already left home for the interview.

As it happens, our heroine has an extensive work history, with multiple jobs.  One lesson she has learned is that employers reserve their best behavior for job applicants they would like to hire.  In other words, however you are treated as an applicant, you should anticipate worse treatment as an employee.  Our heroine, being utterly dismayed by the complete lack of respect for her time, and horrified by the prospect of how she might be treated as an employee, withdrew her application at once.  One red flag seen; one bullet dodged.