Job seeker purposefully tanks interview after recruiter tries to lowball him: 'I was told this role would pay $Y but sure, I could put in $X amount of effort instead'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Jul 6, 2024 3:00 PM EDT

Negotiation is an art and a science. It can be very difficult to do successfully, especially if the initial offer you've been given is so paltry that it will take a lot of work to get up to a range that you're comfortable with. If you're offered so much less than you're initially looking for, it might feel pointless to even negotiate at all, or you might get flustered by the low salary and not be able to continue the interview in a professional manner. That's exactly what happened to this job seeker, who was offered the lower end of the salary range after the recruiter initially said his experience would've qualified him for the higher salary. Instead of groveling on the ground and trying to get that larger salary out of them, he simply said that he would put in less work if he was making less money, guaranteeing that he wouldn't get the job. 

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  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10370398464
    via The Jopwell Collection

    Photo does not feature the real subjects in the story

  • 02
    I purposefully tanked my job interview when they tried to lowball me on salary.
    via u/QueensOfTheThrownAge
  • 03
    Applied for this great sounding job with salary range $X-Y. Recruiter did a phone interview and asked what my salary expectations are and I used the usual "after reviewing average pay for this role in our area I would be agreeable to this position for $Y". I then got called in for an in-person interview having been told I'd impressed the recruiter.
    via u/QueensOfTheThrownAge
  • 04
    Toward the end of the interview they said "ok well we'd like to offer you the position, but given your experience level we're only going to offer $X". I was feeling cheeky so I told them “ok, I was told this role would pay $Y but sure, I could put in $X amount of effort instead."
    via u/QueensOfTheThrownAge
  • 05
    They kind of laughed as if I was joking but when I kept a straight face they were like "are you serious?" and I said "Well yeah, if you're gonna pay me on the low end of the scale I'd be an idiot to do the high end of the work, wouldn't I?” Needless to say the interview didn't go much further but it felt really good to give some of these LinkedIn weirdos a dose of reality.
    via u/QueensOfTheThrownAge
  • 06
    SnooMuffins7396 - 12 hr. ago Went through 7 interviews once and numerous times they confirmed the salary requirements I set fourth only for them to come in $10k light. I immediately declined and they were bewildered and did everything to get me to accept except raise the salary F'em
    via u/SnooMuffins7396
  • 07
    wf3h3 11 hr. ago It's this weird disconnect where they must know that the reason you want to work is to earn money, but think that they can entice you to work without paying you enough.
    via u/wf3h3
  • 08
    Idle __Animation - 9 hr. ago We're supposed to pretend like we're not there for money, even though we are all there for money. But I think for a lot of people, they're actually there for status and that's part of the disconnect.
    via u/Idle __Animation
  • 09
    misshapenvulva - 9 hr. ago Its easy to care about status when you are paid enough.
    via u/misshapenvulva
  • 10
    danktrees1212.11 hr. ago Should've agreed then wait till they give you the contract. At that point come in 10k higher.
    via u/danktrees1212
  • 11
    Vegetable_Control810 10 hr. ago Had an interview where I said a range. They came in 5k under the low end AND I was going to have to pay for my own travel, hotel, etc when I was required to travel. I literally said "I want you to know that is like a $10k pay cut". They basically shrugged and I obviously declined. The HR losers were shocked and I think they took it a bit personally.
    via u/Vegetable_Control810
  • 12
    I was a contractor at the time and after that they really started to get rid of me. Went all the way to the c-suite "why is this guy here?". I was there another 6 months until the contract ended and declined to extend further when they asked.
    via u/Vegetable_Control810
  • 13
    Nebula15 8 hr. ago I once interviewed for a job that posted the salary range of $70k-$80k. I had about 8 years experience doing the exact job posted so I told them in the first interview I expected the higher end of the salary range. They said ok and I proceeded to have another 3 interviews over the next month and half. Finally they decided to pull the trigger and hire me. When I got my offer letter, they offered me $60k/year. I was baffled and insulted. I told them straight up absolutely not. T
    via u/Nebula15
  • 14
    Cheezburger Image 10370394624
    via u/Nebula15
  • 15
    clicksalmon 10 hr. ago I interviewed with a company through a 3rd party recruiter with the same situation! We agreed on 90 and once the interview was over the 3rd party recruiter offered $10k less than what we originally agreed upon. They tried to play the "you'll get better experience" game and I wasn't having it. I used it to get the $10k at my current company.
    via u/clicksalmon
  • 16
    The movie no twist to this story was- the company reached out directly when they saw I was looking in the market again. I told them my version of the story and told them I'm worth more now. Ended up getting $30k from my original request. Moral of the story is 3rd party recruiters play games. Play their game and use it against them.
    via u/clicksalmon
  • 17
    cmonster556 10 hr. ago I'm sort of semi-retired, have a job in the field for about half what I used to make. I do exactly what I hired on to do. Every time they try to add on a new task I'm like "nah I'm good". You want me to do someone else's job then give me their pay too.
    via u/cmonster556
  • 18
    Itwao 10 hr. ago I walked out of a job that did similar. Team of two who already worked insane OT. Partner left due to medical reasons, and they refused to give me even a temp assistant, much less an actual replacement. When I walked out with zero notice, they had absolutely nobody to do the work, and nobody was trained enough to even temporarily step in. They expected me to double my workload for them, and didn't give me any sort of a raise at all. I still laugh every time I drive past their no
    via u/Itwao
  • 19
    roundbluehappy. 12 hr. ago There's an old joke about a welder going in for a job interview. Sees the price range. Gets the "show a sample weld" assignment. Comes back with 2 welds, one - okay. will meet standard. two - well now, weld number two is a work of art as well as being a solid weld. Interviewee asks: What's with the two welds? Guy says: Weld #1 is if you pay me the low end. Weld #2 is if you pay the high end. :D
    via u/roundbluehappy

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salary recruiter antiwork workplace-stories jobs job bad jobs work interviews job seeker recruiting workplace job search job interview interview lowball money
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