Employment Scams: Be wary of firms charging fees to find you a job

NASHVILLE – If you are looking for a job, you have probably seen ads for job placement firms that promise results. While many of these firms may be legitimate and helpful, others may misrepresent their services, promote outdated or fictitious job offerings and charge high fees in advance for services that may not lead to a job. 

Before you are tempted to spend money with a placement firm:

• Reject any company that promises to get you a job.
• Be skeptical of any employment service that charges first.
• Get a copy of the company’s contract and read it carefully before you pay anything.
• Take your time reading the contract. Don’t be caught up in a rush to pay for services.
• Stay away from high-pressure sales pitches that require you to pay now or risk losing out on an opportunity.
• Be cautious about purchasing services or products from a firm that’s reluctant to answer your questions.
• Be aware that some listing services and consultants write ads to sound like they are jobs, when they are actually selling general information about how to get a job.
• Follow up with any offices or companies mentioned in an ad to find out if the company is really hiring.
• Be wary of firms that promote “previously undisclosed” federal government jobs. All federal positions are announced to the public on www.usajobs.gov.
• Check with Consumer Affairs at 800-342-8385 or consumer.affairs@tn.gov to see if any complaints have been filed against a company with which you intend to do business.

To file a complaint with the Division of Consumer Affairs, visit http://tn.gov/commerce/topic/consumer-file-a-consumer-complaint.

Consumer Affairs (www.tn.gov/consumer/) is a division of the Department of Commerce and Insurance (www.tn.gov/commerce/), which works to protect consumers while ensuring fair competition for industries and professionals who do business in Tennessee.

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