A person who was hired through ‘reference’ for a job where he failed the interview has taken to Reddit for advice, claiming that his colleagues now ignore and dislike him. “Am I being targeted at work because everyone knows I failed their interview before joining?” he asked, explaining that he job-hunted for two years before finally landing his present gig at a product-based company through someone’s reference.
In the post, the employee detailed how he had repeatedly failed the company’s technical interview because his expertise lay in Spring Boot and Angular, while the firm worked with a completely different tech stack. He said he only secured the role after a personal reference reached out to the CEO.
“The CEO himself said to my referrer, ‘I’ll make him work here, don’t worry’,” the man revealed.
Then came trouble
Although he underwent an internship to familiarise himself with the company’s tools and was eventually deemed “ready” by both his manager and trainer, his formal onboarding was delayed by over a month. Since joining, he claimed, he has been given no substantial work and spends most of his day browsing the internet to fill the time.
The Redditor also described feeling socially isolated in the office, alleging that colleagues avoid interacting with him. “Nobody in the team talks to me. If I try, they ignore me,” he said.
One incident in particular seemed to reinforce his sense of being undervalued: during a farewell event, junior staff — including him — were asked to serve snacks to senior developers. When he offered refreshments to an assistant vice president, the executive remarked, “Aapko aise kaam bhi karare” (“So they’re making you do even these kinds of tasks”), a comment the poster interpreted as a pointed jab rather than casual banter.
Feeling left out of technical work, aware that colleagues know he failed the interview, and stung by senior staff’s remarks, he now wonders if he is being singled out. He turned to Reddit for advice on how to change opinions in a workplace where his hiring — and earlier rejections — are well known.
Reddit weighs in
Reddit users weighed in with their own opinions. Some branded him a ‘nepotism hire’ – someone gets a job mainly through their connections.
“There’s nothing you can do. They think your hiring is unfair because they have shed their blood and sweat to get into this company and you got in because you know the CEO (aka nepotism),” wrote one person.
“Useless fellow got in by kissing the CEOs a** and now wants to be valued,” another said in a pointed job.
Some comments were more helpful. “Send an email, get it in written. Ask work, be polite but ask openly,” one user suggested. “Ask for more work, else you will be fired in no time,” another advised.