‘Freaking exhausting’: Recruiter calls out ‘unicorn hunting’ in broken job market, netizens weigh in

Recruiter Julie Reid described the current recruitment market as the “weirdest” she has ever seen, noting the widening gap between employers’ expectations and candidates’ reality.

In a candid post on LinkedIn, Reed highlighted that many companies are looking for “rainbow-colored unicorns” — candidates from elite universities or high-profile companies — even when their organizations lack the brand appeal or resources to attract such talent.

“This is the strangest hiring market I’ve ever hired in,” she wrote. “The mismatch between expectations and qualifications is a huge gap. Employers look for rainbow-colored companies or universities when their companies don’t have the reputation, funding, or excitement to attract these candidates. Job huggers are real people.”

On the other hand, Reed said, many job seekers who are classified as “work available” don’t put in the minimum effort, such as reading the job description, showing up for calls, or responding to emails.

Meanwhile, qualified, hardworking candidates struggle to get a job simply because they lack elite qualifications or have limited contracting experience. She added that stringent on-site work requirements are shrinking the available talent pool.

“The runway is closing on both sides,” Reid wrote, calling the situation “extremely stressful” as she continues trying to connect employers and job seekers in an increasingly tense market.

The post went viral, with most netizens agreeing with what she said. Some users also said that companies are not quite serious about hiring right now.

“The job market gets even crazier when the same job is reposted month after month with 7 rounds of interviews too,” one user wrote.

“Candidates aren’t taking you or hiring you seriously because it’s been proven time and time again that companies aren’t quite serious about hiring. And retention. And competitive pay and benefits. And training. And culture. And… we all get the idea, I think. This seems like the natural sequence of events as a result of what companies have prioritized. Maybe shareholders and private equity firms can come in and do the work to keep Are the lights on?” said a second user.

A third user said: “Turns out my last two interviews were with automated systems. Real companies, but I don’t think they were actually hiring. Seems like they’re just training their AI interview software.”

Another user commented: “Just think how exhausting it is to be unemployed…being overlooked over and over again for jobs you are eminently qualified for. I promise it’s worse.”