The Scam Wasting Millions of Job Seekers Time
The headlines scream about "record job openings" and a "booming economy," but anyone actively applying knows the brutal reality: the majority of those listings are fake.
Welcome to the age of ghost jobs — a scam that's wasting your time, draining your energy, and gaslighting you into thinking the problem is you. It’s not.
What Are Ghost Jobs?
Ghost jobs are fake, outdated, or internal-only job postings that companies leave active without any real intention of hiring. Sometimes they exist because companies want to "pipeline talent" for future roles. Other times, it's pure optics — making the business look like it's growing to impress investors. And sometimes? It’s just laziness — no one bothered to remove a position that’s already been filled.
The effect on job seekers is always the same: false hope, wasted effort, and growing rage.
The Numbers Behind the Scam
Ghost jobs aren’t some fringe conspiracy — they are rampant.
• 81% of recruiters admitted they have posted ghost jobs (MyPerfectResume, 2024)
• Nearly two-thirds (60%) of U.S. job seekers have applied to suspected “Ghost Jobs” (Greenhouse, 2024 State of Job Hunting Report)
• In 2024, employers received an average of 180 applicants for every hire they made. (CareerPlug, 2025) And that's just the beginning.
• 40% of hiring managers said their companies posted ghost jobs this year, ranging from entry-level roles to positions in the C-suite. (Harvard Business School, 2021)
• In 2024, companies that listed fake jobs within the past year (66%) were to act like the company is growing (Resume Builder, 2024)
Companies that posted at least one fake job listing this year: ██████████████████████████████████████ 40%
Companies with an active fake job listing right now: ███████████████████████████ 30%
Hiring managers who believe posting fake jobs is acceptable: ████████████████████████████████████████████████████ 70%
Candidates always contacted after applying to fake jobs: ██████████████████████████ 39%
Candidates interviewed after being contacted: ██████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████ 85%
Source:
(ResumeBuilder, 2024)
The Human Cost
This isn't just annoying. It’s psychologically damaging.
"Been out of work since November. Hundreds of applications. A few interview invites and every single one no-showed. One even ghosted me after a second interview. I haven't spoken to a real human yet."
— u/Anonymous
Behind every fake application cycle is a real person — someone losing hope, savings, and sometimes their home.
Mental health researchers have started documenting an alarming rise in job search burnout, depression, and suicidal ideation, all tied directly to endless ghosting and false hope.
The "booming job market" narrative is gaslighting an entire workforce into thinking if they just worked harder, they'd land something.
They won't — because many of these jobs never existed to begin with.
If you’ve spent hours crafting a cover letter only to get ghosted after an initial HR form email, you’re not alone — you were targeted.
How to Spot a Ghost Job
Not every listing is what it seems. Some jobs are posted just to collect résumés, meet legal requirements, or boost a company’s image. Here are a few red flags:
It's been reposted constantly. If you’ve seen it for months with no changes, chances are, it’s not real.
Silence after applying. No auto-reply, no rejection, no contact. Total ghosting.
Generic, vague, or outdated descriptions. It feels like a placeholder, not an actual position.
Employees at the company don’t know the job exists. If you ask someone inside and they’re confused—that’s your answer.
Here's How You Can Fight Back
In June 2025, a coalition of labor advocates introduced the Truth in Job Advertising and Accountability Act (TJAAA)—a federal proposal aimed at ending ghost job listings and deceptive hiring practices (Issuewire, 2025).
The bill directly addresses the most common tactics used to waste job seekers’ time and mine their data. Here's a breakdown of what it aims to fix:
Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
Fake or expired job listings | Ban listings that are fictitious, expired, or purely speculative |
No hiring transparency | Require disclosure of job status, salary range, and use of AI in the hiring process |
Applicants left in the dark | Mandate updates to applicants on job status and hiring decisions |
Personal data misused or hoarded | Limit collection, storage, and reuse of applicant data |
No real consequences for employers | Give enforcement power to the Department of Labor and FTC |
No legal recourse for job seekers | Create a private right of action—job seekers can sue over deceptive job ads |
Companies outside the U.S. still target American job seekers | Expand jurisdiction to include foreign companies advertising to U.S. applicants |
Supporters have launched truthinjobads.org, where you can read the full bill, share your story, and access tools to contact lawmakers. While the legislation hasn’t hit the floor of Congress yet, it’s the most comprehensive response so far to the corporate gaslighting baked into today’s job search. (Issuewire, 2025)
Ghost jobs aren’t just a minor annoyance — they are a waste of time and energy keeping job seekers busy while the job market tanks.
#OpenToGhosting
👉 Been ghosted? You’re not alone: Submit your story
Disclaimer:
The content on this site is for informational and commentary purposes only and reflects the author's personal opinions. It does not constitute financial, legal, or professional advice. All data sources are cited where applicable. Stories shared by users or sourced from public forums are anonymized and presented for illustrative purposes only.
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