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  1. #1

    Job hunting-Dealing with time gap on resume

    I wonder if anyone here involved in hiring people has a suggestion concerning dealing with a time gap on a resume when looking for a job.

    My daughter was injured right after graduating from Duke. She had just started her job when the accident happened. She is hoping to get back into the job market and is receiving conflicting advice concerning how to deal with the three year employment gap.

    Some professionals are telling her to just ignore it, hope nobody notices and lie about the reasons for the break in employment if asked. Some are telling her to be upfront about what happened to her. Given the nature of her injury, the concern is that it will scare employers off.

    Anybody have any suggestions?

    For that matter, anybody have connections in the entertainment business in New York who might be looking for someone?

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian913 View Post
    Some professionals are telling her to just ignore it, hope nobody notices and lie about the reasons for the break in employment if asked. Some are telling her to be upfront about what happened to her. Given the nature of her injury, the concern is that it will scare employers off.

    Anybody have any suggestions?
    IMO, always tell the truth! If the nature of her injury scares people away, then what will it do after she begins working there, if they find out about the injury and the fact she lied about it (probably grounds for immediate termination)?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Indianapolis
    Definitely don't lie. And don't assume that the gap won't be noticed. I'd notice.

    If asked, indicate that there was a medical emergency situation that precluded work and required rehabilitation/recooperation... and if true, note that the incident was a one time thing and no longer affects work abilities.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Back in Vegas... again.
    She should definitely NOT lie about it. At the same time, she doesn't have to give all the details about it either. She should, though, acknowledge the reason for the gap, even if in generalities at first (ie I was severely injured in an accident and it prevented me from working during that time/I spent a great deal of time in physical therapy, hence I was unable to work), however I am recovered now and ready to re-enter the workforce. If an employer wants to know more, they will ask, though I wonder (and I'm sure there are those who will have this answer) legally how much they can ask about specifics.

  5. #5
    I'm not sure what's wrong with telling the truth, especially if it was a longer term disability which legitimately affected her ability to work.

    If you tell a potential employer you had to "address personal issues" or something similar, and make it clear said issue has been resolved, they generally don't delve much further. You could have been in rehab... it could have been a nasty divorce or a sick relative... they don't go there.

    I admire people who take time off to do interesting things with their lives!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Winter Park FL
    Don't lie, or just hope no one notices. Anyone who does a lot of interviews would ask about a gap in employement. Depending on the job and the prior condition, it wouldn't scare me away from hiring someone qualified. If your lifting boxes and have a prior back condition, that might be an issue.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Clearwater, FL
    Do not lie. She needs a generic (but honest) sound bite to cover the gap...if she says she was involved in an accident that required extensive rehab and she waited until she was fully recovered to re-enter hte job market the interviewer is really limitted in what they can ask her about it and they will probably steer clear. It should be a 15 second statement, just the bare bones outline.
    Windsor (aka Loni)

    a wasted youth is better by far than a wise and productive old age

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Los Angeles
    I'll second most of what has been said above. I'm currently in the process of hiring a CFO for one of our portfolio companies and quite a few of the candidates have been "consulting" etc for the past year or two. Gaps such as that are definitely noticeable and she does need to have her response prepared as the question will be asked. I would never advocate lying and think that a fairly broad response which covers the situation but makes it clear that it is no longer an ongoing issue is best. I am not well-versed on HR policy, but my understanding is that a company can't ask personal questions, especially about medical history.

    My wife has been out of the work force for the past year as she was pregnant and had our first child, and she'll be figuring out the best way to cover that time gap as she looks for another job. Without knowing your daughter's particular circumstances, I understand that it's not always easy to determine the best approach.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Clipsfan View Post

    My wife has been out of the work force for the past year as she was pregnant and had our first child, and she'll be figuring out the best way to cover that time gap as she looks for another job.
    She was having a kid! What on earth does she need to explain other than that? And why would she want to work anywhere that doesn't just accept this?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    St. Louis
    I've done my share of hiring interviews too, and first, a three year gap wil definitely be noticed, and secondly, she should never, ever lie. In this instance there's no reason to lie anyway, and a prospective employer should only need to know that it was because of an accident (a one-time thing that there shouldn't be a worry that whatever the problem was will recur).

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian913 View Post
    I wonder if anyone here involved in hiring people has a suggestion concerning dealing with a time gap on a resume when looking for a job.

    My daughter was injured right after graduating from Duke. She had just started her job when the accident happened. She is hoping to get back into the job market and is receiving conflicting advice concerning how to deal with the three year employment gap.

    Some professionals are telling her to just ignore it, hope nobody notices and lie about the reasons for the break in employment if asked. Some are telling her to be upfront about what happened to her. Given the nature of her injury, the concern is that it will scare employers off.

    Anybody have any suggestions?

    For that matter, anybody have connections in the entertainment business in New York who might be looking for someone?
    I agree with most of what's been said already: prospective employers will notice the gap, and the issue should be dealt with truthfully and without reluctance. Not knowing the extent of the injury and how it affected her mobility, I would only add: did your daughter do anything that could be considered work-related during that 3-year period? Volunteer work, telephone consultations, caregiving of others? If something arguably significant were to break up that long interval, it could help her situation a little.

    I've had to deal with various gaps in my resume where I was self-employed or taking care of family members -- these happened intermittently, which made my work history look even more disjointed -- but I never felt the need to lie about it. I just mentioned any work-related side projects I accomplished in those periods with little to no embellishment. It didn't make me the most attractive candidate, I'm sure, but bringing in a dose of real-life challenges wasn't fatal to employment.

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