EDITOR'S POST

What about firms that charge the job seeker a fee only if s/he is placed?

Q. What about firms that charge the job seeker a fee only if s/he is placed?

A. Many of these employment services do place candidates, since otherwise they don't get paid. Services that charge a percentage of the starting salary also have an interest in finding you a better paying job. Employment services typically broadcast your resume to their extensive list of contacts (who usually junk them) and cold-call hiring managers on the phone (such telemarketing is often resented). Agencies are more interested in making placements than in seeing to it that applicants land jobs that are really fulfilling. An agency is likely to put pressure on its applicants to accept a job that they don't really want just so it can collect its fee. Beware of services that charge a separate flat fee (e.g., an inflated fee for resume preparation) and a small fee contingent on placement, which may never come.