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No, Letting a Recruiter Place You in a Job When You’re Starting Another One in a Few Months Is Not Okay

When experiencing a moral or professional dilemma, your best option is usually to A) take advice from complete strangers too cowardly to sign their own names to the comments they make and B) seek assistance from a bunch of degenerates who couldn't hack it in public accounting, amiright? If you're feeling the burn and seeking the wisdom of anonymous strangers and judgmental jerks, you've come to the right place. Why don't you reach out and tell us what's on your mind? We can't promise we'll hold your hand but at least you know we'll tell you what your mom won't.

Has anyone ever used a recruiter after already signing an offer somewhere, just to jump ship to a new place for a couple months until a new gig starts?  What are your thoughts on doing this?

Thanks!

Slim Shady

Let me see if I understand your question: you have an offer but it doesn't kick in for a few months so you're planning to see if some unsuspecting recruiter will get you a job in the interim until you start the new job? Did I read that right? Forgive my confusion, I guess I'm just so surprised someone would even consider this I'm having trouble understanding it.

Oh thank goodness, here's clarification from OP:

Would it be wrong of me to let a recruiter find me a job, just to leave where I'm at and then leave that place in 3 months?

Short answer: yes. That's sketchy as hell.

Have you heard of temporary employment? I'd highly suggest it. The accounting staffing agencies generally don't pay as well as "real" accounting jobs but they do have plenty of work and the kind that you can dip into and walk away from without making a bunch of people think you're an unreliable, dishonest ass. Your reputation follows you throughout your career unless you change markets or countries. Do you really want to be the guy who got a recruiter's hopes up only to bail a few months later? Let's be real here, that's a dick move.

Recruiters make their money from placing you, and for you to basically have them to do the work to find you a job that you know will be temporary is, as I said, a dick thing to do. Depending on the agreement the recruiter's firm had with the client, the recruiter might not get paid for landing you the gig if you stayed for such a short time. There is a minimum amount of time you'll put in before they get their cut otherwise they'd lazily hook up bad accountants with good jobs and run off with their piece of the pie all the time.

Now, if you are entirely honest and upfront with the recruiter and they do the work for you anyway, there's no issue here. It's the not telling them that's jerky, not the fact that you have another offer lined up. And then what happens if you find out you really like the job the recruiter got you and don't want to leave for that better gig? See the can of worms you're opening up here?

You have an opportunity to either try on a bunch of different hats with a staffing agency for the next few months, take up a new hobby like basketweaving while you wait for your new gig to start or work on your Call of Duty skills at home for what might be the last time in your adult life. Or you can go the dick route and scam a recruiter into getting you a gig that you know you won't be staying at. Whatever, it's up to you.