What began as an emerging trend before the pandemic — job seekers “ghosting” during the hiring process by not showing up to interviews and even disappearing on the first day of work — quickly grew to become one of the biggest (and buzziest) challenges facing employers. Not only were quality candidates difficult to find, but they would often simply … vanish.
Are employers still struggling to keep candidates engaged in the hiring process in 2023? Do people still feel confident enough to ditch job opportunities, even despite layoffs and an uncertain economy, or is the ghosting trend fading away?
To find out, Indeed recently surveyed 4,516 job seekers who admit to ghosting employers, as well as 4,517 employers who have been ghosted, across the U.S., U.K. and Canada. But this isn’t the first time we’ve studied this phenomenon: in 2019, 2020 and 2022, we surveyed U.S. job seekers and employers to gauge their experiences with ghosting in the 12 months prior. These studies have underscored the fact that ghosting isn’t just a one-sided, one-dimensional issue — it’s a symptom of larger problems with the hiring experience.
Download Indeed’s “Ghosting in Hiring” report to discover what the latest numbers tell us. We explore whether ghosting is still on the rise and why, as well as how job seekers and employers are dealing with it in 2023. The report also takes a deep dive into year-over-year trends in the U.S. to determine what’s causing candidates to ghost and what talent leaders can do about it. Plus, you’ll get actionable strategies for mending the broken hiring experience so you can stop candidates from disappearing.
