I have applied for this job after the pandemic, I was made an offer but let me tell you I have rejected the offer even though I was desperate for the job. I got a long email where the CEO was discriminative about my age, foreign accent and also patronizing and emotionally manipulative.
*He said that my limited time in the UK and lack of publishing experience put me very low on the list,
*He said that he was also a bit concerned that my strong Spanish accent may be an issue.
*Acording to him another issue was the fact that I was the youngest candidate with the least experience, and least amount of time in the UK.
*He said that similar to the other shortlisted candidates I had not worked for some time but were by far on the biggest salary, which was also several thousand pounds more than his budget.
*He called me a wild card and said that whilst he felt I may be the riskier option, and that he will have to practice a lot to say my name properly or give me a new nickname, he was excited to make me an offer.
*He said that my salary was going to be far bigger than the salary of a very experienced designer that was leaving and proceed to offer me 20k.
Seriously, the most horrific interview experience I had ever and this is the CEO of the company we are talking about. If you are reading this Gary please go to therapy, you shouldn’t be in a position of power over anyone. I am so glad I never accepted that offer even though I was desperate, I know for a fact that If I worked there my mental health would have gone to the bin. His email was basically saying "you are less but I chose you anyways and you should be greatful for it" It was a clear case of emotional blackmail, exploiting the fact that I was a migrant, young, and in a vulnerable position during a tough time globally. It genuinely felt like an attempt to make me feel small enough to accept far less than I deserved.
I feel sorry for the people that work there. Don't even apply for this company, take care of your mental well-being.
