Despite this interview being months back, it was so unprofessional that it has just lingered with me since.
The interviewer bragged about how proud he was they chose to pay to manufacture in Thailand, then openly discussed how cheap the labor is, stating they pay workers $1 an hour. He said it is a third world country, super cheap, and how the workers have never been to school. He was happy telling me how the workers farm, then work at their company, buy a phone, and then go back to farming, bragging that it is a lot cheaper than if they were to manufacture in Mexico. It's pathetic the way he generalize the workers, and also then to be proud of exploiting them for cheap labor.
He seemed to belittle their workers, underestimating them because they didn’t go to college. Some comments weren’t just directed at the workers in Thailand, but also those located in their warehouse in Corona. He asked me, "Are you by any chance bilingual?" and added that most of the guys in the shop speak Spanish, saying, "That shouldn’t shock you." Think what you want, but hearing his tone when saying it, that comment seemed so insensitive, and there was definitely a more neutral way of letting me know that my bilingual skills would be a valuable asset...
Lastly, when he wasn't belittling the workers and actually conducting the interview, his method of testing really caught me off guard. The questions he asked were related to a blueprint of one of their products, specifically what would happen if a slice was cut in half. I couldn’t fathom why I was expected to know the answer to that, what a strange test for a tech role. If it was a requirement for the job, it seemed like something that could be easily taught.
He gave off red flags all around. The interview lasted a little less than an hour, though it would’ve been much shorter if I hadn’t been given a whole warehouse tour. For a second, I started wondering if I was being interviewed for a warehouse position. And by the end of the interview, I kept thinking that if I got an offer and accepted it, I would absolutely hate working with him.
Oh, and the cherry on top! As he was walking me out the door, he casually asked if I was able to travel, because ideally, they would want someone willing to spend some unknown time in Thailand. Yeah, let's not mention that in the job description... I was also ghosted, i tried reaching back out to the recruiter and still got no response.
