📰 In this issue

🔹 The corporate scam that's wasting your time

🔹 Real people, real damage

🔹 The industries playing games with your future

🔹 How to protect yourself right now

🔹The change we demand

🗃 Insider

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📰 Industry Pulse

The ghost job pandemic needs to end

This is BS, and needs to be reckoned with and we're going to do our part.

More and more, job searching is becoming brutal. You're competing with hundreds, if not thousands of other candidates, tailoring resumes for hours, and dealing with companies that ghost you after interviews. How about toiling over your resume for a non existent job?? Nice! You should be pissed off with due right.

Up to one in five job postings are complete fabrications. Companies are wasting your time, collecting your personal data, and stringing you along for their own selfish purposes. And frankly, we all should be taking a stand.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yvNaB0d45g

The corporate scam that's wasting your time

These aren't innocent mistakes. This is calculated deception. Companies are posting "ghost jobs" to:

• Build talent pipelines without any commitment to hire

• Boost their brand visibility on your dime

• Harvest your personal data for market research

• Create the illusion they're growing when they're actually cutting cost

In our opinion, this is theft of your most valuable resource: your time.

Real people, real damage

"Every second wasted on applying to a ghost job could have been spent applying to real jobs," one frustrated job seeker wrote on Reddit. "Ghost jobs are a drain on society and actively harm their victims."

The guy that wrote that is 100% on target. When companies post fake jobs, they're not just being dishonest, they're actively reducing your chances of finding legitimate employment. They're taking food off your table and adding stress to your life for their corporate games.

The industries playing games with your future

The worst offenders? Construction, technology, legal services, and food services are notorious for keeping expired postings alive. Some surveys show that 40% of companies admit to posting ghost jobs in the past year alone.

Think about that. Nearly half of all employers are lying to you. How is this acceptable?

Candle Is fighting back

We refuse to stand by while companies treat job seekers like disposable resources.

At Candle, we're taking action:

🚨 Ghost Job Alert System: We're building a database of companies with suspicious posting patterns and flagging them for our community

🔍 Company Accountability Tracking: We're monitoring which employers consistently post jobs without hiring and sharing this data with job seekers

✅ Verified Opportunity Program: We're working directly with ethical employers who commit to posting only legitimate, active positions

We believe transparency isn't optional—it's essential.

How to protect yourself right now

Until real regulation kicks in, and we're pushing hard for the Truth in Job Advertising and Accountability Act, here's how to spot these time-wasters:

Red Flags:

• Job posted over a month ago with no updates

• Vague job descriptions that read like Mad Libs

• No posting date visible

• Same listing repeated across multiple sites for weeks

• Job requirements that seem impossibly broad or unrealistic

Your Defense Strategy:

• Cross-reference postings with the company's official website

• Contact the hiring manager directly before investing serious time

• Look for recent company news about hiring freezes or layoffs

• Trust your gut—if something feels off, it probably is

The change we demand

Companies need to understand: your reputation is on the line. Job seekers are talking, sharing experiences, and remembering which employers wasted their time. California assembly bill 1251 is going through modifications, the latest of which was in late June, 2025.

We're calling for:

• Immediate removal of filled positions

• Clear indicators of posting dates and status

• Penalties for companies that consistently mislead candidates

• Protection of applicant data from being used for non-hiring purposes

Join the fight

We're building a movement of job seekers who refuse to be manipulated.

If you've been burned or hosed by a ghost job posting, we want to hear about it. Share your experiences with our community. Name these companies. Hold them accountable.

Because here's the truth: in a job market that's already stacked against you, the last thing you need is companies lying to your face about opportunities that never existed.

Your time matters. Your career matters. And we're going to make sure employers start treating both with the respect they deserve. Our ghost job database is being built.

Have you encountered a ghost job posting? Email us at [email protected] with the company name and details. Together, we're building the most comprehensive database of employer accountability in the job market.

#EndGhostJobs #JobSeekerRights #CandleAccountability

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Opportunity Overdrive is brought to you by Candle. At Candle, we empower the modern worker and put them at the center of opportunity.

For more information about our project, visit: https://www.projectcandle.ai/