How to tell if HR is lying to you. (pt. 2)

September 22, 2011

Once you catch somebody in one lie, then everything that that person says/has said becomes questionable. One of the best way to prevent being lied to and taken advantage of is to eliminate the possibility from the offset.
This is a question of controlling your image...

Learn how to read the eyes
As an expatriate working in a foreign country, you may not understand everything the employer is telling you, and you may not know all of your laws and rights, but body language never lies. Once you learn how to calibrate body language and read it, the employer’s non-verbal communication will tip you off as to whether s/he is being upfront and honest with you or not.

Make it difficult for the interviewer to lie to you
Bring a pen and notebook with you, and as you read through your contract, note down any questions/discrepancies that you have concerning the contents of the contract, and then make notes as to how the negotiator answers/explains/interprets your questions.

As mentioned in the controversial manual, one of the red flags of deception is attempting to disassociate him/herself from the deception. So be sure to note anything the interviewer says directly. When the negotiator sees that his/her comments are being recorded, then s/he will be less likely to try and deceive you. If the interviewer inquires as to why you are taking notes, simply respond that the legal terminology and vocabulary of the target language is still unfamiliar to you, and that you want to make sure that you completely understand before you sign the contract.

Before you think the employer is trying to deceive you
It is important to make a distinction between an interviewer that is purposefully trying to deceive you, and an interviewer that either does not know, is uncertain about the law, or may be unknowingly wrong. If the interviewer is the latter, then perhaps you can offer your insight or explanation, and you will have not only corrected the problem, but have impressed the interviewer with your research and knowledge of the subject.

If, despite your attempts to avoid being lied to, you have reason to believe that the interviewer is purposefully attempting to deceive you, it is important not to accuse him/her, or to even allude to the negotiator that you are aware that s/he is attempting to deceive you – at least not immediately.

By making the decision to try to deceive you, the negotiator has arrogantly assumed that either you did not do your research, or that you are the kind of person who can be taken advantage of. By directly accusing the interviewer of trying to deceive you, or by alluding to the fact that you think s/he is, you may irrevocably damage the established goodwill, open lines of communication, and perhaps the job altogether. Professional or not, don’t forget that that person is responsible for giving or not giving you a job.

Instead, the best approach is to note what the interviewer is attempting to do, and then act accordingly. Continue on with the negotiations as usual, playing to the interviewer’s inaccurate perception of you and asking for further explanation on the issues you do not understand, allowing the interviewer to further bury him/herself. On every issue you feel deception is involved, be sure to escalate the deception into a downright lie by putting the deceptive explanation into a real-life “hypothetical” situation that requires a yes/no answer. The interviewer can offer logical excuses for having been deceptive by blaming it on misunderstanding each other. But the interviewer cannot offer an excuse for a blatant lie.

Example:
(You’ve been offered a job as communication manager, and you’re reading over the contract that the employer is proposing you, and you notice that “Section 12 – contract termination” on your working contract does not go into detail concerning the specifics of rupture of contract, and instead refers to Article L1232-1 and following of the French Code du Travail.

Because you were intelligent, you conducted pre-interview research:

1. You talked with several native people you know and looked at their working contracts to understand them.

2. You read over the convention collective of your particular industry: Communications Manager classification IDCC 1611, and therefore you know that, because your managerial position is classified as ‘Groupe II’, the employer can give you two month’s notice of termination of contract, unless you’ve been fired for a ‘serious mistake’.

3. You read over the relevant droit du travail for your particular type of contract, and therefore know that:

Article L1232-1 and following states that your employer can only fire you from a CDI contract if the reason “real and serious”.
Article L1232-2 states that before the employer can fire you, the employer must have an preliminary interview with you concerning the “real and serious” justifications for firing you. This preliminary interview must be organized with you by either sending you a ‘lettre recommandé’ in the mail or hand delivering it to you with a proof of receipt. The interview can be no earlier than 5 days from the day you receive the letter.
Article L1232-3 states that during the preliminary interview the employer must list in detail all of the reasons for the employer’s desire to fire you, and you are allowed to give your explanation for the listed reasons.
Article L1232-4 states that you have the right to have a third party representative: be it a member of staff or an advisor of the employee chosen from a list compiled by the administrative authority. This right to have a third party present during the preliminary interview must be mentioned in the lettre recommandé sent to you.

The interviewer does not know you’re familiar with Article L1232-1 and follows (because you prudently did not reveal this to him), and because you asked the employer what the law was, the employer logically assumed that you didn’t know. Additionally, the employer, wanting to make sure that after three months of employment, and before s/he has gotten his/her return on investment out of you, that you do not leave the employer for a better job, and risk sticking him/her with your visa costs and no reimbursement, attempts to deceive you.)

“Could you please explain to me what the Article L1232-1 is?”

(For one, you want to make sure you thoroughly understand the Droit du Travail. Secondly, you want to see how honest and trustworthy your future boss is.)

“Oh that? It is just typical contractual lingo. It basically states that you are promising to work for my company for a minimum of two years, and that the company can break the contract before then if you don’t fulfill your obligations”

(You, now aware that the interviewer is trying to deceive you, remain calm, and decide to ask one or two more questions see just how dishonest the employer is capable of being.)

“Okay. Two years? I have no problem with that, in fact, hope to be around much longer than that… But according to this law, how do I know if I’m fulfilling my obligations? And if you decide to break the contract, how much notice do I have to find another job?”

“We’ll have meetings to make sure you fulfill your obligations, which your manager will explain to you. And our company normally gives a one month notice.”

(You escalate to a hypothetical yes/no question just to make sure…)

“So then, to make sure I understand, article 1232-1 says that I must work for your company for a minimum of two years, which should be no problem, and if I don’t fulfill my obligations, the company can break the contract?”

“Yes.”

(Despite your giving the interviewer multiple occasions to correct the misunderstanding, the employer has now lied to you and covered it up a total of three times, and is happy because:

The employer is getting a good deal because s/he thinks she can get an easy out of your contract and you’ll never know; and
If you simply take the employer’s word for it in the future, the employer could take further advantage of you and cheat you out of further rights.

Imagine you’re employer fires you and you’re entitled to 3 months of severance pay, but because you followed the employer’s boss in filling out some paperwork late, you’re disqualified from the severance pay.

Regardless of what the employer says to you, you are only bound by law and the contract you sign.

Now, after the the above conversation, you’ve learned your potential employer is dishonest, and is willing to continue lying to you, so now you can determine how you want to act:

Refuse the employment and keep looking.
Sign the contract to get your ‘work visa’ and quit as soon as you find a more respectful employer
Sign the contract and then set the employer up. (not recommended if you are someone of dignity)

“Okay. I understand now. Thanks for clearing that up for me.”

(Move on to next subject, letting the employer think s/he pulled a fast one on the naive expatriate, and from now on verify EVERYTHING that s/he says.)