it is pretty much a rule in my country of residence that the employer who invites an applicant over for an interview reimburses the travel expenses. Legally, unless specified otherwise, the one who invites bears the costs.
If the company does not bear the costs, they specify that in the invitation so that the applicant makes a decision as to whether to attend. However, such a situation is pretty unusual and so it is safe to assume that the costs will be covered. Or it was, until now))).
Enough with the legal framework))).
This specific company approached me with an interview schedule, I made my choice of the time slot. And only then did it cross my mind to ask them about their travel expense reimbursement policy. As it turned out, they would not cover the first round expenses. However, the interview has already been scheduled, and I considered it being highly inappropriate to back up because of the cost factor.
Then the next invitation followed. I emailed them happily the chosen slot, some safe questions as well as addressed that very expense issue. I called to reassure the receipt of my message but did not dare to approach the cost issue over the phone. Guess what?.. No clarity on the cost factor.
Please do not get me wrong. I am in no way led by money in my decision-making yet the job would involve a lot of travel and, naturally, the funny about the money situation rings a bell. Also, I was told the company is doing exceptionally well.
I am kind of confused. Should I let it slide until I have more negotiating power in the process (highly conditional issue) or should I be alerted? It is not a fortune but also not an unreasonable amount of money we are talking about.
A smaller one). I would say,a player of a reasonable size in its line of business.
To be honest, even the start ups always cover the costs. It was only once in a lifetime that I got an invitation with an indication of a non-reimbursement policy. It was a really marginal player and I chose not to attend).
Yet this one appears (!) to be interesting and this is what makes it confusing. I would like to attribute all that behavour to the lack of systematic approach so usual in larger companies yet I can not get rid of a funny feeling))).
I would ask them about this in a roundabout way, like “I’m planning my trip and want to make sure that I follow your company’s reimbursement policy. Is there someone from HR with whom I can coordinate the planning?”.
A company that is gong to put the travel burden on you is likely to saddle you with even more disappointments when you get there. Remember that you are likely to have to move if you get the job. Are they going to help with that? If they’re being this cheap now, probably not.
I’d take Ohai’s approach, but if they tell you that paying for the trip is on you, you’re probably best served by saying that you need to work with a company that follows professional standards in their recruiting practices and good luck with their search.
On the other hand, if you’re truly desperate, you may not have a choice: just remember that if your finances are tight right now, you’re making a bad bet.
Am i truly desperate? There is a certain situational gap which I would like to close at the earliest convenience. And I am certainly not ready to drop any interesting scenario before learning more about it.
The cost of a trip will not hurt my finances either.
Yet what I am definitely not prepared to do is to circumvent a certain fair-play standard that would secure me a medium-term career stability.