‘Doomjobbing’: The job hunt trend hurting Aussie careers

Australian job hunters have been warned about engaging in a surging trend that is derailing their chances of landing a role.

“Doomjobbing” involves endlessly scrolling employment platforms and mass-applying to jobs with minimal thought, customisation or strategy, and regardless of whether applicants think they would be a good match.

“Rather than carefully selecting roles that fit their skills and experience, candidates may adopt an ‘apply to everything and see what sticks’ approach,” Robert Half senior practice director Lauren Haxby told 7NEWS.com.au.

“Technology and one-click applications have also made it possible to submit many applications in a very short period of time.”

Doomjobbing, which sits alongside other modern workplace slang including “quiet quitting”, has been described as a “coping mechanism” for anxious job seekers wanting to feel a sense of control over their employment prospects.

Haxby said applicants may believe that shifting from a targeted search to a volume-based strategy will improve their odds but the reality is that “quantity doesn’t necessarily translate into better outcomes”.

Importantly, experienced recruiters and hiring managers can usually recognise a CV or application that has not been tailored to the role.

“It certainly can harm an applicant’s chance of landing a job,” Haxby said.

“In the current market, employers are not simply looking for someone who could do the job.

“They want to understand why that candidate wants this particular role and why their experience is relevant.

“When somebody applies indiscriminately, their CV can appear generic, their motivations can be unclear, and they may struggle to explain convincingly why they want the position.”

Seek’s Employment Report for June revealed the number of Australians applying for each job was at a record high.

And a survey from Robert Half showed 82 per cent of hiring managers had seen a rise in overqualified applicants — which points to a growing “apply-to-everything” approach — while 37 per of employers say the volume of candidates was making it difficult to thoroughly assess them.

“Doomjobbing is certainly one factor contributing to the volume of applications employers are receiving,” Haxby said.