Ghost Jobs, Hiring Managers, and the Broken System That Keeps People Unemployed
Getting a job is difficult. Not because people are lazy. Not because people lack skills. Because the system is broken. Because the system is designed to keep people out.
Ghost jobs. Hiring managers. Companies only hiring part-time. Corporate bankruptcies. Failed systems. Hiring filters based on race, religion, and class. Corruption. Connections that get people hired without merit. Discount workers. Racist governments. Infiltrated governments. The list goes on. The barriers are endless. The system is the problem.
This post explores why it is so difficult to get a job. The broken system. The hidden barriers. And what it means for the people trapped inside it.
The Vicious Cycle
The job market is stuck in a vicious cycle. Employers cannot find workers. Workers cannot find jobs. Both sides are frustrated. Both sides are losing.
Job openings have slowed down. The number of applicants competing for each position has climbed. Qualified workers are applying to dozens or hundreds of jobs without hearing back.
Employers face their own challenges. Applicant pools are flooded with AI-generated applications. Scams involving fake candidates have made it harder to identify legitimate applicants. "You got 1,000 applications, and you think all 1,000 people are not qualified?" the CEO said. "Something's wrong."
The data backs it up. Applications per job increased by 111% between 2022 and 2025. The number of recruiters fell by 56%. The result is a black hole. Resumes go in. Silence comes out.
Ghost Jobs: The Jobs That Do Not Exist
Ghost jobs are job postings that companies have no intention of filling. They are posted to build candidate pipelines, test the market, signal growth, or keep options open.
A Clarify Capital analysis found roughly 1 in 7 postings were ghost jobs in 2026. A Resume Genius survey found 67% of job seekers suspected they had encountered one. LiftMyCV analyzed 100,000 job IDs across LinkedIn, Indeed, and Greenhouse. More than 40% of listings showed no evidence of human interaction for over 30 days, despite continuing to accept applications.
Companies post ghost jobs for several reasons. They want to look like they are growing. They want to keep their options open. They want to collect resumes in case something opens up. They want to signal to investors and competitors that they are expanding.
The result is a job market filled with phantom opportunities. People spend hours tailoring resumes. They write cover letters. They submit applications. They wait. They hear nothing. The job never existed. The application was a waste of time.
Hiring Managers and the Broken Process
Hiring managers are part of the problem.
The hiring process is broken. It is slow. It is selective. It is designed to exclude. Companies are looking for people who fully match every skill they list and do not need any training. As one job seeker put it, "That's just not going to happen."
Hiring managers filter candidates by criteria that have nothing to do with the job. They filter by race. They filter by religion. They filter by class. They filter by connections. The filters are the barrier. The filters are the problem.
The hiring process is also dehumanizing. Candidates are ghosted. They are strung along. They are rejected without explanation. They are treated as numbers, not people. The process is exhausting. The process is demoralizing. The process is broken.
Part-Time Only Hiring
Companies are only hiring part-time. They do not want to provide benefits. They do not want to provide security. They do not want to provide stability. They want flexibility for themselves. They do not want it for workers.
Part-time jobs pay less. Part-time jobs have no benefits. Part-time jobs have no security. Part-time jobs are designed to keep workers desperate. Part-time jobs are designed to keep workers available. Part-time jobs are designed to keep workers trapped.
The result is a workforce that cannot survive. People work multiple part-time jobs. People work irregular hours. People work without benefits. People work without security. People work without a future.
Discount Workers: The New Exploitation
Employers are hiring discount workers. This is another barrier. This is another exploitation.
What discount workers are. Discount workers are workers who are paid less than the standard rate. They are hired through staffing agencies. They are hired as contractors. They are hired as gig workers. They are hired as temporary workers.
Why employers use them. Employers use discount workers to save money. They do not have to pay benefits. They do not have to pay overtime. They do not have to pay unemployment insurance. They do not have to provide job security.
The result for workers. Discount workers are paid less. They have no benefits. They have no security. They have no stability. They are disposable. They are replaceable. They are exploited.
The result for everyone. When employers hire discount workers, they drive down wages for everyone. They create a race to the bottom. They make it harder for regular workers to find jobs. They make it harder for regular workers to demand better pay.
The system. The system enables this. The system allows employers to hire discount workers. The system allows employers to exploit them. The system allows employers to replace regular workers with discount workers. The system is the problem.
Corporate Bankruptcies and Failed Systems
Corporate bankruptcies are rising. Companies are closing. Companies are downsizing. Companies are restructuring.
The bankruptcies are not accidents. They are the result of a failed system. The system prioritizes profit over people. The system prioritizes shareholders over workers. The system prioritizes short-term gains over long-term stability.
When companies fail, workers suffer. They lose their jobs. They lose their income. They lose their stability. The system does not care. The system moves on. The system finds new workers to exploit.
Hiring Filters: Race, Religion, and Class
Hiring filters are real. They are documented. They are systemic.
A field experiment in Norway sent 2,779 fictitious job applications from equally qualified people with backgrounds from 37 countries. The results documented an ethnic hierarchy in the Norwegian labor market. Job seekers with names from Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia were discriminated against in the hiring process.
The discrimination was not just about ethnicity. Religious affiliation also shaped opportunities. For majority Norwegian applicants, Christian affiliation had a significant negative effect on the likelihood of being called for an interview. For applicants from non-European countries, Islamic affiliation had a strong negative effect, especially for men.
A study of French job ads found that religious Muslims must submit twice as many applications as religious Christians before being called back by recruiters.
The filters are not based on merit. They are based on identity. They are based on bias. They are based on discrimination. The system is the problem.
Racist Governments and Infiltrated Governments
Racist governments play a role in the job market. Infiltrated governments play a role in the job market.
Racist governments. If the government is racist, if the country is racist, if you are not that race, you will have a hard time landing a job. The government sets the tone. The government sets the laws. The government sets the enforcement. If the government is racist, the job market is racist.
The policies. Racist governments pass policies that exclude. They pass policies that discriminate. They pass policies that make it harder for certain races to get jobs. The policies are the barrier. The policies are the problem.
Infiltrated governments. If the governments are infiltrated, they can make other races have a bad time. Infiltrated governments serve foreign interests. Infiltrated governments serve elite interests. Infiltrated governments serve anyone but the people. If the government is infiltrated, the job market is infiltrated.
The result. Racist governments and infiltrated governments make the job market harder. They make it harder for certain races. They make it harder for certain religions. They make it harder for certain classes. They make it harder for everyone who is not connected. The system is the problem.
Corruption and Connections
Corruption is everywhere. Connections get people hired. Knowing someone is a good thing to have. But there should be a limit.
Nine in 10 people said they had seen nepotism influence hiring decisions at least once. More than half said they had seen colleagues get hired because of connections on multiple occasions. Four in 10 professionals secured their jobs through referrals or networking rather than direct applications.
The system rewards connections over competence. The system rewards who you know over what you can do. The system rewards the connected and excludes the qualified. The system is corrupt.
There should be a limit on how many people can be hired from connections. Some people get in four or more people simply through knowing someone. The practice is not fair. The practice is not merit-based. The practice is corruption.
The Broken System
The system is broken. The hiring process is broken. The job market is broken.
Ghost jobs. Hiring managers. Part-time only. Discount workers. Corporate bankruptcies. Failed systems. Hiring filters. Racist governments. Infiltrated governments. Corruption. Connections. The barriers are endless. The system is the problem.
The system is designed to keep people out. The system is designed to keep people desperate. The system is designed to keep people available. The system is designed to exploit.
The result is a job market that does not work. Not for workers. Not for employers. Not for anyone. The system is broken. The system is the problem.
What You Can Do
Recognize the system. The job market is broken. The hiring process is broken. The system is the problem. Not you.
Reject the shame. You are not a failure. You are not lazy. You are not unqualified. The system has failed you.
Build skills. Learn skills that are in demand. Learn skills that cannot be automated. Learn skills that are portable.
Network strategically. Connections matter. Build them. Use them. But do not rely on them alone.
Consider alternatives. Trades. Apprenticeships. Self-employment. Cooperatives. The alternatives exist. Use them.
Go to countries with good job markets. If your country has a broken job market, consider leaving. Some countries have stronger economies. Some countries have more jobs. Some countries pay better wages. Do the research. Find the countries that are hiring. Find the countries that value workers.
Go to countries that are not racist or are your race. If your country is racist, consider leaving. If your country discriminates against your race, consider leaving. Find countries where you are not the target. Find countries where you are the majority. Find countries where you are welcome.
Build community. Mutual aid. Community networks. Shared resources. The system will not help you. Build what you need.
Demand change. The system will not change. You have to change it. Demand a system that hires people. Demand a system that pays living wages. Demand a system that serves people.
The Bottom Line
Getting a job is difficult. The system is broken. The barriers are endless.
Ghost jobs. Companies post jobs that do not exist. They collect resumes. They waste your time. The jobs are phantom. The applications are void.
Hiring managers. They filter by criteria that have nothing to do with the job. They filter by race, religion, and class. The filters are the barrier. The filters are the problem.
Part-time only. Companies hire part-time to avoid benefits. To avoid security. To avoid stability. The workers suffer. The workers struggle. The workers survive.
Discount workers. Employers hire discount workers to save money. They pay less. They provide no benefits. They provide no security. They drive down wages for everyone. The system enables it. The system is the problem.
Corporate bankruptcies. Companies fail. Workers lose their jobs. The system does not care. The system moves on.
Hiring filters. Race. Religion. Class. The filters are real. The filters are documented. The filters are systemic.
Racist governments. Infiltrated governments. They play a role. They set the tone. They pass the policies. They make it harder for certain races, religions, and classes. The system is the problem.
Corruption and connections. Who you know matters more than what you can do. Nepotism is everywhere. The system rewards the connected and excludes the qualified.
The system is broken. The system is the problem. The system is designed to keep people out.
Recognize the system. Reject the shame. Build skills. Network strategically. Consider alternatives. Build community. Demand change.
The system will not change. You have to change it.