招聘新趋势：互玩ghosting？| 双语精读解析
明明通过了面试，雇主却再也没有联系自己，是不是会觉得既疑惑又失落？以前，这种“玩失踪”的行为通常是求职者会遭遇的事，因为敢在招聘过程中玩消失的往往是强势的一方。但是如今，求职者终于有机会“以牙还牙”了。不过，该现象其实对招聘和应聘双方来说都不利。
那么究竟为什么会出现这样的变化呢？这可能带来哪些问题？让我们一起在今天的文章中寻找答案。
学习要点
land作动词时的用法
“drop”的熟词僻义
如何表达“连锁反应”？
如何表示“经验法则”？
带着问题去精读
*文章来源：BBC
*译文和解析由译介翻译团队完成，仅供参考。。
▲ 如需人工翻译服务，请联系微信号kevinssf ！
1
精读原文
Why workers and employers
are ghosting each other
为何求职者和招聘方
会互相“玩失踪”？
When Laura was invited for a final-stage interview at a multinational music corporation based in London, she thought she was on the cusp of landing her dream role. After passing a first-round phone interview and meeting team members in person, all Laura had to do was meet a senior-level executive. “It was presented to me as a formality,” she says. “The interview went well, and I was later told I’d got the job.”
劳拉（Laura）曾经收到过伦敦一家跨国音乐公司的终面邀请，当时的她感觉自己即将获得梦想的工作岗位。在通过首轮电话面试并和团队成员见面之后，她面对的最后一关就是与高管会面。“当时，这一步给我一种只是例行公事的感觉。”她说，“面试很顺利，之后对方通知我说，我通过了。”
📒精读解析：
No.1
cusp /kʌsp/ noun
① 【释义】a pointed end where two curves meet
表示“（两曲线相交的）尖点，会切点，交点”，也可以像本段和例句中那样使用其比喻义“介于两个状态之间的；将要进入特定状态的”，此时常用搭配为“on the cusp”
【短语】
the cusp of a leaf
叶尖
【例句】
He was on the cusp between small acting roles and moderate fame.
他这个配角演员现在已是小荷初露尖尖角。
I am sitting on the cusp of middle age.
我将步入中年。
② 【释义】the time when one sign of the zodiac ends and the next begins
表示“（黄道十二宫的）两宫会切的时辰”
【例句】
I was born on the cusp between Virgo and Libra.
我生于室女宫和天秤宫会切的时辰。
No.2
land
这个词做名词和动词我们都不陌生，不过做动词时还有一些大家可能不太熟悉的含义，这里进行一下补充：
① 【释义】to succeed in getting a job, etc., especially one that a lot of other people want
表示“成功得到，赢得，捞到（尤指许多人想得到的工作）”
【例句】
He's just landed a starring role in Spielberg's next movie.
他刚得到一个机会，在斯皮尔伯格执导的下一部电影里担任主角。
She's just landed herself a company directorship.
她刚在一家公司谋到一个主管的职位。
② 【释义】to arrive somewhere and cause difficulties that have to be dealt with
表示“降临；使陷于（困境）；使不得不应付”
【例句】
Why do complaints always land on my desk (= why do I always have to deal with them)?
为什么投诉总得要我来处理？
No.3
formality /fɔːˈmæləti / noun
① 【释义】a thing that you must do as part of an official process, but which has little meaning and will not affect what happens
表示“例行公事”，此时通常用单数形式
【例句】
He already knows he has the job so the interview is a mere formality.
他已经知道自己得到了这个工作，所以面试仅仅是走走过场。
② 【释义】a thing that you must do as a formal or official part of a legal process, a social situation, etc.
表示“正式手续”，此时通常以复数形式出现
【短语】
to go through all the formalities necessary in order to get a gun licence
办理取得持枪执照的全部必要手续
【例句】
Let's skip the formalities and get down to business.
咱们省去繁文缛节，开始讨论实质问题吧。
③ 【释义】correct and formal behaviour
表示“遵守礼节”，此时为不可数名词
【例句】
Different levels of formality are appropriate in different situations.
不同程度的注重礼节适用于不同场合。
She greeted him with stiff formality.
她拘谨地按礼节向他致意。
2
精读原文
And then – nothing. Laura had been ghosted. Rather than sending her a formal rejection or an explanation of what had happened, her potential employer ignored her. It’s a practice that’s common in the recruitment process. Employers openly acknowledge that they do it; only 27% of US employers surveyed by job listings site Indeed said they hadn’t ghosted a candidate in the past year.
然后——就没有然后了。对方没有再联系劳拉。她的这位潜在雇主没有给她发正式拒信，也没有解释她落选的原因，而是直接不予理会。这在招聘过程中很常见。雇主们公开承认了这一做法。在招聘网站Indeed开展的一项调查中，只有27%的美国雇主表示，在过去一年中，他们从未这样对求职者“玩失踪”。
But it’s not just companies. Right now, employees are ghosting back – and potentially in higher numbers than ever before. In the same 2021 Indeed survey, 28% of workers said that they’d ghosted an employer – compared to 19% two years before. The phenomenon seems to be happening at all stages of the recruitment process. While some employers reported that candidates cut off communications following an initial phone screening, a quarter said new hires had “no-showed” on their first day at work.
然而，会这么做的不只是招聘方。如今，求职者也会玩失踪，并且玩失踪的求职者越来越多。在Indeed于2021年开展的同一项调查中，28%的求职者称他们会这么做，而在两年前，这一数字只有19%。这一现象似乎在招聘过程中的每个阶段都会出现。一些雇主称其遇到过在首轮电话面试之后不再回应的求职者，同时，有四分之一的雇主表示曾有新招的员工在上班第一天“并未现身”。
📒精读解析
文章开头这几段从求职者与雇主的角度分别描写了遭遇“ghosted”的情况，那么这个“ghost”究竟要如何理解呢？其实就算不看译文，大家根据上下文也基本能推断出来。不过大家也不用心急，后文中马上便会给出解释~
No.1
cut off
该词组大家都不陌生，不过它的含义也很丰富，我们一个一个来看：
① 【释义】to interrupt sb and stop them from speaking
表示“打断（某人并阻止其讲话）”
【例句】
My explanation was cut off by loud protests.
我的解释被强烈的抗议声打断了。
② 【释义】to stop the supply of sth to sb
表示“停止，中断（供给）”，此时常用被动形式
【例句】
Our water supply has been cut off.
我们断水了。
They were cut off for not paying their phone bill.
他们未付电话费，被停机了。
③ 【释义】to interrupt sb who is speaking on the telephone by breaking the connection
表示“中断（电话通话）”，此时常用被动形式
【例句】
We were cut off in the middle of our conversation.
我们电话打到一半就断线了。
④ 【释义】to prevent sb/sth from leaving or reaching a place or communicating with people outside a place
表示“切断…的去路（或来路）；使…与外界隔绝”
【例句】
She feels very cut off living in the country.
她住在乡间感到很闭塞。
He cut himself off from all human contact.
他断绝了与所有人的联系。
⑤ 【释义】to remove sth from sth larger by cutting
表示“切掉；割掉；砍掉；剪掉”
【例句】
He had his finger cut off in an accident at work.
他在一次工伤中被切断了手指。
The winner cut ten seconds off (= ran the distance ten seconds faster than) the world record.
获胜者比世界纪录快了十秒。
⑥ 【释义】 to block or get in the way of sth
表示“阻碍；阻挡；堵塞”
【例句】
They cut off the enemy's retreat.
他们切断了敌人的退路。
The new factory cuts off our view of the hills.
新建的工厂挡住了我们观山景的视线。
3
精读原文
Easier – but more impersonal?
更便捷——却更没人情味？
‘Ghosting’ was originally coined in the dating world: it meant a sudden, unexpected end to all contact. It’s a social phenomenon increasingly being co-opted in the workplace – and put into practice on either side of the interview table.
“玩失踪”这个词最初源于约会场景，是指约会的一方突然断了所有联系，令人始料未及。而今这一社交现象在职场越来越常见，招聘方和求职者都会有这样的行为。
Being able to suddenly drop communications during the recruitment process generally favours the party in the more powerful position. Traditionally, employers have been more likely to ghost than the workforce. However, even before Covid-19, ghosting had become a growing trend among candidates, too: thanks to a tightening job market, they could afford to begin mimicking companies’ behaviour.
一般来说，敢在招聘过程中玩消失的往往是强势的一方。在以往，招聘方比求职者更有可能玩失踪。然而，即便在新冠肺炎疫情爆发之前，“玩失踪”的求职者就已越来越多——得益于日趋紧张的劳动力市场，求职者终于有机会对招聘方“以牙还牙”了。
📒精读解析：
No.1
drop /drɒp/ verb
这个词我们并不陌生，不过作动词时含义丰富，除了我们熟悉的“落下，降落，降低”等含义，这里给大家补充一些像本段中这样不太常见的用法：
① 【释义】to stop doing or discussing sth; to not continue with sth
表示“停止；终止；放弃”
【例句】
I dropped German (= stopped studying it) when I was 14.
我14岁后就没再学德语。
Look, can we just drop it (= stop talking about it)?
喂，这事儿能不能就谈到这儿？
The police decided to drop the charges against her.
警方决定撤回对她的指控。
② 【释义】to leave sb/sth out by accident or deliberately
表示“遗漏；省略；不予考虑”
【例句】
She's been dropped from the team because of injury.
她因受伤而未被列入队员名单。
He spoke with a cockney accent and dropped his aitches (= did not pronounce the letter ‘h’ at the start of words).
他讲话带着伦敦东区的口音，把词首的h音给吞掉了。
③ 【释义】to stop seeing sb socially
表示“不再与（某人）往来；同（某人）断绝联系”
【例句】
She's dropped most of her old friends.
她已与多数老朋友停止了来往。
No.2
mimic /ˈmɪmɪk / verb
① 【释义】to copy the way sb speaks, moves, behaves, etc., especially in order to make other people laugh
表示“模仿（人的言行举止）；（尤指）做滑稽模仿”
【例句】
She's always mimicking the teachers.
她总喜欢模仿老师的言谈举止。
He mimicked her southern accent.
他滑稽地模仿她的南方口音。
② 【释义】to look or behave like sth else
表示“（外表或行为举止）像，似”
【例句】
The robot was programmed to mimic a series of human movements.
机器人按程序设计可模仿人的一系列动作。
4
精读原文
But the pandemic has acted as a catalyst, fuelling the current spike. The rise is coming from both workers and employers. Yuletta Pringle, of the Society for Human Resource Management, attributes the uptick to the fall-out from the Great Resignation. “Labour shortages have left employers pinched and desperate to hire, meaning they have to push out a ton of feelers online and may not be able to respond to everyone,” she explains. “On the employee side, there are so many job vacancies – they may be ghosting potential employers as they search for their ideal role and move around the recruitment process.”
但疫情依然扮演了催化剂的角色，使这一趋势愈演愈烈。越来越多的招聘方和应聘者都开始玩消失。美国人力资源管理协会的尤莱塔·普林格（Yuletta Pringle）将这一趋势归因于“辞职热”的影响。“劳动力短缺令雇主大为紧张、急于招新，而这意味着他们会在网上接触大量的求职者，但也许无法一一回应，”她解释称，“而从求职者的角度来说，空缺的职位那么多，他们可能会不断搜寻心仪的岗位，并经历一轮又一轮的招聘流程，并在这一过程中对潜在雇主玩消失。”
📒精读解析
No.1
attribute /əˈtrɪbjuːt / v., n.
① 【释义】v. to say or believe that sth is the result of a particular thing
表示“把…归因于；认为…是由于”，此时一般用于短语“attribute sth to sth”
【例句】
She attributes her success to hard work and a little luck.
她认为她的成功来自勤劳和一点运气。
豪斯医生 第四季 第9集
② 【释义】v. to say or believe that sb is responsible for doing sth, especially for saying, writing or painting sth
表示“认为是 … 所为（或说、写、作）”
【例句】
The committee refused to attribute blame without further information.
如果没有进一步的情况，委员会拒绝归罪于任何人。
This play is usually attributed to Shakespeare.
人们通常认为这出戏剧是莎士比亚所写。
③ 【释义】n. a quality or feature of sb/sth
作名词时表示“属性；性质；特征”
【例句】
Patience is one of the most important attributes in a teacher.
耐心是教师最重要的品质之一。
No.2
pinch /pɪntʃ / verb
① 【释义】拧；捏；掐；捏住；夹紧
【例句】
He pinched the baby's cheek playfully.
他捏着宝宝的脸颊逗着玩。
She had to pinch herself to make sure she was not dreaming.
她不得不掐一下自己，弄清楚自己不是在做梦。
Pinch the nostrils together between your thumb and finger to stop the bleeding.
用手指捏住鼻孔止血。
② 【释义】to cost a person or an organization a lot of money or more than they can spend
表示“使花费过多；使入不敷出”
【例句】
Higher interest rates are already pinching the housing industry.
提高利率已使住房产业不堪负荷。
③ 【释义】if sth such as a shoe pinches part of your body, it hurts you because it is too tight
表示“夹（脚）；夹痛”
【例句】
These new shoes pinch.
这双新鞋夹脚。
④ 【释义】to steal sth, especially sth small and not very valuable
表示“偷摸；行窃”
【例句】
Who's pinched my pen?
谁拿了我的笔？
⑤ 【释义】to arrest sb
表示“逮捕”
【例句】
I was pinched for dangerous driving.
我因危险驾驶而被抓住。
5
精读原文
In many cases, recruitment processes have been digitised. Job-search algorithms place the open positions right in front of workers. ‘Easy apply’ options mean candidates can send off resumes for multiple jobs more effortlessly than ever. Virtual interviews have improved accessibility, increasing opportunities for employers and workers to find the best fit.
很多情况下，招聘流程都是数字化的。职位搜索算法将一个个招聘职位摆在求职者面前。“快速应聘”选项则便于求职者以前所未有的高效率向多个职位投递简历。线上面试也使面试双方的沟通大为便利，使招聘方和求职者都有更多的机会找到最适合自己的对象。
However, the convenience of digitised and virtual recruitment comes at a cost. Employers are having to both widen their net and interview more people as a result of the hiring crisis. That creates a knock-on effect for hiring managers who, whether inside firms or at external recruitment companies, are dealing with a glut of applicants and roles.
然而，数字化和线上招聘的便利也有其代价。由于招聘困难的影响，雇主们不得不扩大面试范围，同时增加面试人数。而这就导致了连锁效应——无论是企业内部的人力资源经理，还是外部猎头公司的人力资源经理，都需要应对大量的职位及其申请者。
📒精读解析：
No.1
knock-on adj.
【释义】causing other events to happen one after another in a series
表示“使产生连锁反应的”，一般就是像文中这样用于“knock-on effect”
【例句】
The increase in the price of oil had a knock-on effect on the cost of many other goods.
石油价格上涨对其他许多商品的价格引起了连锁反应。
监守自盗 Inside Job
No.2
glut /ɡlʌt / noun, verb
① n. a situation in which there is more of sth than is needed or can be used
表示“供应过剩；供过于求；大量；过量”，近义词为surfeit
【例句】
雪国列车(剧版) 第二季 第9集
② v. to supply or provide sth with too much of sth
作动词时表示“超量供应；充斥”，此时常用被动态
【例句】
The market has been glutted with foreign cars.
外国汽车充斥市场。
6
精读原文
The loss of in-person interviews may also be a factor in ghosting by both parties. “It can sometimes be harder to build a rapport with someone virtually,” says Freedberg, Craig Freedberg, a regional director at recruitment firm Robert Half. “The emotional investment of travelling to meet someone for an in-person interview is difficult to replicate when you’re clicking on a calendar link from home, and it’s easier for employers to ghost when you’re losing that human, face-to-face element.” The process can, therefore, feel increasingly transactional. And, in the current buoyant job market, applicants may well be swamped, too.
招聘和应聘双方玩失踪的另一个潜在因素可能是现场面试的消失。“在虚拟的网络世界中同一个人建立融洽关系有时候更难，”人力资源公司罗致恒富（Robert Half）的区域总监克雷格·弗里德伯格（Craig Freedberg）说，“为了面试出行、与某人会面，与你在家中点击‘日历’应用中的链接进入面试——二者的情绪投入不可同日而语。而且一旦去掉那种人与人之间面对面交流的部分，雇主会更容易玩失踪。”因此，招聘流程会越来越让人感到具有交易色彩。同时，在当前繁荣的就业市场上，求职者们也很容易被淹没。
📒精读解析：
No.1
rapport /ræˈpɔː(r) / noun
【释义】a friendly relationship in which people understand each other very well
表示“亲善；融洽；和谐”
【例句】
She understood the importance of establishing a close rapport with clients.
她懂得与客户建立密切和谐的关系的重要性。
权力的游戏 第二季 第2集
No.2
swamp /swɒmp / noun, verb
大家比较熟悉的可能是该次作名词表示“沼泽（地）”，不过此处是用作动词：
① 【释义】to make sb have more of sth than they can deal with
表示“使不堪承受；使疲于应对；使应接不暇”，此时常用于被动态，与“inundate”意思相近
【例句】
The department was swamped with job applications.
面对纷至沓来的求职申请，这个部门疲于应对。
In summer visitors swamp the island.
夏天，这个岛上游客熙熙攘攘，人满为患。
② 【释义】to fill or cover sth with a lot of water
表示“淹；淹没”，此时与“engulf”意思相近
【例句】
The little boat was swamped by the waves.
小船被大浪淹没了。
7
精读原文
Balancing ghosting and professionalism
在玩失踪和专业素养之间取得平衡
Market conditions may well mean that not replying to every lead or candidate is becoming more normalised. But ghosting comes with downsides to both employers and candidates: it leaves a bad impression – likely ending a professional relationship before it’s even begun. For that reason, some companies, particularly relationship-led ones, remain staunchly anti-ghosting – even if they’ve been on the receiving end themselves.
当前的市场条件很可能意味着这种选择性回复招聘方或求职者的做法正在趋于正常化。但是，“玩失踪”对于招聘和应聘双方都存在弊端：这一做法会给对方留下负面印象，并且极有可能在双方的职业关系萌芽前就将其扼杀。出于这一原因，一些公司（特别是关系主导型公司）仍然坚定地反对这一行为，尽管这些公司仍然不断遭遇“玩失踪”的求职者。
📒精读解析：
No.1
staunch /stɔːntʃ / adj.
【释义】no comparative strong and loyal in your opinions and attitude
表示“忠实的；坚定的”，与“faithful”意思相近
【短语】
a staunch supporter of the monarchy
坚定地拥护君主制的人
one of the president's staunchest allies
总统最忠实的盟友之一
【例句】
布里奇顿 第一季 第4集
*文中使用的是其副词形式staunchly /stɔːntʃli / adv.
【例句】
She staunchly defended the new policy.
她坚定地维护新政策。
The family was staunchly Protestant.
那一家人是忠实的新教徒。
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Like its dating namesake, Freedberg believes that interview ghosting is rooted in a lack of commitment. “A precursor to ghosting is when either party doesn’t feel bought into the process or has that emotional investment,” he says.
就像这个词在约会场景中的含义一样，弗里德伯格认为，面试“玩失踪”现象的根源在于缺少承诺。“‘玩失踪’的前兆是面试双方都不觉得己方参与了这一流程，或者说没有这种情感投资，”他解释道。
📒精读解析：
No.1
namesake /ˈneɪmseɪk / noun
【释义】a person or thing that has the same name as sb/sth else
表示“同名的人（或物）”，此处其实就是为避免重复用来指代“ghost”一词，这种方法大家也可以学起来
【例句】
Unlike his more famous namesake, this Gordon Brown has little interest in politics.
这位戈登·布朗与那位同名的著名人物不同，对政治没什么兴趣。
球手们 第一季 第5集
No.2
precursor /priːˈkɜːsə(r) / noun
【释义】a person or thing that comes before sb/sth similar and that leads to or influences its development
表示“先驱；先锋；前身”，也可以表示“前兆，先兆”
【例句】
Real tennis, an ancient precursor of the modern game, originated in the eleventh century.
室内网球，现代网球运动的古老前身，起源于11世纪。
维京传奇 第五季 第9集
9
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Pringle believes responsibility for communication still falls on the employer’s side – and says the right kind of communication can limit the prospect of ghosting from the outset.
而普林格认为沟通的责任仍然在雇主一方，并表示恰当的沟通可以从一开始就降低“玩失踪”的可能性。
But workers have responsibilities, too. Freedberg suggests that rather than applying for jobs on autopilot, workers mindfully select positions that offer a good cultural fit. Otherwise, they risk wasting recruiters’ time.
但求职者也有责任。弗里德伯格建议，求职者在申请工作时不应听凭求职网站的自动推荐，而应当自主选择在文化方面适合自己的岗位。否则，他们可能会浪费招聘人员的时间。
📒精读解析：
No.1
outset /ˈaʊtset/ n.
该词表示“起始，开始；开端”，但一般用于短语“at/from the outset (of sth)”，与“at/from the beginning of sth”意思相近
【例句】
I made it clear right from the outset that I disapproved.
从一开始我就明确地说我不赞成。
捍卫雅各布 第6集
10
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Generally speaking, for both sides, the rule of thumb seems to be that the further you go down the recruitment process, the less acceptable it is to ghost. The more effort an applicant or a company has invested in the recruitment process, the ruder an abrupt end to contact will feel.
一般来说，对双方而言，通过的面试环节越多，就越不能接受“玩失踪”。而双方在招聘过程中投入的努力越多，一方“玩消失”的做法就越显得粗鲁无礼。
📒精读解析：
No.1
rule of thumb
【释义】a practical method of doing or measuring sth, usually based on past experience rather than on exact measurement
表示“（根据实际经验的）经验法则；实用的估算方法，经验工作法（常依据经验而非准确测量）”
【例句】
A good rule of thumb is that a broker must generate sales of ten times his salary if his employer is to make a profit
根据经验来看，如果雇主要获得利润，那么其代理商必须卖出相当于其工资10倍的销售额。
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