Beware of scams while job-hunting

Most people looking for a job are worried about getting a good salary and benefits. But if you’re searching for work, you should also be wary of scams, baited by fake jobs.

Scammers are seemingly always coming up with new ways to take advantage of people, including those on the job hunt. ABC 7 spoke with an El Paso woman who was nearly taken in by one fake job, until the demand for payment raised red flags.

After going to the a job fair and registering on the work-in-texas website, Jaime, who didn’t want her last name used, says that she got a number of calls from a man calling himself “Chris Hanson,” who said he had a job for her, based on information of her job profile but that she needed extra training, which she’d have to pay for.

He instructed her to get a Wal-Mart money card to pay for additional training for the job. Jaime says that when she stopped taking the calls, the pressure mounted.

“I’m now under the impression that this is not something that you were serious about, and I hate that you’ve wasted both of our times,” Hansen said in a phone message.

Teofilo Ugalde, chief operating officer for Workforce Solutions Upper Rio Grande, said that job seekers should be very wary of providing Social Security, credit card, or other payment information before being hired.

“Especially if they ask you that you need to pay for the training,” Ugalde said, “and then they’ll hire you, that could be another scam.”

ABC 7 spoke with a representative the Texas Workforce Commission, which operates www.workintexas.com and handles complaints, who wasn’t able to say for certain if a case had been filed for this incident. There was also no response from Jaime when asked a follow-up question about how she reported it.

But if you’re suspicious about a job offer, or think you’ve been a victim of job fraud, you can call TWC’s fraud and abuse hotline at 800-252-3642.