Job Hunters Are Paying to Get Recruited

Job Hunters Are So Desperate That They’re Paying to Get Recruited

Tough labor market for white-collar workers turns age-old recruiting model upside down

Daniel Bejarano, 36 years old, signed up for reverse-recruiting service Refer last year after receiving an email pitch from the company.

Refer’s AI agent connected him with an executive at Golden, a volunteer-management company, which was looking for a platform engineer and data scientist. Bejarano got the offer after several interviews. He then paid Refer 20% of his first month’s pay once it landed in his bank account.

It was “refreshing,” he said, not to be lost in a sea of candidates sorted by an applicant-tracking system.

The reverse-recruiting model is another sign of the mounting challenges for white-collar job seekers. For the first time since the pandemic, there were more unemployed people than open roles as of late 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average job search is now approaching about six months, according to December federal data.

That means recruiters chasing business might have more luck pitching themselves to job seekers instead of employers. Thousands from companies including Amazon.com, Dow and United Parcel Service are entering the job market, too.

Reverse-recruiter models vary, but many require job seekers to pay them part of their salary once they accept a job. Others charge a set rate to submit applications on a candidate’s behalf. Such services typically go beyond career coaching or résumé reviews, and sometimes involve the recruiter applying on behalf of the candidate.

“If you are not paying, you are the product,” said Andre Hamra, Refer’s chief executive. “It incentivizes us to actually help the person.”

Refer currently works with job seekers from 20 top-ranked universities but will soon expand to anyone interested in tech. It shows them hiring managers who have expressed interest in their profiles. Candidates can also ask an AI agent named “Lia” for an introduction.