Is gap on your resume a red flag for employers?

Q: I hate my job; it’s toxic. My boss is so immature and running the business into the ground on his parents’ money. I feel like I’m babysitting. But I also feel like I need it on my resume so it shows continuous employment (it’s been a bit spotty the past few years with a lot of gaps). How bad is the gap to my ability to get a new job if I were to leave?

A: First, sorry to hear that it sounds like a toxic environment. That’s never fun and it often won’t improve, so the only solution, really, is the exit door. The question is sooner rather than later. Typically, I tell people to look at your finances and your nest egg, but you’re not asking that, you’re asking an equally important question: Is the gap a red flag?

And I’m here to say no, it’s not. When I worked in corporate recruiting, one of the biggest concerns of my hiring managers was how long did you stay in your current and previous jobs — the norm was two consecutive years. Well, the world has changed, the pandemic shook things up and upside down, so it’s not that big of a deal overall. In fact, in many industries, there’s still a tight labor market and employers would be thrilled to recruit strong candidates.

That said, without knowing your industry and employment background, focus on a couple of things (whether or not you leave your current job without a new one lined up). What skills can you learn and/or polish during this time? This will keep your mind active and engaged and more marketable for future positions. Plus, if you leave sooner rather than later, it will show prospective employers that you’re upskilling on your own time and dime, and this includes pursuing online certifications.

The key to having a gap on your resume is successfully explaining it to employers. They’ll ask, so be prepared to answer honestly and articulately. You can state something like, “Once I started working there, the job changed from the job description and I decided to focus 100% of my time and energy on finding a more challenging job …”

Q: I’m glad this is anonymous because I want to fire someone on my team for underperforming. I’ve heard about quiet quitting and want to push this person out, make their life miserable (OK, that sounds harsh), but really to force them to leave. Can I do this?

A: Um, no. I mean, technically you can (along the lines of “quiet firing”), but it sounds like you’re creating a toxic environment — there are better solutions for this situation. Talk to your direct report about their performance. Talk to HR to work together: Set up metrics, put them on a performance improvement plan with timing and expectations to meet certain metrics. I don’t recommend making someone’s work situation so miserable that they want to leave.

Besides it just not sitting well/not the right thing to do/please don’t be that boss. There could be a backlash: That person can tell their friends and colleagues how toxic your company was and just like that, you’ve got a PR/marketing challenge in recruiting/hiring stellar candidates. It can be even more far-reaching, especially on social media, like TikTok, when employees air their grievances. Be above that, OK?

— Tribune News Service