smartalex
Posts: 50
Joined: 5/29/2008
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This is an easier problem than some others, because it's not going to follow you to different companies. I'd go with Steele's advice, because anything else is going to put you in the round file. Just filling in the blanks doesn't give the whole story, and even if it's filling in the blanks letter perfect--as Treasure & most HR people will tell you is best--you're in the "nope" pile. If you are one of two people applying for the job, maybe not, but I'm pretty sure yours won't be the only application to hit the desk.
Saying no (aka LYING) won't ever end well, and the longer it goes before the end the worse the end will be. If they don't like the rest of your resume/application, you're in the round file anyway. If they do, the other shoe will drop. If it drops when they're putting your info in the database, they're irritated, tell you not to come work for them, and talk about it with their friends over dinner. Those friends might have been potential employers, and now they know you're a liar. If it doesn't drop until you have worked there, you get fired, have a huge black mark on your permanent record & have to do the whole job search thing again--and you're still dinner conversation.
If you go with "Please ask" you are tickling their nosiness, and depending on how impressive the rest of your application is, you maybe don't hit the round file. If the rest of everything is mediocre, it may be the thing that prevents you from getting a call back. But if the rest of it shines, it's a question that you will hear in the interview.
And you'll have a very good answer at that time, won't you? Of course you will, because you know it's coming! I would just say "child-care emergency" and be prepared to talk about how you have not only the best paid child care on the planet that will never fall through, but you also have some other person who can operate as backup. And then you have another person. You've learned your lesson, because that cost you a really great job (oh yeah, that was with the same company, huh, fancy that, it was your dream job and you were sure it was going to make you and the company millions) and that will NEVER EVER happen again. They can't ask about child care (unless they fall under certain # of employees or some other loophole) but if you do have that covered six different ways with another dozen backup plans, it's nice to work that in there.
Leave out the jail part. I'm pretty sure that even though it wasn't you or someone you still care about. . .it still could come out wrong and land you in the round file.
Good luck.
(This advice brought to you by countless of dinner conversations between my father, VP of HR for Fortune 500 company & my stepmother, Dir of Personnel for a large area hospital.)
Aside to Treasure: You are technically right, and I know that from the employer POV you are certainly right. But if you've got something that is going to land you in the round file if filled in letter perfect, it's a better bet to hope that whoever sees the resume is intrigued enough to talk about it. I can't think of a way that someone with less than a week in a job is going to be eligible for rehire, so her best bet with this company is to hope that she knocks their socks off with everything else, so that they want to go to bat for her to be rehired. The good news is that it's not a felony--it won't follow her to another company.
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RE: Should I be honest? - 
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