Plenty of people agree to an offer from a potential employer too fast, only to regret it soon after. Serious issues, such as toxic work culture and inadequate company leadership, can often be identified with proper vetting before it is too late. Before you sign anything, ask questions and do research, because your future depends on it.
As employment lawyers, we at S.T. Legal Group recommend doing due diligence and contacting us if anything seems off. The following is information our attorneys recommend on how to vet a potential employer before accepting an offer.
The ping-pong table in the break room might look cool, but it is not a replacement for a healthy workplace culture. Perks are easy to flaunt. They are Instagrammable, but they are also the first thing to go when budgets tighten.
You need to ask, “Are these perks masking deeper issues, such as burnout or toxic management?” Arcade games and free snacks will not fix chronic micromanagement or unpaid overtime. Companies sometimes overcompensate with flashy benefits to distract from poor leadership or chaotic workflows.
At S.T. Legal Group, we advise clients to treat culture fit not as a buzzword but as a vital metric. If the potential employer talks more about free snacks or casual Fridays than mentorship or career growth, that is your cue to further evaluate their offer.
You need to determine if an employer deserves your time, energy, and talent when you consider accepting an offer. Ask about how performance is measured, how conflict is handled, and why the role is open. A company that stumbles on those answers might be hiding problems behind a polished pitch.
Pay attention to hiring questions. Some things are illegal to ask and should be immediate deal-breakers. They cannot ask if you are pregnant, planning a family, what your religion is, or if you have a disability. The Illinois Human Rights Act protects job applicants from invasive or discriminatory questions. If you hear anything like this, not only should you make a polite escape, but you might consider reporting the incident.
You can file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Human Rights or with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Our employment lawyers have experience helping people who were asked illegal interview questions or passed over unfairly. Discrimination in hiring is against the law. Call us or email for clarification if you are ever unsure whether a question crossed the line.
Before you accept a potential employer’s offer, screen them, and then look deeper. Start with Glassdoor and Indeed reviews and look for patterns. Are people mentioning the same issues, such as burnout or favoritism? A one-star rant might be bitterness, while five-star love letters might be planted. The truth usually lives somewhere in between. While three and a half to four stars out of five might seem low compared to Google or Yelp reviews, that is a fairly standard Glassdoor or Indeed rating.
Search LinkedIn and Reddit for unfiltered takes. Likewise, searching the executives on social media might provide context and clarification. Leadership style shows up in more than just memos. Additionally, some green flags on the company’s own social media pages are employees chiming in and the company responding to both positive and negative comments. On the other hand, it is telling if the company has turned off comments. What a company allows or deletes says a lot about its tolerance for transparency.
Check the company’s Better Business Bureau listing as well. As employment lawyers, we also suggest googling the company name with keywords such as “lawsuit,” “scandal,” or “settlement.”
Before you accept the job offer, review everything from your potential employer. Some companies slip in noncompete clauses, mandatory arbitration agreements, or vague confidentiality language that can have consequences for you.
If something feels like a red flag in your offer letter or employment contract, it can be a legal gray area or worse. Pay attention to what is written about severance, notice periods, intellectual property, and restrictive covenants. If the company suddenly gets evasive when you ask for clarification, it might be time to have a lawyer review your contract before signing.
S.T. Legal Group has seen people stuck in a legal predicament in their new job because they did not fully understand what they were signing. Always have a good idea of how to vet a potential employer before accepting an offer.
When in doubt, get an employer or contract vetted by an employment attorney. To get started, contact us now to set up an appointment.