I asked people to share what it’s like being “ghosted” by hiring officials. The responses made me angry.

Their narratives were rife with false hope and broken promises, exposing a monumental lack of communication and needless cruelty.

In dating, ghosting happens when someone suddenly stops all communication without explanation. In a job search, it’s when the employer goes silent after an initial screening or interview, leaving the candidate in limbo.

As I mentioned in a previous column, research published last year by the career platform Glassdoor found that employer ghosting has become a common complaint among applicants who write interview reviews.

A 2023 survey by the jobsite Indeed found that 35% of job seekers say an employer didn’t acknowledge their application. And here is an utterly unforgivable statistic: Forty percent of applicants said they were ghosted after a second- or third-round interview — up from 30% in 2022.

Ghosting is likely to continue as the tough job market tightens, in part because of federal government layoffs and employers’ reluctance to hire amid concerns about how President Donald Trump’s tariff battles will affect their bottom lines.

The U.S. economy added 22,000 jobs in August, well below expectations and a sharp drop from the 79,000 jobs recorded the previous month. The federal government has no more recent official data because of the shutdown, but economists broadly agree that hiring has sharply slowed.

No one disputes that it’s a tough time for recruitment managers. Many are overwhelmed with applications, often because artificial intelligence has made it easier for job seekers to mass-apply. Additionally, the use of AI to screen applicants and conduct virtual interviews has removed the personal connection from the staffing process, making it easier to ghost people.

But I’m here to advocate for prospective employees who are callously ignored after submitting their applications. Here’s what that lack of closure does to them.

Damaged self-esteem

If you hire people, consider what landing a job means to them.

It boosts their self-worth. It’s a financial lifeboat.

Candidates deserve directness. Even an automated response is better than nothing. If they aren’t right for the job, say so. If you have to pull the listing, let them know.

“The emotional toll (that uncertainty) takes on your mental health is incomprehensible,” one reader wrote. “You begin to think it’s you. You feel like you’re a failure. Like you’re letting everyone down. You see the world passing you by. You retreat from life. You have no interest in participating or socializing, living in constant fear someone will ask the dreaded question, ‘What do you do for a living’ or ‘How’s the job search?’”

The failure to communicate can hurt more than being told “no.”

“Each time, the silence is harder to bear than the rejection,” one applicant wrote. “It chips away at hope and dignity. Candidly, I’m feeling increasingly apathetic and hopeless.”

It’s also so disrespectful.

Here’s what another reader from Pittsburgh wrote: “To make a serious job application … takes a week. You search, read lists, research companies, network with any colleagues in the know, write a cover letter, tailor a resume, and apply. Then wait, wait, and wait. Maybe hear, maybe not. Maybe interview, maybe not. Maybe get dropped like a bowling ball on a toe, maybe not.”

He added: “It’s cruel to play with people at their most vulnerable.”

False hope

How do you interview someone two or three times and then not get back to them?

Applicants describe this behavior as “insulting” and “dehumanizing.”

“I’ve had several experiences where I’ve been led to believe I’m an excellent candidate, only to be essentially ghosted,” one person emailed. “I had an online initial interview with a firm in the spring and was told they wanted to have me come into the office for an in-person interview. After that, I heard nothing, even after I sent two emails to the guy who initially talked to me (who had told me to write him personally).”

Here’s what someone shared with me on TikTok: “My husband had a third interview in another city during covid. They picked him up in an Escalade, nice hotel, expensive lunch and dinner. Handshake offer. Then nothing. We’re still baffled.”

Erosion of trust

Many job seekers complained that interviewers broke their promise to follow up and then ignored all attempts at communication.

“With the time and effort one takes to put an application together and do screenings, the lack of response is just plain disrespectful,” wrote one person who has been searching for a job for the last six months. “I guess I should look at it as a good thing, as my values do not align with employers who treat job applicants as a transaction.”

If you see an email or receive a voicemail from an applicant, say something.

“I have numerous interviews where I’ve been told I would hear something within a week, only to never hear from them again,” another reader emailed. “Not even an auto-reply from the HR application program when the job is closed and filled. Part of the problem is that the hiring manager doesn’t have the gumption to send an email to the candidates to say, ‘We’ve decided to go in a different direction.’”

Ghosting goes beyond a bad business practice. It’s indefensible because it denies the person the respect and information that they need to process and move forward.

Michelle Singletary is a columnist for the Washington Post.