Finally my forced holiday is over. Even if I had got a job several weeks ago, only until next week I will be able to start working. The whole hiring process was unbelievable long and inefficient.

First of all, I had to bring a about 20 different documents that were supposed to be needed to make a draft of my contract. Giving the fact that in my country there is a rampant problem of identity robbery, a copy of my ID card was not enough to prove I was me. I had to bring my birth registration certificate, issued by a public agency. Thank God my parents had a copy so I did not have to go and ask for it. I also had to go to another public agency, the national security agency to have a stamp that would certify that I'm not required by the authorities. The process was fast and free, but just getting there took me almost an hour. Copies of the certificates of all the studies I've got, SINCE secondary school. I had to prove also that I had no lawsuits for failing to give the feeding quote to my inexistent children. Given that my boss personally knows me, I was able to skip this and also another certificate saying I have no spouse or dependants. I had also had to add two letters of reference from a couple of friends.

I thought that was going to be it. But these papers were only for the draft of the contract. Weeks later I received a call from the Department of Human Resources, saying I ought to bring again, the papers to prove my identity. When I said to the lady they had them there already she said Human Resources was INDEPENDENT from the administrative side, that she did not have them, she did not know how did and that it was easier for me to bring them to her again that for her to look for them. Unbelievable!

I took the papers again (fortunately I had made extra copies of all of them) and attended an psicological test, and an interview with a psychologist, where my personality was studied, my work goals and family matters where put into a test.

I was then given a form, asking for all the data that was in my CV, plus other two forms asking the names and contact numbers of several friends and relatives that could verify my... well, don't know. Not only the form was like my CV, but again, I had to backup all the information I was giving, so again, I had to give certifications of studies and previous work places.

I had to sign a form accepting the agency to run searches on me on the police and financial databases, and to authorize them to crosscheck all the information I had given.

Last but not least, the kind psychologist visited my house, making an appointment with my parents, making sure I was not there at the time of the interview. He visited each and every room of my house and asked my parents about my main features, qualities, goals, defects, traumas, etc. He left saying that the results would take a week, and then the Head of Human Resources would revise them to give final approval.

I started to panic thinking I would not get hired until next year since my job is not operative (meaning they have absolutely no urge to hire me) and no-one would hire me in mid-December. I contacted my future boss and told her about my worries. The result? A call from her and the process that was going to take about two weeks or more was officially over yesterday: so I’m starting next Wednesday.