Questionable HR Practices

I recently encountered a rather unprofessional situation with a HR director from a large organization regarding a candidate I had placed. Here’s what happened: After discussing with the hiring manager, I was informed they wanted to interview two candidates. I initially sent one candidate’s CV, with personal information redacted, and said I would provide the full CV if they were interested. They confirmed they wanted to proceed with an interview.

Before the interview, I negotiated the rate with the HR director, who had already received both the terms and the full CV. After the interview, the candidate received an offer and accepted it.

However, after everything was finalized and the written contract signed by the candidate, the HR director attempted to claim that they had already received this candidate’s CV from another source and that I wasn’t authorized to work on the role. I was taken aback—this was a first for me in 25 years in the industry! I offered to resend our agreed-upon terms as evidence, feeling shocked by their blatant attempt to manipulate the situation.

Fortunately, I have all the email correspondence, including her request for a discounted rate, which I acquiesced to, as well as her sending me the full candidate specification prior to the interview.

Has anyone else ever faced something like this? I’m still in disbelief. Just ridiculous!