Lawmakers have noticed what job seekers have said for years: too many postings lead nowhere.
In June, New York’s legislature passed a bill aimed at ghost jobs. It’s still waiting on the governor's signature. Employers with 100 or more employees, and the job sites that carry their postings, would have to say whether a role is a current vacancy and when they expect to fill it. Postings meant to collect resumes for the future would have to say so plainly. Filled jobs would come down within two weeks, and fines start at $2,500 per publication. Similar proposals have been introduced in New Jersey, California, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania.
Whether or not you recruit in New York, the bill works as a checklist. Your posting should tell candidates:
Whether the job is open now. If you are building a pipeline, say so. Candidates can decide for themselves whether to apply.
When you expect to fill it. A target month helps candidates weigh your role against the others they are pursuing.
What happens after they apply. Tell them when they will hear from you, then follow through. In a recent Aerotek survey, job seekers named employer ghosting as the biggest factor in their search (44%).
How you will help them learn. ICIMS found 28% of job seekers would favor an employer that offers AI training. One sentence on how you train people on AI tools says more than “AI proficiency required.”
That the role is still real. Take postings down once a job is filled, including on third- party boards that repost them.
You don’t need a law to do any of this. You need someone who owns each posting from the day it goes up to the day it comes down.