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Little white lies: Agnok Lueth adopts 'Daniel McClean' on his CV to try to get a fair go
A SUDANESE man who has applied unsuccessfully for more than 1000 jobs has resorted to using a fake Anglo name on his resume in a desperate attempt to get work.
Former refugee Agnok Lueth, 23, who fled war-torn Sudan for Melbourne in 2004, created the resume alias "Daniel McClean" because he believed Australian employers were unwilling to give him a fair go under his real name.
Mr Lueth sent out hundreds of resumes for jobs he was qualified for, but only received callbacks on applications with the fake names.
Of the six applications with the fake name, he got five callbacks.
The Swinburne University biomedicine and commerce double degree student can speak three languages, has a favourable work history and volunteered for three years for an Australian aid organisation.
Despite meeting the job criteria for positions as a waiter, shop assistant, call centre worker and bank teller, Mr Lueth told mX he felt overlooked by employers.
"I did a test to see if it was an experience problem or something more," he said.
"I sent six resumes with my qualifications but used a different name, and I was surprised at how quickly I heard back from five of the companies for interview requests."
Mr Lueth could not say why the five calls did not lead to a job interview.
He said one employer only asked him two questions.
The Australian Human Rights Commission's Graeme Innes said there was a growing trend of immigrants adopting western names in the hope it would help them get hired.
"Unfortunately, there are elements of racism in our community and there are definitely people in Australia who make employment decisions on a racist bias," he said.
"We like to call ourselves a tolerant society, but this happens a lot more often than we think."
Since university timetable clashes forced Mr Lueth into the job hunt in 2009, he has relied on Centrelink payments and a Smith Family scholarship.
"Sometimes I just feel like giving up," he said.
"The Sudanese community is thankful for all the opportunities we're given in Australia, but we have something to make this nation defined by the strength of its diversity."
Smith Family Learning for Life team leader Anne Marmion said Lueth's efforts to secure a job had been "massive".
"When a young person has to change their name because they're discriminated against, it's an indication of bias and prejudice in our society and a fear of those who are different," she said.
Now I know we have posted other articles here pretty much showing the same thing in various countries. I think what worsens the problem is the denial of people who have this view of Australia as soooo awesome that we can't be racist. You know, like how Victorian police slammed Indian media for calling them racists then a few weeks later admitted they were racist to Africans. Here is a sample of the comments from the article and you can see the problem.
Sorry but racism has nothing to do with it. Besides, even if the assumed name gets him the interview, he is unable to win the confidence of the employer. There is a Sudanese-Australian man who lives near me and does facilities management; managing lifts, HVAC systems, repairs, cleaning contracts and logistics with class. He is bright, speaks excellent English and has found work just fine. Its about his attitude and willingness to pitch in and work with a smile and enthusiasm; the Aussie way. There is no entitlement by having a Uni degree. The lucky country is a double-edged sword: with no entitlement comes a chance for everyone, but nobody is guaranteed anything.
Totally missing the point that he didn't even get to the interview stage until he used an Anglo sounding name. The fact that some immigrants get jobs despite having a non Anglo sounding name does not refute the point that it appears some amount of employers descriminate on name.
I wouldnt straight out claim it as racism. Myself and a few friends when out of work have been knocked back probably hundreds of times total. Pretty much everybody I know who has been turned down many many times have all been white with "Anglo" names. So why claim racism when someone of a different color gets the same treatment that probably half of white Aussies get when applying for jobs.
Because he got job interviews after changing to an Anglo sounding name.
Is this guy stupid or just dishonest.
ah im sick of being called racist. perhaps employers dont want to deal with language issues. pulling the racist card occurs to often and easily in this country
I find this amusing when he mentions the language issues when he ignores capitals and punctuation.
Of course since the person in the article speaks English ok there shouldn't be a language issue. But you see, racist apologists use red herrings all the time.
It's not about being racist, but about common ground. Employers want team work, and if they see applicants with very foreign-sounding names, they suspect they could bring in some cultural baggage and language difficulties. Adaption is a two-way street. He should legally change is name in an effort to accommodate to Australian cultural expectations. Besides, the so-called skills-shortages that is used to lure economic immigrants here is a scam to employ cheap and willing labour.
I love how they say its not racist and then use racist generalisations in the next statement.
What, immigrants can't learn English. Perish the thought.
Never apologise for being a geek, because they won't apologise to you for being an arsehole. John Barrowman - 22 June 2014 Perth Supernova.
Countries I have been to - 14.
Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, Germany, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, USA.
Always on the lookout for more nice places to visit.
I can't remember if any were for the US specifically though.
PRFYNAFBTFCP
