Is it fair to ask prospective employees to do unpaid 'assignments' before they're hired?
user
What kinds of assignments are you talking about?
assistant
Written assignments. I've applied for an editing position, and they asked for samples of my work, which I provided. Now they want me to do an additional step of editing a document for free.
user
It sounds like you're interested in a paid position, but instead they're asking you to do some unpaid work that you might have otherwise been paid to do. Does that sound about right?
assistant
Yes, that's correct.
user
That's a common tactic for some people.  It could mean that they're just trying to get a bit more work for free.
assistant
So is it fair to expect people to 'audition' for their jobs?
user
That's a harder question to answer.  It can be fair in some situations, especially if you're hiring for a skill where no one has experience and you need someone who's shown aptitude for that skill. For instance, it would be reasonable for a software startup to ask you to code a sample program before you're hired.  But if someone has experience in the job, it could be unfair to ask for a free sample of that experience.
assistant
Is it fair to ask prospective employees to do unpaid 'assignments' before they're hired?
user
What kinds of assignments are you talking about?
assistant
Written assignments. I've applied for an editing position, and they asked for samples of my work, which I provided. Now they want me to do an additional step of editing a document for free.
user
It sounds like you're interested in a paid position, but instead they're asking you to do some unpaid work that you might have otherwise been paid to do. Does that sound about right?
assistant
Yes, that's correct.
user
That's a common tactic for some people.  It could mean that they're just trying to get a bit more work for free.
assistant
So is it fair to expect people to 'audition' for their jobs?
user
Yeah, there are people who've really embraced the "audition for a job" philosophy, and will ask for "testing" like this.  Others aren't as adamant about it.  Whether or not a "testing" request is fair for you depends on your goals.  If you're working towards a job where you can do things like edit, I'd say yes it's fair to request work for free.  If you're just trying to get a job, where you'll be doing more business development than editing, that's not as fair.
assistant
Is it fair to ask prospective employees to do unpaid 'assignments' before they're hired?