According to new research from StandOut Resume, two in five Australians (42.4%) admit to lying during a job application or interview, with nearly 20% confessing to doing so more than once. For those willing to bend the truth, the rewards can be significant—job applicants who lie earn, on average, $15,000 more per year than their truthful counterparts.
The report revealed that lying is a common tactic used to stand out, particularly in a landscape with 26 applicants for every entry-level position, and only one in four resumes make it past applicant tracking systems (ATS).
The most common lies are about why someone left a previous job (21.1%), exaggerating work experience (20.9%), and embellishing skills or qualifications (14.6%). Men were more likely to stretch the truth about their experience (22.1%), while women were more likely to fudge the reasons for leaving their previous role (22.3%).
Generational differences also surfaced, with Gen Z (18-27) and Millennials (28-43) frequently lying about their work experience (22.2% and 22.5%, respectively). Meanwhile, Gen X (44-59) and Baby Boomers (60-69) were more prone to lying about why they left their last job (22.7% and 22.6%, respectively).
Surprisingly, lying appears to have more benefits than drawbacks. Nearly three-quarters (73.4%) of liars said their dishonesty was never discovered. Most of those who were caught faced minimal consequences: 62.6% reported no action was taken, and only 18.2% lost a job offer.
Lying also seems to benefit career trajectories. Of those who admitted to lying, 21.4% said it positively impacted their career, compared to just 3.7% who said it had a negative effect.
For the 57.6% who claimed never to have lied, the most common reason wasn’t ethics but practicality—39.9% said they didn’t feel the need to lie. Interestingly, only 33.1% cited moral discomfort as their primary motivator for honesty.