This guide shows how to reject a candidate quickly and decently, with a phone script and two written templates. Recruiters filling warehouse, production, cleaning and security roles often turn down far more people than they hire, and rejections slide into silence, a vague "we went with someone else", or one reason on the phone and another in the email.
On this page: Key takeaways · What should you say when you reject a candidate? · Should you tell a candidate why they were rejected? · What makes a rejection reason one you can stand behind? · What reasons should you never give for rejecting a candidate? · What are the most common mistakes when rejecting candidates? · What changes for staffing agencies and frontline employers? · What does this approach not solve? · How Radius helps · Conclusion · FAQ
Key takeaways
- Give one reason, tied to a requirement in the advert or the intake, never a reason about who the person is.
- Write the reason down first, then use the same words by phone and in writing.
- The NVP Sollicitatiecode, a voluntary Dutch code, asks organisations to give the outcome and the reason within two weeks of the decision.
What should you say when you reject a candidate?
Thank them, give the decision, give one reason, offer a next step.
All three templates use one illustrative example: a production operator role with night shifts every third week, stated in the advert. In the interview, the candidate said nights do not work for them. Swap in your own role and requirement.
How do you reject a candidate by phone?
Keep it short and give the decision in the first two sentences.
Say the reason once. If the candidate pushes back, repeat it rather than adding new ones. Do not ask why they cannot work nights: the decision rests on the shift pattern, and health or caring duties are not yours to weigh.
What should a rejection email or text message say?
The same reason, in the same words, in a few lines.
For a text message, keep the reason sentence word for word and drop the rest.
What do you say when the answer is "not now, but later"?
Say no to this role clearly, then ask permission to stay in touch.
Send this only if those roles really come up.
Should you tell a candidate why they were rejected?
Yes. Give one honest reason whenever you can.
Some English language advice, much of it written for the United States, says to keep reasons vague. The Dutch reference point asks for the opposite. The NVP Sollicitatiecode (July 2025), the recruitment code of the Dutch HR network NVP, says a rejected candidate should hear as soon as possible, and within two weeks of the decision at the latest, "en ook waarom": and also why.
Two limits apply. The code is a voluntary code of conduct, not law; NVP notes there is no legislation specifically for recruitment and selection. And the code says recruitment through intermediaries falls under a separate code, the Recruitercode, which agency recruiters should check too.
Our view: a short reason is usually faster anyway, because a vague message invites a call back asking why.
What makes a rejection reason one you can stand behind?
It is true, tied to a known requirement, and identical everywhere.
- The candidate could see it before applying: the start time, the shift pattern, a certificate, a licence. If it was not in the advert or intake, do not reject on it. That is one more reason to tell candidates about the hard parts of the job.
- It is one reason: the one that decided it. A list reads like a search for justification.
- It is written down first: one sentence in the candidate's file when you decide, before you call, then read out and pasted unchanged.
- You checked it the same way for everyone.
Illustrative example. Not a real candidate.
| Where | What the recruiter writes or says |
|---|---|
| Candidate file, Tuesday 15:10 | Not offered: role includes nights every third week (advert, intake). Candidate said nights not possible. Asked about day roles. |
| Phone, Tuesday 15:20 | "The reason is the shift pattern: the role includes nights every third week, and you told us nights don't work for you." |
| Email, Tuesday 15:30 | The same sentence. |
| Client asks on Friday | The recruiter reads out the Tuesday note. |
The note records the requirement and the candidate's answer, and stops there. How long you keep it should follow your own retention policy.
Consistency also matters when a decision is reviewed. In opinion 2026-116 (6 August 2026), a candidate said a staffing agency for technical staff gave him shifting explanations by phone and email; the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights found the agency's phone notes matched the reasons in its internal notes, accepted its explanation where messages had differed, and found no prohibited distinction. Its opinions are not legally binding, though they carry authority.
To see messages, notes and the interview on one candidate record, explore the Radius ATS.
What reasons should you never give for rejecting a candidate?
Never reject on who someone is, only on the job.
- Origin, nationality, religion or belief, sex, pregnancy, age, disability or health, sexual orientation, marital status or political views.
- Accent. If the job needs a language, name the task, such as following a spoken safety briefing in Dutch, and check everyone against it.
- "Not a cultural fit." It names no requirement, and it is where assumptions about groups hide.
- A missing upload or a dropped call. The evidence has not arrived yet; that says nothing about the requirement.
Dutch equal treatment law prohibits distinction on most of these grounds, pregnancy included, when filling a vacancy and in agency placement, with limited exceptions (Algemene wet gelijke behandeling, Articles 1 and 5). Age and disability or chronic illness are covered by separate acts, listed in the Institute's overview.
What are the most common mistakes when rejecting candidates?
Silence, vague reasons, and reasons that change between channels.
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Silence after an interview | Give a reply date at the interview. The NVP code asks for news on next steps within two weeks of applying |
| "We went with someone else" | Add the requirement that decided it |
| One reason by phone, another by email | Write the reason first, then read it out and paste it |
What changes for staffing agencies and frontline employers?
Agree the possible reasons with the client before anyone is rejected.
At an agency, write the client's requirements into the intake, and when a client turns someone down, ask which requirement decided it before you phone the candidate. Employers with several sites can keep one list of approved reasons per role.
What does this approach not solve?
A consistent reason does not make a poor decision fair.
It helps only if the requirement is fair and was checked the same way for everyone. A note shows what a decision rested on; it does not make it lawful. A candidate in the final round, or one who asks to talk it through, deserves more than a template.
How Radius helps
Radius Hire is the AI hiring platform for frontline roles. Its AI Interviewer and Match sit on one candidate record, with Radius Passport where the employer uses Radius Passport, and a recruiter makes every decision.
Radius never rejects a candidate on its own; a recruiter reviews the evidence and can overrule anything Radius presents (trust). In the Radius ATS, messages, notes and the interview sit on the same record, so your reason sits next to the evidence it refers to. For each requirement, Radius shows whether it is backed by a document or a check, rests only on what the candidate said, or is still missing (Match). Radius is built for staffing agencies that recruit for several clients and sites.
Conclusion
Pick the requirement that decided the outcome, write it down, then say exactly that by phone and in writing. Leave out anything about who the person is, treat missing paperwork as a question, and end with a next step.