Jobs

[May-chan]

Okay, I need to rant... please bear with me...

Since moving to Indiana I have been in search of a job... but it seems impossible to get one.

First off nobody is hiring, how did all these employees get there in the first place? Were they erected along with the building? Were they grown like sea monkeys? How the hell do these people get in there in the first place... These past few weeks I have been watching them set up an AlphaGraphics (sorta like kinkos for businesses I gather) and I planned to go in and apply the day they opened... well that day came yesterday, but I didn't even bother to go in... somehow within 24 hours of opening they were fully staffed... what on earth? I looked and checked and asked around and did everything possible so that if there was some sort of advance notice to apply or whatnot... how in the world did all of those people get there so fast? The nearest one is half a state away... ARG! I am so sick of getting denied when I ask if they are hiring... and then of course there's the "would you like an application? We keep them all on file for when someone quits"... sigh... I've done that in the past, and a waste of ten minutes it is...

and then there are the times when they are actually hiring... you submit an app, a resume, you followup... and the manager or whoever is in charge of hiring is never there or has not gotten around to looking at applicants. Then when you finally do find them it's "oh sorry we already finished filling all the openings"... what the?!?!

And then since August I had been watching this ebay consignment merchant... when I went in there the first time they said that one of their employees was quitting soon and asked for my info and my ebay seller ID so they could look at my feedback and stuff... I checked in once a month until last month when they finally said "oh, that guy didn't quit after all... sorry."

*Rage*

Those times I've made it to the interview have especially frustrated me... when I applied at a screen printer in October, out of six applicants I was undoubtedly the most qualified... I was the ONLY applicant that even KNEW what vectoring was, the only with CAD skills necessary to build upon to use their programs, the only one who picked up on the typos they intentionally stuck in their application to see who could pick up on it, and they were also an outlet for boy and girl scouts and needed someone who knew the ropes so they could sell the right stuff... and guess what... I know both boy and girl scout stuff pretty darn well! As always I was polite, courteous, honest, asked questions and answered theirs. Heck, I even liked the dachshund that the owner often brought to the store... and I STILL didn't get the job somehow... ARG!

I don't know... do I lack some psychic abilities that all other humans have so that they can get jobs? Do other humans shake hands via these psychic paths and gain employment and money and experience and education and training... completely on a different wavelength than I could ever comprehend? Or do I need to sacrifice a goat? What the hell is going on...

[Mitera Nikkou]

It is like that all over the country. Not only that, but there are many places that decrease the work force and rely more on machines. For instance, my father-in-law is a security guard at the mall and, when he had first started, he worked with a small team, and worked six days of the week (usually). Now, they rely on some out-of-state monitoring system, and the four that worked third shift has dwindled down to two: him, and his friend, and they switch who gets three night and four nights each week.

There are some problems finding work locally these days, and not just because of misinformation and mistakes. A common problem, are those online resume sites. When a business is setting up a new location somewhere, they can look up any existing resumes in the area and contact them to seal job positions long before the place is built. Also, they "thin" the workforce, by moving those currently employed from one location to a new one, to relieve salary strain on one place and ensuring experienced staff for the new one.

There are all kinds of reasons for why it's hard to find a job. At one place, they might be focusing on being nice and hiring someone with little or no experience and helping them get started somewhere. In other places, they desire only the best, with experience and dependability. It depends on the place's "motto" (can't think of the exact word I'm looking for), and/or the employer's personal tastes/opinions/prejudices. Of course, you have to also look out for places that hire sub-par to average workers because that tends to get the job done while saving on salary pay-outs. So, in that last case, if you've got a college degree, qualified for the job, or even exceptional, and, in particular, someone with experiene... They'll turn you down because some places are "obligated" to give a certain amount of salary for this or that reason. When that happens, you tend to hear "overqualified", but... That's not always the case; it's just an excuse.

I wish that I could help you, but the best thing that I can suggest is setting up an online resume for businesses to look at, if you don't have one already.

[Christina Anikari]

Well the place you went on opening day logically would not have any openings, you can hardly open a shop when you still need to hire employees. In general if the job situation is anything like here then showing up at the workplace asking for a job isn't the usual way of handling things, instead filing your resume with those online sites, looking over the wanted ads they have and so on. Unsolicited applications only really work if they are well-written and for higher level jobs, anything where any given employee is easily replacable is not something where they are going to bother with unsolicited applications. Finally when you complain about not being hired despite your obvious talent, then it is likely because companies look surprisingly little at formal qualifications, basing their decissions on behaviour and your ability to explain things yourself to them and most importantly your level of confidence.

At least that is how it is in Denmark, i cannot say for certain that it is the same way in the US. The fact that the US unemployment rate is fairly compared to the US norm at the moment, probably doesn't help either.

[Kara-chan]

Well, maybe try temp agencies, I did for the summer and got 12-14 an hour jobs for a month or so at a time. They're pretty good with that stuff so if you've got skills...

[May-chan]

yeah but what kind of jobs do those temp agencies offer, I know of several around here but I'm not going to bother because I know 99% of the jobs they are filling for this area involve driving an eighteen wheeler or assembling RVs...

[Kara-chan]

Well the ones where I'm from are office jobs, then again I live in a pretty urban setting so...@_@

[Beyond]

:v

And I still get less than $300 montly...

[Anamnesis]

I'd rather get less that $300 monthly than get nothing at all.
It was...difficult to find a job that I could get to every day, living in the middle of nowhere. >_<

[Coruscate]

Have you tried monster.com?

[Stellar]

I've been having this same problem since I moved to Washington in December. It's actually strange how exact the situation has been...

I truely know how much it sucks and can only hope that we eventually get a chance....

[Mistress Guendolen]

I hope you both do, too. I was in that exact position for two and a half years after I graudated college. As I was reading this, I was thinking that it sounded just like me.... But as of this week I've been in my current position for a year, so there is hope. I just send you both wishes that your searches are much, much shorter than mine was. I understand the fruitless frustration of the run-around all too well.

[Aaron]

Job/temp agencies here usually have a wide variety of jobs, ranging from carpentry to factory jobs. There is also a government agency that has jobs listings here, so I would look if there is one in your area.

You should also know that, when a knew place opens up, they often look to the job agencies to fill their staff (that and, as people said, online sites and transplanted staff), and you don't have to take any job they call you about (although here they are notorious for needing to be checked up on every day to get the openings). At the very least, you should go there and put in an application. You have nothing to lose from it. The only guarantee is that they won't be able to get a job for you if you don't have one in.

Finally, although it depends what size city/town you live in, but if it's big enough (or near enough to a larger city), there may be free/cheap job publications available. If you know what type of job you want, I'd look for a trade publication (every occupation you can think of has one). They usually have job openings listed.

Going in the front door and asking for an application doesn't typically work a whole lot anymore. Although don't knock having a resume on file. I got my last job (after looking for 5 months or so) because a place had my resume on file. It wasn't a great job, but it paid the bills.

[Coruscate]

Try for some jobs you don't necessarily want, but have opportunities to do something in.

[Monogatari]

i lucked out, i started learning japanese before anime became mainstream. now there's almost a sort of job security for the time being i doubt it'll last though, but i'd say i'm fine for 5 years

[Chibi MitchellTF]

Monotargori, can I eat your brain to learn your knowledge of Japanese?

As for getting a job, I'm not sure what you can do. I've gotten two jobs, one volunteer, one paid work. Both times, I got it by knowing someone in management. If you can get volunteer work, you can put it on your resume, so it's easier to get work. So, you have to have work to get work, which sorta sucks...I'm sorry.