Want a job? There are plenty out there.

reply to post by metaldemon2000

put an ad in your local paper offering electronic repairs and a low but fair wage plus parts. go door to door with a flyer with your qualifications and offer your neighbors your services. if all else fails do yard work. sticking to your field of study only severely limits your options and hobbles your likelihood of finding employment/

reply to post by CaDreamer


Trying to put my skills to use in my community is pointless. There's a lot I cannot do due to restrictions of conflicts of interest with the company I work for. Nothing in the communications field basically. Like I said we are behind in the times here. Many repair companies.for.electronics for a resonable price also. Which is the other problem. Lack of big companies. Most contractors and businesses here are mom and pops or two bobs in a truck. Very small time who are one man shows or never hire. They barely get by either. I currently work for a large telco but our services anrent in demand because our local economy has been dwindling for the last. 3 decades. No growth. There hasn't been since the 70s. Jobs in my company are scarce. No vacant positions have come up and barely any will over the next 7 years. We have a reletively young workforce.

My only option is to move which I have no problems with. There are many jobs in different sectors I can do. My question is how to go about finding them when alot of these companies don't post job apps publicly and just pull from a resume pool.

reply to post by metaldemon2000


regional availability of CERTAIN jobs is in fact a problem. We as a society have become too specialized.

when i was a kid my father used to take me every summer to friends of his and put me in a different work environment. as a result i became familiar with many different fields of work. My fathers philosophy was simple, learn to do a large variety of jobs and you will never have difficulty finding work.

I firmly believe that my father hit the nail on the head with that. I have followed that philosophy my whole life, i am a journeyman in many fields. His statement that i would never have any trouble finding work because of that philosophy has been 100% correct.

Because of economic uncertainty, people are afraid to, start over, or to begin a different or tangent career. he who hesitates masturbates...

Carpe diem seize the day, for to do anything else your heart you betray. john franklin

reply to post by CaDreamer


I simply cannot.start over.
I owe too much In student loans to go back to school. My wife doesn't make enough to support us if I do. There aren't enough job opportunities or growth sectors I can get in to in my city. We are not close to another big city. The only industries I can get in to here I would either have to take a ten dollar an hour pay cut or ill never make what I make now in those sectors. I am willing to take a paycut as long as it leads to better wages in the future. Im riding the edge of bankruptcy as it is so a significant paycut wont do. And yes I've cut back in order to live within my means if that is what you are thinking.

My only option is relocation

reply to post by metaldemon2000


Forget looking in places that everyone else looks. (Do it, but make sure it's not your entire game-plan.) You are qualified for? ____________.

Companies that have these jobs?

Start looking online, business directories and yellow pages, or anywhere else where you can find information on companies that have the job you are seeking.

If there are companies that you are not sure require someone with your expertise, call them and ask.

Make a plan to distribute resumes. For every resume handed out, make sure you follow up within a week.

Rinse, repeat.

reply to post by boncho


Do follow ups make that much of a difference??? I never tried that. Im used to the usual rejection letter saying I do not meet qualifications yadda yadda.
Im not sure companies.are willing to take risks in hiring from long distance when theycan just hire from the local pool.

Originally posted by metaldemon2000
reply to post by boncho

 

Do follow ups make that much of a difference??? I never tried that. Im used to the usual rejection letter saying I do not meet qualifications yadda yadda.
Im not sure companies.are willing to take risks in hiring from long distance when theycan just hire from the local pool.

Absurd. Decent prospects can be found from all over. Having a prospective employee relocate means the chance of them leaving the position is much lower than hiring out of the local pool.

Yes, follow ups make a huge difference. If someone doesn't hire me I will call them and put them on the spot. I would ask to speak to the person who made the hiring decision.

"John, I had an interview with you last week. I am following up to see if you have moved forward with the hiring process and whether or not you are ready to commit to hiring me."

If the send you a letter to decline:

"John, I had an interview with you last week. I just received this letter and I would like to know the contributing factors for your companies decision to pass on my employment offer."

You'd be surprised how many people will say 'yes' when you put them on the spot. Basically, they didn't hire you, be polite but push, push, push, until they are ready to hang up on you.

Tell them you are a fit for the company, when you are ready to start, and then close. "I will be ready to start on Friday, John, would you like to reconsider and have me come in..."

If they say 'no' to anything, ask why, if they give you a reason, find a reason to override that one.

"The positions are filled." Will be the most common explanation.

"John, I understand you have made your decisions. But as you know the hiring process does not always screen prospective employees perfectly. How about I come in for training with your other prospects and you can make your final decision after the training process. It would be beneficial to the company if the more functional prospect is hired."

You would be surprised some of the things you can say to people...

I will say one thing though. If you take a hard-line approach at getting a job make sure you do two things.

Be confident.

And back up your confidence with your actions.

Excellent advise.
I will try this.

follow ups make a huge difference, as a former employer, i must say, that if people didn't follow up. i lost interest in hiring them. it shows a good work ethic and a desire to not be idle and is a positive sign for 99% of employers.

relocation may bot be your only choice, looking at your living situation and eliminating unneeded expenses really adds to income available for other needs.

Such as, is an apartment more economical than living in a home? yes almost always. Is there a lower rent area in the city that you haven't considered? perhaps...
there are many ways to live A LOT cheaper and thus be just as happy and able to have a great fun life, without resorting to relocation.

good luck by the way i do hope things work out for you. just don't give up!

I am a semi-retired heavy crane operator and mechanic
The company I work for has had a major slow down in the past year I have been with them 15 years.
Times are tough but there are lots of things you can do to make money .

Find something others dont want to do and become the best there is at that job
For instance..contracting to pick up dog poop from peoples yards .cleaning and changeing A/C filters in apartments.
The work is out there..even running a paper route will work ..do something till something better presents itself !

Good Thread Boncho S&F

reply to post by CaDreamer


Relocation is not an option for me, even though I would give anything to get out of where I live.
While I am not technically looking for another job, I was browsing through the want adds last night and there was only one job that I qualified for. We had 3,000 people show up to apply for McDonald's big hiring day only 40 were hired. You live in Napa, good for you, every one knows that's where all the jobs are. Realistically, not every one can move there. People like you make me sick, because you think that just because you have the perfect set of circumstances that makes finding a job easy, that every one who doesn't have as easy of a time finding a job, is either lazy or doing it wrong.

The problem in my eyes is this:

The people of my generation (20 to early 30 year olds) have been fed a line since we started school. Go to college get a degree and everything will work out. Sure you'll have hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt at 22 but you'll get a decent paying job at the bottom and work your way up. College was the only way. Now these people have spent years getting educated and are stuck in minimum wage jobs with no chance of advancement.

They can't simply "start over" not when your stuck with That type of debt and I don't blame people with masters who spent years studying and spending money being disillusioned with a minimum wage job working alongside people with barely high school educations.

reply to post by drock905


Tell me about it. I bought that line too. Spent the last ten years mastering my line of work only to find out that I should have taken other avenues or that my post seconday education was worthless.

reply to post by boncho


"extra work on your own time" really?? this has to be one of the most ridiculous things Ive ever heard. if it is admittedly "work" why can't it be done at...uh,,,I don't know......work maybe?

that is work?? what third world communist gulag did you come from??? doing work on your own time...MEANS ITS NOT YOUR OWN TIME..

and if that many people are immediately having problems something smells...

It sounds from the outside like a common (these days) case of an employer taking advantage of desperate people in these difficult times..

You do know the difference between 'work' and off time right?

reply to post by granpabobby


How much would someone pay to pick up dog poop in their yard?

how many people would hire you to do that?

How far away would each 'job' be?

transportation costs would probably eat up 'income'

Typical case of pompousity...uhhhh, derrrrr, find something someone else won't do and do it..

Originally posted by calstorm
reply to post by CaDreamer

 

Relocation is not an option for me, even though I would give anything to get out of where I live.
While I am not technically looking for another job, I was browsing through the want adds last night and there was only one job that I qualified for. We had 3,000 people show up to apply for McDonald's big hiring day only 40 were hired. You live in Napa, good for you, every one knows that's where all the jobs are. Realistically, not every one can move there. People like you make me sick, because you think that just because you have the perfect set of circumstances that makes finding a job easy, that every one who doesn't have as easy of a time finding a job, is either lazy or doing it wrong.

i relocated here 180 miles from my hometown with no job and a family of 4. california is in the top 3 of unemployment in the nation.

Originally posted by iSwag

If you apply for a job and submit an application, ALWAYS follow through with your application and the business. Call them back, show them that you are really interested in the job. Businesses LOVE when people check in on their application status because it shows that they are committed. Never say you can't get a job.

Not always the case. In fact, in my line of work, most companies do NOT want you pestering them about the position. In the last week I've probably put in about 35 resumes and filled out over 15 applications. Pretty much every single one said explicitly NO PHONE CALLS ABOUT THIS JOB. This has been the case the entire time I've been looking for work. The ones that don't say that I'll call back in 4 days or so after putting an app in. I got mixed up once and called a company that said "no phone calls" The HR lady was extremely rude and said something along the lines of "Did you even read the ad? We said NO phone calls, goodbye" and she hung up on me.

I've been looking for work for quite some time now, and nothing is off limits to me. I used to be in Factory and warehouse management positions. I've applied to every single Safeway, Fred Myer, Walmart, Winco, Home Depot, etc in my area because I can't find work in my field. They all told me not to call, except for Safeway. I called Safeway up a little after putting my app in, and they said "sorry we don't take phone calls, you have to come in and talk to a manager" So I did. I asked for the manager, told her I put an app in and was inquiring about the position. My conversation was about 20 seconds with her. She said if they want me to come in for an interview they'll call, and then walked off.

Different industries different practices. So no, calling and harassing them isn't always the best idea. In my case, they specifically tell you to NOT do that in the majority of cases.

Originally posted by boncho
Even if it was a genuine layoff, the company still chose you over it's other employees to layoff.

This is not always true, either.

I was laid off, and it was NOT the choice of the company. In fact, the company tried to keep me on, and got in trouble for doing so.

It was a union position, and everything went by seniority. The company laid off around 40 people IIRC, and about 10 of the people that got laid off had more seniority that I did. As per union rules, they have to lay people off based on their date of hire. The newest people get laid off first, period.

I was excellent in my position, and the company kept me over the 10 people who had more seniority than me. The union got involved and threatened the company, since they didn't follow union rules of laying off the newest people first. So, they had to put my position up for bid to the 10 people with more seniority than me. One of them took my position, and I was laid off. I was good friends with many of the people still there, and they would tell me how my department went down hill after I left. The company's management tried to bargain with the union to bring me back, but they wouldn't budge. They told me if they hire people back, my old job would be waiting for me. They have since laid off over 50 more people, so obviously that didn't happen.

The company went so far as to attempt to hire me on as a salary non-union employee. They union wouldn't have it, as my position as laid out in the union contract was to be held by union employees only, not salary employees.

So, just because someone gets laid off doesn't mean their employer chose someone else over them. Pretty much any time it's a union position, who gets laid off is almost never a choice, it's just the newest people. That's how it's been in every single union job I've had.

Originally posted by CaDreamer
give me a lawnmower and a weed whacker and i can earn 200 dollars a day easily.

That's good for you. Because you can do it, that's absolute proof it will work anywhere in the country.

Every couple of weeks there is a guy that knocks on my door and asks if he can mow my lawn. He only asks 10 dollars. I've had him do it a few times as I felt bad for him and wanted to help him out, even though I'm barely getting by right now by doing odd jobs and temp work here and there. Last time he came by I had absolutely no money and couldn't help him out. Me and him chat a little bit when he comes around, one time he stopped by around 3pm. He said he had been out since 8 that morning, covered several miles, and said he had ONE person hire him. Almost a full 8 hours and only ONE person in a huge area hired him.

So should I do that? Should I go mow lawns? Knowing there is someone else in my direct area that can't even make more than $10 a day?

People need to stop judging other people's situations. You know, the whole country isn't in the exact same position as you. They don't all have the same opportunities and chances that you do. People talk about lazy Americans. You must have a lot of lazy people in your area that can't even cut their own grass if you can make $200 a day doing that. Sorry, but not everyone lives in an area where they can make money doing that.

Please realize that things are different all over. To think that the issue is just a bunch of lazy people that don't want to work is ridiculous. I don't know where all you people live, I'm in Oregon so our employment options might be more limited than yours, but things are really bad here. The paper, craigslist, job search websites, they all have a TINY TINY fraction of the jobs they used to. Add in the places that WONT HIRE THE UNEMPLOYED, ask for extreme amounts of experience or education for entry level positions, not even offering full time work, or a wage that allows you to even get gas to drive to work and eat a few meals, and the outlook is bleak.

People want to work, but they also want to earn a fair wage and be treated like decent human beings and not slaves. You really don't think they should be upset about doing work "on their own time" It's THEIR time for a reason. Why on earth should you do work when you aren't getting paid for it, especially if the company treats you like crap and doesn't even pay that well when you are actually on the clock?

I see the brainwashing is working well. It's not that decent positions are disappearing faster than people are dying, it's just that those scumbag working class people are lazy! How dare they expect to be paid a living wage and treated fairly!

Originally posted by rebeldog
reply to post by boncho

 

"extra work on your own time" really?? this has to be one of the most ridiculous things Ive ever heard. if it is admittedly "work" why can't it be done at...uh,,,I don't know......work maybe?
that is work?? what third world communist gulag did you come from??? doing work on your own time...MEANS ITS NOT YOUR OWN TIME..

and if that many people are immediately having problems something smells...
It sounds from the outside like a common (these days) case of an employer taking advantage of desperate people in these difficult times..
You do know the difference between 'work' and off time right?

No. During the learning curve there will be some work needed to be done on one's own time. That happens at a lot of places.

That is not communist, nor is it slave labor, nor is it taking advantage of your workers. That is a new worker dealing with the learning curve. Once you have been around for over a year, these things go away. People become more efficient at what they do. Have more time off, have less work to do at home.

And yes, careers do require work done "on your own time" sometimes. That is life. And a career is part of your life.

reply to post by James1982

This is not always true, either.

I was laid off, and it was NOT the choice of the company. In fact, the company tried to keep me on, and got in trouble for doing so.

It was a union position...

That is what I meant by tradework, (although I should have been more specific) trades = union jobs.



"Something else people fail to address, is that in industries other than tradework, a layoff is often a nice way for the company to let you go."

post by James1982
People want to work, but they also want to earn a fair wage and be treated like decent human beings and not slaves. You really don't think they should be upset about doing work "on their own time" It's THEIR time for a reason.

So 80k/year isn't good enough for the people who walked out of the company. They walked out because they didn't want to put the work in for the 80k. They sure wanted the wage though.