Anyone Else Looking For Work?

H

hoho

Cathlete
I am looking for work and I am so depressed and Discouraged. I have even tried retail jobs etc and I never even hear back. I have had a couple interviews with HR departments and still I never hear back. I remember the day when I could walk in anywhere and walk out with a job. I have worked in Marketing, HR. Customer Service, Management. I have a great employment history , I no how to interview. The issue is getting A INTERVIEW! Even Retail and fast food doesn't give you an interview anymore. Not my favorite idea of work but I will take anything when down and out.

I am so depressed as I have had to move in with Family. I am a private set in my ways kind of person. I WANT MY OWN PLACE and need to have it for workouts as well as my sanity.

I am just curious if anyone else is experiencing this and how you keep your spirits up?
 
Hello!

I just found a part time seasonal job in retail. I actually start this afternoon. I have had a lot of problems finding a job also. I have been looking for over a year. I am even signed up with a temp agency. I have only done a couple things for them in the last year. I have a degree in HR management, customer service, bookkeeping, call center, etc. experience. It is rough out there. I have not worked in retail in over 20 years. This is not the job I really want (I am blessed to have it though), but it will get us through the end of the year. Thank goodness for my husband's job. He works a whole lot right now supporting us. Good luck and the right job will come along. I know how discouraging it is, but just keep looking.

Denise
 
I feel your pain. I've been looking for a parttime job on evenings and weekends and can't seem to find anything either. I've basically been looking for retail since the holiday season is upon us, but nothing as yet. The gov't gave us a paycut and I'm having a hard time making ends meet, so a part-time job is a must.
 
Thanks Ladies for your replies. I could maybe handle the no work if I liked where I was living. I have no space of my own and all my stuff is so disorganized. It takes me forever to find the clothes etc I need when trying to get out there and hit the pavement.
 
I'm going through the exact same thing. I've sent out at least 25 resumes and have had 2 call backs. TWO! And after my first interview I hear nothing.

First I think that is very rude. At least call/email and let me know the position was filled instead of making me sit around day in and day out wondering if I'm going to hear from you.

Second, what do these people want???? Like the OP said, I use to be able to walk in a place, sit down with them and walk out with the job. Now I don't even get a call back. WTH??? Very frustrating.

I just had an interviwe last week for a job any monkey could do. I did well with the interview and I dressed professionally. To the nine's I might add. The lady seemed impressed with my experience and I honestly thought I'd hear back. Nope. Was suppose to hear back by Friday. :mad:

I just don't get it. What do you have to do to get a job anymore?

Luckily, I have a part-time job, but I so desperately want a full time job. :(
 
I hear YA Debbie. I sent out over 50 resumes and only two interviews. I also find it very rude they don't at least send out a letter to say the position was filled. I realize that for every job they probably have hundreds and maybe thousands of resumes. At least notify the people you interview the outcome.
I went out this weekend to every retailstore in my area and they all said that they would take an application but they were well staffed for the holiday season. Like you Debbie I dress to the nines no matter what the position is. Even fast food which I would hate but at least it would be some money! Good luck to you.

Being single I have no other source to depend on but me. Thank God my child is grown!
 
It is really bad out there. A lot of my friends got laid off this past year due to cutbacks and they are finding it very difficult to find a job, even PT as you ladies mentioned. Supposedly things are so stringent now that you have to be EXACTLY what the hiring managers are looking for: not over/under-dressed, not over/under-qualified, not over/under-enthusiastic, etc. It's crazy!!!!! I also read something where HR departments are reading through resumes and contacting old associates not listed as a reference, just to dig up any negative information on a job candidate and weigh whether that is detrimental or can be bypasses if they were offered the job. Supposedly because of limited budgets and cutting costs, companies are doing their best to make sure they hire the ideal candidate. It's really rough.

Good luck in your efforts!!!!!!!!!
 
Thanks Melissa. I agree they must be looking for the perfect fit. I also believe they may be looking for who they can get who will come in at the low end of the pay scale. One of the jobs I went through two interviews for told me I was the most qualified. Yet I did not get the job????
 
From the other side...
I had an open position for 2 months and had trouble finding good candidates to interview. The main requirement was a decent amount of customer service experience. We would have trained on the rest. Great hours with no weekends or holidays but few candidates. We were expecting tons of over qualified people however that wasn't the case and it took 2 months to find a good person. Fortunately she accepted! As far as money, I haven't tried hiring people for less because of the economy. If I find someone that I think is a great fit for the job and dept, I want them to succeed and be happy. Part of that is pay so I go as high as I can based on internal equity.

Sorry to hear so many are having a hard time finding jobs. Hope things turn around and you find something soon. Just keep applying and hopefully something will work out sooner rather than later.
 
Hi Marie, thanks for the "other side post" Very interesting that it took you so long to fill the position!! Also glad to know not all companies are not LOW balling the candidates.
 
Marie, that surprised me as well. I know both places that I've applied for said they received hundreds of resumes. And seriously, do they REALLY look at them all? I would think you'd try to find the first few who could do the job, talk to them and go from there. I highly doubt a company would wade through each and every resume they received. I could be wrong, though.
 
Me too. Luckily, I have my own business to fill in the resume, but I haven't had a client in about a year and a half. I am living with my folks. I'm extremely grateful to have a place to live. I go outside for hikes, do yoga dvds, write in my journal, study software (job skills don't ya know;) ) and I clean the house. I'm busily getting rid of lots of clutter. I also do yard work. I don't know if any of that would help you.
 
What do you mean by having the business to fill in the resume? I am glad you have a place to stay that you are comfortable in. I am not comfortable where I am staying and have no privacy. They eat unhealthy and are couch potato's. I am not ungrateful but I want MY OWN PLACE and I want some money :) I lost my place next will be my car :(

I feel so bad for all of us who want/need work. Good luck to all of us!
 
Awww Hoho, I will say a prayer for you. Keep a positive attitude, that's what I'm trying to do. {{{hugs}}}

RapidBreath, I'm wondering what you mean with the resume too. You own your own business?
 
What I hate about job hunting:

1. Like all of you have mentioned - not calling/e-mailing to say that I didn't get the job. How hard is that? sure they had hundreds of resumes, but you didn't have hundreds of interviews.

2. Not listing salary, yet demand that YOU send them your salary requirements. If your request doesn't match what they have budgeted - it most likely knocks you out of the running, but you'll never know.

3. Here in NY I see ads with employers requiring that you have all these computer skills (beyond the basics) and years of experience yet offer pay rates that even a recent college grad would turn down. A lot of companies are surely taking advantage of the recession and peoples desperation.

4. Some companies have audacity to require that you stay on for at least 2 years or promise that you want to be there for the long term. While I am looking for a long term position, I can't predict what I will feel about my boss, co-workers or the work itself. And don't ask me to commit when employers can't commit to me. A lot of employers can fire you at will, why should I promise them two years of my life if they can't guarantee I won't lose my job.

I am just happy right now that I can still pay my rent and the few bills that I have - thank goodness I didn't have a lot of bills.
 
Lastchance - I so agree with you!!! And you are right, some of the requirements for jobs are downright crazy. I don't get it. And the recession is playing a BIG part in what companies do right now because they can get away with it.

I finally emailed a follow-up email to the lady that interviewed me last week. Lets see if she responds....

Dammit, at least I deserve an answer one way or the other! :mad:
 
Good luck to everyone on this thread who is looking for work. I am really sorry for what you are going through.

One thing to consider is freelance services or going into a no/low investment business of your own. It could even be an interim measure until you find a job.

Freelance services could be event organiser and master of ceremonies to companies. Or someone who gets a brief and creates powerpoint presentations.

I would hire fitness freak to workout with me in a trice if she were interested in personal training. I know someone who had trained for years at yoga as a hobby who took to offering classes in a "home visit" model because he couldnt find a job and lived in a place where he couldnt have clients come over. He continued these personal yoga lessons while job hunting, until he realised he was making more money working fewer hours than he would in a job. He is one of the most successful yoga teachers in my city today. He still does one on one sessions for clients by doing home visits, but his reputation has grown by word of mouth to the extent that he can charge premium rates.

One business that is very popular in my part of the world is offering home cooked meals to neighbours. Customers typically place a standing instruction for a meal (usually dinner) every day of the week, or on specific days of the week. This is just for regular home cooked meals - there is no choice to order from or regular menu Singles or busy couples with kids are the typical clients. I am not sure if that requires licensing in your part of the world though.

It could be based on any skill or interest - baking cakes to order, giving cooking lessons, catering for parties, giving kids lessons in painting.....

I do realise this isnt a solution for everyone, because some people dont like marketing themselves.
 
Vee, you are so sweet. I'd really love to be a one-on-one trainer but it costs money and takes time to get certified. I have neither right now. But that would be my ultimate dream if I could do whatever I wanted. But you peaked my interest now, so I may look into it a bit further. Only thing is - where I live there really isn't much interest in fitness. Sad but true. But you never know unless you try, right?
 
Lastchance09 said:
What I hate about job hunting:

Here in NY I see ads with employers requiring that you have all these computer skills (beyond the basics) and years of experience yet offer pay rates that even a recent college grad would turn down. A lot of companies are surely taking advantage of the recession and peoples desperation.
Click to expand...

I found that too!! I still have my resume up on various jon hunting sites so I still get the emails about open marketing positions even though I'm not actively looking for work. Do you know that quite a few positions are requiring 5+ years of experience, an advanced degree and are paying MAYBE $35K?! In NY, come on!!! I can't believe some of the requirements on some of these postings.

FitnessFreak, I agree with Vee: you would be an excellent trainer!!! You could still look for work and train on the side. You never know, your area could be an untapped market for fitness! It never hurts to try :)
 
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