Is your parachute packed?

Posted on 03. Dec, 2008 by Bill in Employment News

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Is your parachute packed? Good news: People are getting hired, but finding a job calls for a game plan

In ordinary times, finding a job is no easy task. In extraordinary times like these, it can be downright Herculean. Advertisement

The U.S. unemployment rate is at its highest level in more than 14 years. The number of Americans collecting jobless benefits is at a 25-year high. U.S. employers have shed nearly 1.2 million jobs this year — more than half a million in September and October alone.

In other words, more Americans are looking for work at a time when companies are loath to add new employees. American workers have slogged through recessions before, but this one is shaping up to be a doozy.

“This just seems a little different because it’s kind of the perfect storm,” said Jack Scholz, a regional vice president for staffing firm Robert Half International. “Everybody’s affected by it.”

About 20 job seekers sought a lifeline last week at a free seminar titled “The Employment Rescue Plan,” put on by New Castle-based Advanced Staffing Inc. and Wachovia Bank.

“In these current economic conditions, you really do have to have a game plan,” Advanced Staffing President and CEO Pat Troy-Brooks told the roomful of job seekers.

“The good news is, there are industries that are hiring,” she said. “There are jobs and careers that are growing.”

Troy-Brooks emphasized the rising demand for health-care workers and caretakers for the elderly.

Of the 30 fastest-growing occupations in the next decade, more than half are in a health-care related field, according to projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Other fast-growing professions include computer software engineers, personal financial advisers and network systems and data communications analysts.

The job hunters at last week’s seminar included Max Williams of Newark, who is searching for a job after being fired from the Wilmington pension administrator where he had worked for five years.

Even as he tries to find work, Williams is frustrated by a business environment where companies will “cut anyone’s livelihood off based on protecting the company’s finances.” He said he is going through the state Department of Labor to try to regain his former job.

“I’m at a point where I don’t even want to go through this again,” Williams, 35, said of the job search process. “Me coming here is just trying to encourage myself to go through all that again.”

Troy-Brooks encouraged those at the seminar to treat their job search like a full-time job. Job candidates must prepare thoroughly for interviews and find things that will make them stand out from the crowd, she said.

She emphasized attention to detail during interactions with potential em-ployers: Smile. Maintain eye contact. Have a professional outgoing voicemail message and e-mail address.

“This is not the time for bigbooty@aol.com or mackdaddy@msn.com,” Troy-Brooks said.

Troy-Brooks suggested job seekers make their own business cards to hand out as widely as they can. Scholz echoed the importance of networking, suggesting that job hunters join LinkedIn or another social networking Web site.

“The easiest way to get a job is if you know somebody,” Scholz said.

The one thing job seekers shouldn’t do, he said, is to simply upload a resume to Monster or CareerBuilder, sit back and expect a response from employers, who are being especially picky and cautious about hiring decisions during the downturn.

It’s not just the unemployed who are feeling the pinch of recession: Countless workplaces are facing pressure to cut costs, and the threat of layoffs hangs over workers like a storm cloud.

According to a survey of more than 300 U.S. middle managers from consulting firm Accenture, most said that economic pressures are having a negative impact on their work environments.

More than 60 percent said employees are concerned about losing their jobs or morale is down. And more than half of the managers said they are dissatisfied or only somewhat satisfied with their jobs.

In such an environment, it’s tempting for workers to put their heads down and try to just make it through each day. Troy-Brooks said a better approach is for workers come in early, stay late and work to “recession-proof” their jobs by showing indispensable talents.

“They need to be the positive influence in their office,” she said.

But if the ax falls and it comes time to find work, job seekers can find solace in the story of Patrina Wallace.

The Wilmington resident worked in purchasing for DuPont Co. for 21 years before being downsized in 2001. Thinking her career options were limited, Wallace said she fell into a depression.

But she pulled herself out of it and persevered.

“I looked in the mirror and said, ‘Either you survive, or you fall by the wayside,’ ” Wallace said.

Wallace subsequently found herself in a variety of jobs, including working as an administrative assistant, working at a bank and driving an 18-wheeler.

Staying flexible, she said, has given her options during the downturn. She said she’s learned not to think of a paycheck as the be-all and end-all in life, and she values the freedom to search for a variety of jobs.

“I’m finding it an experience where I’m learning more about myself and what I’m capable of doing,” Wallace said.