Companies with Openings

Chevron See Website

Samsung See Website

Allianz See Website

McKesson See Website

BASF See Website

99ers and the Long-term Unemployed

99ers and the Long-term Unemployed Are the Elephants in the Economic Recovery Room

The latest BLS employment report showed a gain of 244,000 jobs for April, which was trumpeted by the Obama administration and the media as a continuation of a rapidly improving jobs market. While job growth is important, it's also important to realize the jobs hole that needs to be filled. Over the past four months more than 800,000 jobs have been created, but in January 2009 alone, more than 800,000 jobs were lost. Read the full article pubished by Huffpost Aol News

Companies with Openings

Avery Dennison

P&G

Amtrak

GEICO

Staples

RaceTrac

America’s Middle Class Crisis: The Sobering Facts

Two recessions, a couple of market crashes, and stubbornly high unemployment are all wreaking havoc on America's middle class. (Read the complete article on Yahoo Finance)

Career Pages

Below are a few companies and websites that may be of interest to job seekers.

Career Pages on FaceBook

Home Depot
Sears Holdings
GM
Verizon
Ford Motor Company

Companies with Openings
Johnson & Johnson
Sara Lee
United Technologies 　

　

　

　

　

Stale Ads

As a job hunter there has probably been a time when you’ve come across an ad for a job that seems perfect for you only to realize that the ad was posted a week or two weeks ago. Normally, most of us conclude that it’s a stale ad and we should move on and keep looking. We rationalize, surely the job has been filled by now. After all a week or two is a long-time when it comes to an open position.

However did you know that many employers state that the majority of resumes that they receive do not match the job description and that many applicants turn out to be unqualified for the positions that they are applying for. Even in these days of high unemployment often times a company has to run an ad a couple of times before they find the “right” person.

Even if a company does identify a few canidates that have the qualifications and the required skills there may be some personal characteristics that the employer is seeking that the canidates do not possess. For example, the employer may be seeking a person who seems thick-skinned because they know that the new employee will be working with a very critical and intense manager. They may be looking for someone who can do the job and also has a real good sense of humor because the light heartiness can help to lift morale around the office. They may be looking for someone who seems like they would not feel put upon if they are asked to run personal errands. There can also be times when the most promising canidate finds a job before they hear back from the company and as a result they turn down the offer. In short, the field may still be wide open. And the "right" person could very well be you.

Therefore, before you jump to the conclusion that the job has been filled or that the company has already narrowed down their choices, ask yourself why not and consider submitting your resume anyway. You don’t have anything to lose and who knows you may end-up being the one.

South Florida Major Employers

The economic crisis has let up somewhat in the State of Florida, but with an 11.1 percent unemployment rate it‘s still too early to breathe a sigh of relief. Hoping this information on major employers in the South Florida region is helpful.

Major Employers in Miami-Dade County

Major Employers in Broward County

Major Employers in Palm Beach County

Soaring Costs Force Some Renters To Choose Between Shelter And Food

From the Huffpost AOL News, April 26, 2011, "The number of households spending more than 50 percent of their income on rent and bills jumped by 2.6 million over the last decade, according to a Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies report."

Read the full Article

Moving Forward

Times have chanced many of us are not just flirting with a new reality, we have been seeded into it. Moreover, many of us who live in states that were hit hard by the economic collapse such as Florida, Nevada, Texas, Mississippi and a few others, it looks like things will not be changing in the near future. If anything, with budget cuts looming overhead in many states things may get worse. Some of us have been fortunate enough to find jobs and even if they are not paying what we were earning before the recession began most of us are grateful that we have some form of employment. We are all too aware that there are people whose job search has entered its second or third year with no end in sight. There are people who have lost everything and those who are on the verge of losing things that they worked a life-time to have or to establish. Many are in the process of making life-style changes to fit the new reality.

Nonetheless, humans are resilient. The economic crisis and its aftermath will one day amount to a couple of pages in the back of history books, blogs or eBooks. Children will ask their parents, what was it like living in the great recession. And many of our children will sound like our parents or grandparents as they describe the hardships that they experienced as their parents looked for employment and tried to keep the family together.

This is why there will be some changes made to the Everyday Dilemmas blog. The changes are a way to reflect on the past and come to terms with where many of us are today. It will not be a place to finger point, lay blame, accuse any group or race nor a place to reject or support any particular political leader or party. It will be what it is and what a blog is meant to be a source of entertainment.

I am sure that there will be people who will not like what they read here as well as others who will feel differently. It is up to the reader to either stop reading or to continue to do so. As trying to please everyone is in itself its own dilemma.

The Right Skills for the Job

In the past, managers and directors had a staff of subordinates that drafted documents, input data, compiled information and ran reports. Many managers would draft or produce handwritten content for a letter or proposal and pass the document on to a subordinate to finish up it up by formatting, adding the recipient's address, printing out the document, filing or scanning it, seeing that it got in the mail and so-forth. Email blasts, fliers, and newsletters were often developed by outside vendors under the direction of a company's manager. Now many of these tasks are the duties of managers and directors. This means that today executives not only need to know what is needed, they need to know how to create it.

It also means that those with technical skills need to know more than how to create reports or how to develop attractive eye catching designs or running a bulk email system. They need to know when, why and how this work is needed as well as have the ability to independently manage their work. They need to know how to present their work and findings to senior management, potential customers and stakeholders. This makes management skills essential in today's job market even for the technology set.

This is where training comes in to play. Many who held subordinate roles and lost their jobs may need to take management courses. These courses will allow them to see the company as a whole and help to clarify the role of information within a company. Those who lost their management positions may need courses in technology. These classes will allow them to become familiar with utilizing technology.

Many job seekers have probably noticed that they come up short in one of these areas. They have technical know how, but lack management experience or they have management experience and lack technical knowledge. It has come be known as skill mismatch and it leaves many jobs unfilled. This is because many companies want people with all or most of the skills outlined in the job description.

This may seem like bad news to job seekers whose funds are short. However, there are many free and low cost ways to help bring skills up to today's standards. Below are a few suggestions:

Find someone in the field who is willing to teach you. Of course nothing is free, but try to barter. Tell them that you will help them out in some manner if they help you by teaching you something. For example, a person with technology skills may offer to teach a small business owner how to to build a database, create and edit their company website or help them to sync to their i phone to their calendar and contact list. In exchange the small business owner would allow them to write a few new business letters, write some content for a marketing piece or attend a couple of business networking events with them. Ask for their opinion of your work and continually strive to improve. This would allow the techie to learn some management skills.

Search Google for free webinars in your area of interest. There are many companies and industry experts that offer free webinars on a variety of subjects everyday. Also, in many cases if you missed a webinar they are normally archived and can be found after the live event has taken place. This can help anyone.


Alison offers free online courses in a variety of subjects. Most of the classes are developed off-shore, but do not make the mistake of assuming they are easy, some are pretty intense. Courses are designed for those who want to brush up on skills, need technical skills as well as those who want to explore skills within the management field.

Go to your local Workforce or One Stop office and look into free courses. In many cases, even if you have a degree they will pay for training to update your skills. They often offer courses through local colleges in both technology and management skills. Most offer courses in areas that complement employment opportunities in your region or community.

If you do not qualify for free courses, see if your local community college offers online courses. Typically noncredit, continuing education online or blended courses cost a fraction of the price of a regular classroom for credit course. Some continuing education courses can cost as little as $50.00.

Go to the library and borrow DVD's or CD's on courses of interest. Most libraries have a section where videos on a variety of subjects are available and can be borrowed for a week or even a month depending on the subject matter. You can borrow videos that cover everything from business writing to basic math to a foreign language courses. Of course you can also borrow books on a variety of subjects there as well.

Check out industry newspapers and trade magazines. They often have articles on new technology and how it can be useful from a management perspective. Many trades have online versions.

If you read and mark-up books like I do, then I would not suggest the library. However, Amazon now offers Kindle desk-top, laptop and i phone apps which will allow you read up on your subject of interest for a fraction of the cost of a traditional book. And if you read with a highlighter and make notes in margins this may be right down your alley. You can't really cozy up with your computer at bedtime like you can with a book but, you can make a ritual of reading a few chapters before retiring at night. Often times, technology books will provide information on websites where free or trial versions of software are available for practicing what you've learned.. Also many ebooks on management and leadership are available as well.

Join a group like ToastMasters to enhance or practice your presentation skills or find a group on MeetUp that is geared to your area of interest. For example, if your background is in technology and you need management skills than join a management group. If you are in management, but want to know more about technology then join a tech group.

Not only will doing these things help to increase your skills many of them will also help to broaden your network and increase your chances of learning about an available position. Also learning new things has a way of boosting confidence and demonstrating that you are flexible and willing to learn, which will make you more appealing to potential employers.

Heeding your Internal Warning System Part 3

Salary Negotiations and Employed

When you make it to salary negotiations, you are no longer simply another job seeker, you are the applicant or one of the applicants that the company is seriously considering hiring. Be happy that you made it this far, but do not get so confident until you start believing that it’s a done deal.

During salary negotiations, take care to consider the employee contribution to benefits and if possible get any and all information regarding benefit deductions at the beginning of the negations. Sometimes what starts out being a great salary will become a good salary or even a less than adequate salary once employee benefit contributions are deducted.

If you are hired and receive an employee handbook note if the salary deductions for benefits as well as information on the benefits are outlined in the handbook. If not ask for this information before the probationary period ends. In short, if your paycheck is scheduled to shrink by a significant amount after you become an official employee receiving benefits you want to know and be prepared. You also want to know what services will be covered by these benefits.

Take the cost of working into account as well as your household expenses. Many young or inexperienced workers tend to think of their salary in terms of their personal expenses and or car payments. They completely forget about the cost of working. The cost of working may include gas and or the cost of transportation (fares, tolls, vehicle maintenance and repairs) appropriate work clothing, dry cleaning, lunch money, regular trips to the hair stylist or barber shop, and budget for mileage or cab fares if the job involves traveling to different locations within your city, community or metropolitian region.

Many reentering the workforce after a long stretch on unemployment may find that their past salary has little or no impact on the salary that they can currently command. Many positions that once offered salaries of $70,000, $80,000 or more are now paying $25,000, $30,000 or $40,000. However, every now and again an applicant will come across companies advertising similar positions for $60,000 or $70,000. In short, salaries are currently all over the place. After I conducted a quick and unofficial review of salaries in this area, I saw low-to-mid level management positions paying anywhere $9.00 per hour to $31.00 an hour. Few would argue, this is a big difference and the reasons behind this large gap can vary.

In most cases, it is up to the applicant to learn the pay range for the position that they are applying for in their region or city. As a job seeker you should know your minimum salary requirements. If you low ball yourself during salary negotiations in order to get the job, your pain will be your problem. While in some rare cases it does happen, do not expect your employer to feel sympathetic towards your financial plight. Nevertheless, if it is apparent that your household expenses and the cost of working totals more than most employers in your area are willing to pay, you may have no choice but to consider doing without a few things or taking on a second job in order to make-ends meet.

During salary negotiations find out if employees are required to sign a non-compete agreement or if the company has a no moonlighting clause. Sometimes companies will not tell applicants about these documents until after the applicant has signed and accepted the job offer. Experts advise applicants to check with an attorney prior to signing a non-compete agreement or no moonlighting clause. According to these experts once these types of agreements have been signed, it can be very difficult or even impossible renegotiate.

If you have any questions or doubts regarding the position’s classification. Ask if the position is salaried or hourly. When you sign the offer of employment, make sure that the correct classification is on the document. Also ask if there are any specific policies associated with your classification. For example, in some companies salaried workers are expected to be available by phone at all times. Hourly, workers may be required to leave at the end of the regular work day, unless management requests them to stay late.

If the job involves travel find out if the company pays major expenses such as airfare and hotel prior to the trip of if you will be responsible for the cost of travel upfront and reimbursed later for these expenses. This is especially important if you have been unemployed for a while and as a result your credit cards may be maxed-out. Also you may have been working or earning an income throughout the recession, but the credit card company may have unexpectedly lowered your credit limit. In either case, you should consider this when applying for a job that involves travel.

Remember, if your caution light came on comes on at some point, either before the interview, during the interview or while you are working with the company, do not purposely turn it off. Do not fool yourself into believing that you will be able to indefinitely act, talk or charm your way past issues such as a lack of experience or a dislike of your job responsibilities. On the other hand, do not bury your head so far into your work until you are not paying attention to what is going on around you. Keep your ear to the ground. Be mindful of any signs or movement that could indicate that the company may be in trouble or that your employment situation may soon change. Note, this does not mean that you should start rumors or help to spread any rumors that may already be circulating.

It is up to employees and potential employees to be vigilant and to look out for their interest. Do not brag or discuss this openly, but don't feel ashamed either. Things are tough all over and if you don’t bother to keep your future in mind, who will.

Heeding your Internal Warning System Part 2

Doing your Homework


Everyone knows that a job seeker needs to learn about the available position, how well they may be able to do the job and being a perfect fit for the position. However, they also need to have a clear impression of the company that they are contemplating signing-up with and whether or not the relationship has the potential to last as for long as they need it. These days, signing-up with a company where the relationships quickly sours or ends unexpectedly for any reason can be devastating to future career goals. Do not expect this to change until the employment situation improves and employers become more willing to learn about an applicant’s specific circumstances, prior to eliminating him or her as a potential candidate. Until we reach that point your resume is your best and in many cases your only advocate during your job search. Therefore, keeping it as pristine as possible should be a career objective.

Think of your resume as your credibility report. It not only speaks to your area of experience, it sends clues to employers on how well you preformed at your last job, it indicates your ability to be loyal and stick with a company as well as your former employers’ willingness and need to keep you employed with the company. A history of job hopping or what may appear to be job hopping can side-line a job seeker. Even if the job seeker has simply been a victim of unfortunate circumstances. An article from the Wall Street Journal, dated October 6, 2009 and titled, Coping With a Job Loss—Again further explains this situation and provides suggestions on how a job seeker can go about resurrecting their image.

As something of a perpetual job seeker, meaning that when I am not looking for work, I am reading about employees, companies and tips for finding jobs. I see where job seekers are advised to read about a company’s products or services as well as the company’s social networking sites before a job interview. However, few mention that job seekers should search out and review a copy of the company’s annual report and read it in preparation for an interview or before applying with a company. A company’s annual report provides information on the company’s financial status as well as some history on the company. There may also be information on changes that were made during the previous year to keep the company competitive, how well the company’s various innovations and initiatives are fairing, their proposed product or service innovations, equipment purchases, new markets, and so forth. The annual report provides information on the company’s objectives. It allows the reader to see how the company is preparing for the future as well as how well it has performed in the past.

Job seekers may also find themselves looking into employment opportunities with smaller companies, or privately owned companies many of which do not produce an annual report. In a situation where no annual report is available getting to the type of information that you may need in order to make an informed decision may be a bit more complex. It is good to learn about any family members or business partners that may be involved in the management of the company. Ask about the average length of time employees stay with the company. Find out how long the company has been in business and under the same management. If a company recently changed management then a job seeker should note that if hired, things may be a bit bumpy at first as the new management team, existing staff and new employees all settle in and adapt to new or somewhat different policies, roles and routines. If you are applying for a position with a nonprofit, there are several websites and organizations that collect data on nonprofits.

Other situations that may be tricky to navigate is one where the company is expanding from a home based business moving into an office and hiring staff as well as companies that have been in business for a few months or less than five years. These would be considered new companies and are known as start-ups. In most cases there will be minimal information available on start-ups. During the interview a job seekers will have to listen and evaluate what they are being told about the company by the interviewer. Sometimes working with a start-up works out very well for employees who join the company early on, other times things may not work out as expected. It is up to the individual job seeker to determine what is best for them and their lifestyle.

To help avoid becoming a serial job seeker be honest and truthful with yourself. Keep your eyes and ears open. Learn about the position as well as the company. Do your research on the company. When it comes to research, remember that the company website and social networks are good sources for information. However, additional research sources can include google searches, news articles, press releases, Better Business Bureau, annual reports as well as family, friends and individuals working in the same industry.

Heeding your Internal Warning System Part 1

A new year offers lots of promise and possibility for everyone searching for work. According to reports more job opportunities will be available in 2011, than last year. However, compared to the number of unemployed and those looking to leave jobs that they have held for the past few years, jobs are still expected to remain scarce. So why would a job seeker facing this situation ever second guess themselves when it comes to finding a job. It could be because your internal warning system might be trying to tell you that something is not quite right.

Most people have an internal warning system. A personal alert that tries to warn us of potential dangers. The internal warning system is known by several names such as gut feeling, suspicion, intuition, sixth sense, misgivings, and instincts to name a few. No matter the name, there are some instances when we heed the alert; however, at other times our desire to have a specific thing will lead us to ignore our inner caution light, even if it is flashing wildly. The more we believe, feel or know that we need a specific thing, the easier it is to ignore the alarm. When in truth the more we want or need something the more meticulous we should be when it comes to making sure that we are actually getting what we need. This is especially important when it comes to a job.

If a job seeker fails to heed early warning signs they may find themselves in a situation where they are perpetually discontent or facing a second or third round of unemployment. The desire to get back into the workforce may lead them to forge a fit and ignore the signs that are signaling that the job may not be quite right for them.

Truth be told, these days many job seekers don’t give much consideration to the potential negative consequences of accepting a job that is not quite right. They simply convince themselves that they can make the situations work until something better comes along. After all who can afford to think of the future, when it seems like the world is crumbling around you. However, making a job work can involve factors that may be completely out of the employee's hands. For example, it may be difficult or impossible to make it work if the company closes, relocates, eliminates your department or the work is so stressful until it causes physical illness. Even things that the employee does have some control over may prove to be a bit challenging. Knowing the job does not equate to liking the work and seeing someone else do the work is not the same as being skilled and up to the tasks.

Therefore, despite the current economic conditions or maybe even as a result of these conditions, it may be worth considering how your current job search may impact future employment opportunities. This is because few things can stall a future job search faster than a long gap in your resume followed by five or six months of employment and then another long gap. And this could be the end result of accepting a job that is not quite right. As difficult as it may be, eager job seekers need to be somewhat deliberate about their job search. They should think with their heads as well as their wallets.

When a job seeker finally lands that coveted interview, no matter how difficult it may seem at the time, they must remember that the company is not just interviewing the job seeker, the job seeker is interviewing the company as well. As a job seeker it is important to get a feel for the job, the person or individuals who may be their boss or supervisor and the company. Just as a company reviews resumes before inviting job seekers in to their office. Job seekers need to remember to use this time to evaluate the position, and the company to make sure that they feel comfortable and confident about the possible employment opportunity. In an employer’s market this may sound downright risky; however, to do otherwise would be doing a disservice to yourself and the employer.