Ive just got rejected by McDonalds - feel so crap

[NeedASaturdayJob]

I need a weekend job and have applied to Next and McD and they have both turned me away at application stage. I feel really shit. Granted I dont have experience in retail but I've mainly worked in admin but I know my skills are transferable. Just feel like a total loser.

I really need a job on the weekend as we need some money. Ive just had a baby and i can't go back to work due to childcare costs.

What am I doing wrong? Do they just want school/ college kids? I know they are probably in high demand but I've tried applying to so many. Ive tried the local supermarkets but only Tesco had a suitable job which I have applied for but Im not holding my hopes even for an interview.

Most of the time your answers need to fit into their criteria so it might be that you didn't tick enough boxes. Maybe Google tips for job applications. Also have a look on their websites at their values/mission statements etc and fit their ethos into your answers.

I'm in retail HR if you'd like any CV or application help. We pay £9 an hour starting pay for all ages don't discriminate by age at all. It's not a minimum wage job with minimum standards.

You have higher standards that you might expect. That's been the case at all the retailers I've recruited for.

It always pisses me off on here when posters say of someone described as not pulling their weight or something (s/he needs to get a part-time job, - even if it’s flipping burgers in McDonalds or stacking shelves in a supermarket [its ALWAYS McDonalds and shelf-stacking]
In my area, these kind of jobs get loads of applications, - why do people think they are there for the taking?
Please don’t beat yourself up about this, they have to find some way to whittle down the applications and previous experience is an easy filter for them.
You could always get in touch and say you were very sorry not to get the post, and that any feedback they could give as to what would have made you a stronger candidate would be gratefully received. You could finish by saying you would like to be considered for any future positions arising and hope to present with a stronger application next time.
It’s a long shot, but I’d be impressed as long as there was no hint of reproach in the email/letter.
It’s really crap getting rejected, you have to really, really try not to take it personally. It’s tough out there, and they are making decisions at speed with very limited information.
Good luck with the job hunting. 💐

Some places use a selection process which is odd. Did you have to answer a few questions about yourself and what you would do in different situations? If the answers don’t match there answers yo7 don’t even get a look in. It’s more the point that there are a lot of people going for the job and they don’t have time to go through all applications and use it to remove the ones that don’t match their ideal candidate quickly.

Not a reflection on you it’s just you didn’t know the answers they were looking for. Think of it as a luck escape not getting the job

I got rejected for a job on checkout at a local supermarket :( Not even rejected, just never heard back from them. Felt a bit shit when I saw they'd then taken on people who genuinely couldn't speak English, but were younger. :(

Could well be because you are too qualified, experienced in your main job. I’d struggle to get part time work with my CV. Don’t take it personally, you’ll find something.

Can you review your CV to show you have work experience but play down the fact you are well experienced in the other area?

Also, only highlight the bits of your job role which are specific to the role you are applying for. It’s easy fo fall into the trap of only having one CV but each role has different requirements so tailor your CV for each one.

who genuinely couldn't speak English

This is clearly not true. A) impossible to interview and B) couldn’t do the role.

If you really want to work in retail, get some hours in a charity shop so you'll learn how tills, credit card machines etc work.

"I think retail jobs often go to the under 21's as they're cheaper to hire."

This ^^ is likely to be the case. DD wasn't kept on at her Christmas temp job. They kept the 17 year old on as he was cheaper, but not better (feedback from both supervisores have confirmed this).

DD is struggling to find work as well, and she isn't just restricted to weekends.

Unfortunately now isn't a great time to apply to retail jobs as the Christmas temp season has finished so some temps may be kept on or people who were working as temps to keep themselves going have finished contracts and then applied for a permanent role elsewhere and as they have the relevant recent experience are taken on.

It is disheartening but keep going, you'll find something soon.

I feel for you OP. It is so annoying, because people (with jobs/financial security) like to brag that if they were on their uppers they would do anything - stack shelves/work in McDonalds. The assumption is that anyone can get these jobs, which makes it doubly humiliating when you get rejected for a minimum wage job.

The truth is, there is a lot of competition for jobs with flexible hours, they suit many people - parents, people studying, newly retired. You just have to take a deep breath and keep trying - with job applications it is often a numbers game, the more you apply for the more likely you are to get one in the end.

Call centres often have unpopular shifts to fill.

You can always ask them why you weren't considered. It would help you with future applications.

Definitely try estate agents. Your admin skills will be handy there. Be positive and enthusiastic, I’m sure they’ll be glad to have you.

I feel for you. If it makes you feel any better (or just to make you 😃) I was rejected by Tesco when I applied to be part of their Christmas 'team'.
It took me 3 bloody days to finally upload all the info they wanted - site kept closing down on me and then when I completed the multiple choice questions for a 6 hr P w job I FAILED them. Site told me they wouldn't be taking my application further.

Was miffed every time I went in and saw their banners wanting staff. I was made redundant from an educational charity, have loads of transferable skills, experience, kind to old ladies etc etc but not suitable for Tesco 😂😂😂

DH said I over thought my answers to the questions, personably I think I am just unemployable as I am a bit feral.

I know from friend of mine whose teenage daughter worked there that McD's do not want to take on long term staff as its cheaper for them in the long run.Teenagers are ideal as they are more likely to change after a short while.Even then there is a policy of letting anyone who has been working for them to long to be let go.For what reason I cannot remember.So it has nothing to do with you.There are strange hiring policies everywhere.My 18 year old son got rejected from aldi when he applied to pack shelves at 6 am in the morning!

Even then there is a policy of letting anyone who has been working for them to long to be let go.

You get more employment rights after - is it a year?

I know from friend of mine whose teenage daughter worked there that McD's do not want to take on long term staff as its cheaper for them in the long run.Teenagers are ideal as they are more likely to change after a short while.Even then there is a policy of letting anyone who has been working for them to long to be let go.For what reason I cannot remember.So it has nothing to do with you

schnubbins Sorry, but that’s absolute bollocks. I’m a manager at McDonalds and we want people who are in it for the long term, not least because continually hiring is extremely expensive. If you had any idea what it costs simply just to hire someone (and not including all the training afterwards) you would never make such a comment. Why on earth would we want to invest hiring costs, time and money on training just to get rid later? It makes no sense.

We don’t want high staff turnover. We want people who will be with us for years and who we can promote, and we base that on attitude and competence, not age.

Yes, we have a lot of younger staff because we’re flexible and it works with their school/college/uni. Some of them realise that path isn’t for them and stay with us to make a career.

This is clearly not true. A) impossible to interview and B) couldn’t do the role.

Logical to think so, but don't assume you are correct. It may be rare but it happens. I can think of an unfortunate local example. It's a failing by the employer who hired them, rather than the employee.

Sorry OP, don't want to derail - I agree with previously posted advice about emphasising customer service skills / experience and taking care not to appear overqualified.

Yabbers

This is clearly not true. A) impossible to interview and B) couldn’t do the role.

Ha! You live in a dream world. I encounter it - not all the time but often enough - and have to pretend that my hearing is dodgy and that's why I can't understand what they're saying. I've had the experience of a nurse taking out the wrong stitches because she didn't understand a word that the doctor had said to her, and just nodded and pretended she could. I never say anything because I wouldn't put someone else's job in jeopardy, but it's unrealistic to think that it doesn't happen.

This is an awful time of year to be applying for a job in so many professions. Son has just finished second xmas as a school student in a pub/restaurant. He will get very few shifts now until March, so just ticks over until the business picks up and he goes back on the rota. Ditto his friends at McDonalds. I went to our local McDonalds drive thru last night, usually we have to queue, before xmas it was a very long queue, last night we drove straight up to the booth.

Our local co-op and Asda had lots of students over xmas. They will get them back at Easter and over the summer.

Do not be down, something will turn up that is less dependent on folks finances at the time.

Definitely consider approaching a temping agency. I hadn't worked for years, had totally lost all confidence in myself and live in the back end of nowhere so ignored my local recruitment agency for years as I assumed they only dealt in care work, and factory work or jobs you need relevant experience for (those were the jobs advertised in the window). In the end though, circumstances made me desperate, and I went in and was very pleasantly surprised. They deal in far more job types than I imagined, and even in my backwater, there are far more jobs and flexibility in jobs than I had anticipated e.g. weekend working, supermarket work, admin, cleaning, all sorts. And best of all, for the likes of me with zero confidence or experience, there is often no interview required. The downside is the low pay, but I've been placed in an office for the last 3 months and have already been offered permanent, better paid work there.

You're probably over qualified. They would rather have a uni student looking for weekend work who's likely to stay for the next 3 years rather than someone they know just wants a job until something appropriate and better comes along

I was night nursing for many years, unhappy in a Nursing Home, went for a job stacking tins at Sainsbury on a night sift (far more money than nursing) it was a weird interview with lots of people in the room, I had to fill in quite a large booklet thing, physological profile, watch a vidoe and comment I didnt get the job, a friend who (also a nurse) who worked there said it was because I told the truth about the video, and wht did I expect, I jut told myself I was too clever for them, over qualified to stock ins!