Anyone currently looking for a job/hiring?

[Cococoin]

In the dire world of job hunting at the moment.

Currently all jobs I’m applying for seem to show as ‘many applicants’ and starting to feel really deflated. These are just minimum wage jobs.

Anyone job hunting/ed lately? Is it going to be impossible? How quickly are you hearing back from employers? I can’t sleep

@tectonicplates

I know everyone needs a job but it does annoy me when highly skilled people apply for low paid jobs out of desperation. Some of us actually want those jobs.

But you said the exact word, desperation. If people have lost their income and have had a small payout, they need a job.

The job market is a competition open to anyone. If I can make myself as a highly qualified person stand out over a lesser qualified person, that's life and I'd do it every time without feeling guilty.

Candidates against me for a role and their circumstances aren't my concern.

Currently all jobs I’m applying for seem to show as ‘many applicants’ and starting to feel really deflated. These are just minimum wage jobs.

Thank you for saying this. I was furloughed from a decent waged admin job which I had only just started before lockdown and wasn't really enjoying. I have, today, been interviewed for a minimum wage 'picker and packer' type job, which I would probably enjoy far more but I really feel is beneath me. But your comment above has reminded me not to be so fussy. If I get offered the packing job, I will accept. If I hear back from my pre-lockdown employers that they want me back, I will go back. I really don't think now is the time for me to be fussy.

My dh's job is only until Christmas so he is looking too, to no avail, but his is extremely high-end managerial.

My graduate son has just been offered a job, also beneath his degree, on his first ever interview!

So yes, companies are recruiting right now, but I am not sure now is the time to be too picky if you are looking for work. (Not saying you are OP, just speaking generally.)

Good luck to everyone looking.

My DS is waiting to start university. He hasnt had a job before and has got one. Its temporary but they have asked him to stay on for as long as he can. We ensured that his CV had no spelling errors, that he knew something about the company he had applied for (google it, number of employees, who are their suppliers,who are their target market etc).

My other DS has just been offered a graduate management role (took him nearly 1 year because of COVID delays at the company end). I am working and started a new role just after lockdown.

There are jobs out there, but you absolutely need to take your applications seriously and take some care in putting together your CV - if you dont care, why should anyone else.

Having said that my bug bear are employers who dont bother to respond to your application. I attended an intereview at a big Oxford hospital, a three panel interview I thought it went well although I wouldnt have taken it if they offered it to me. Didnt hear, chased, didnt hear and still havent over a year later. For that they need to hang their heads in shame. So much tax payers money being wasted. Ironically I noticed the same role being advertised 6 months later. Either they didnt get the right person or they lost the funding for their role due to their inability to make a decision.

In a previous role for a large FTSE I did some recruiting. It is staggering how many applicants didnt do a spell check, one CV didnt have the person's name on. On interviewing its amazing how many people dont really know why they applied for a role or anything very much about what they were applying for especially for the lower level roles.

I’m not sure what it’s like in this current environment but I’ve used recruitment agencies successfully in the past. Worth signing up to a few?

I spent last week interviewing applicants for a job as we lost a team member several weeks ago. I'd say it was a slightly higher than usual response. I'm hoping that we can get someone on board as quickly as possible.

@PhilCornwall1 Classic mansplain. I do know how it works, thanks. Even before reading your username I knew a bloke had written this. 😂

[quote tectonicplates]@PhilCornwall1 Classic mansplain. I do know how it works, thanks. Even before reading your username I knew a bloke had written this. 😂[/quote]
Not at all doing that. It's just the crazy attitude that certain people shouldn't apply for certain roles because others need it more than you. Complete bullshit, just like the pointless phrase you used.

I never said they shouldn't, I said it annoys me.

I'm allowed to understand why people do certain things, while also finding it annoying at the same time. Which you'd know if you'd read it properly instead of deliberately misquoting me.

It is utter nonsense to express annoyance that people who are overqualified apply for jobs because they're desperate. Having specialist skills doesn't preclude you from applying for more generic roles.

So I'm not allowed to feel annoyed that overqualified people are applying for jobs I want they they don't even want, even though I can understand why they do it, and I'm not saying they shouldn't, I just merely feel annoyed about it because it puts me at a disadvantage, and it's literally "utter nonsense" to express annoyance?

MN really is on another planet.

I used to be a PA/EA in the City. I used a website for jobs called Secsinthecity. There used to be well over 2000 jobs on any day in London. It’s now 334 today.

I’m on the south coast and a quick perusal of Indeed finds mostly minimum wage roles in cleaning, care work, retail or delivery driving.

The only jobs that seem plentiful are qualified professions like social work, nursing or teaching.

I was once advised by a more experienced manager to be very wary of employing anyone over qualified, especially during an economic downturn. The thinking behind it is that this job will just be a stop gap and the new employee will be gone as soon as something better comes along.

You should definitely be applying for jobs that are at the same level or a step up from your previous role - you’ll look a lot more credible to hiring managers then someone who’s taking a step back.

Good luck!!

I think it depends though where you’re applying.

I agree that many e.g. office roles you are less likely to have much of a chance against others with greater qualifications. But the reality is that shop and bar work is fluid. When you hire there you know it’s unlikely your applicants are in it for the longer term because people just don’t stay in those kind of jobs. Bar work isn’t a career, and most if not all people will do it simply until something better comes along.

But with any job it’s unfortunately an employer’s market at the moment. There will be a lot of unsuitable applicants for any job but they will find someone appropriate within the applicants that are left.

I wouldn’t want to be the one sifting through 1000 CV’s though, although I’ve also heard it said that some companies don’t actually look at all the CV’s, they just look through as many as it takes to find the number of interview candidates they want.

Unfortunately, this is now the reality of life in the UK, thousands of people applying for one job. It will be even worse over the next decade with automation and offshoring.

@tectonicplates

So I'm not allowed to feel annoyed that overqualified people are applying for jobs I want they they don't even want, even though I can understand why they do it, and I'm not saying they shouldn't, I just merely feel annoyed about it because it puts me at a disadvantage, and it's literally "utter nonsense" to express annoyance?

MN really is on another planet.

Well no. Improve your own qualifications if you want more choice.

Bar work isn’t a career, and most if not all people will do it simply until something better comes along.

Wow.

Have you reached out to absolutely everyone you know and asked them to keep you in mind for any jobs they happen to hear about? I think usually in a recession, getting work through someone you know is a better shot than being one of hundreds of applicants.

Massive sympathies to you. My husband is about to be in this position and we are not optimistic.

Thanks everyone! Yes have reached out, sadly not many places hiring at the moment.

Does anyone here send applications direct to the company? I applied for one i’d really love on indeed but it of course said ‘many applicants’ I wonder if it would be worth sending it Again in email form directly to the company to try and stand out? Or is that harassment

I’m actually embarrassed to reach out to people how do I do it? I always assume people will just laugh and say “no chance!”

I wonder if it would be worth sending it Again in email form directly to the company

I’ve had a couple of interviews off the back of doing this. Definitely worth a try!

I’d also recommend contacting a few places speculatively with a well-tailored email and a copy of your CV.

I'm looking as well admin 15 years experience it is soul destroying i hate agencies but can't say no to anything good luck to us all

Blimey, I recently interviewed for an NHS Band 4 admin role. Fifty odd very poor applications. Only a couple were okay. Lots of people applied who really had no relevant experience.

It was pretty soul destroying.

doora would you have written off someone who applied if they were over qualified? Still debating whether to downplay my CV a bit and take out some of the more senior bits

What do you mean by over qualified?

We had people who had held senior and managerial positions but had no admin experience. I wouldn't call that over qualified. Admin isn't the easy job that everyone thinks it is. We wanted someone who had direct experience of that role.

We were also looking for something quite specific so didn't really want an audio typing medical secretary neither did we want a first jobber who wanted to learn on the job.