The Glade 4.0

No, it was a very close job. IE, he could have still lived at home.

And while it's true that job-hopping is bad, a year (or so) of experience at a lower level job would drastically improve his resume, compared to a year of "bartending, temp work, and cutting lawns".

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Darksiege: You are not a god damned vulcan homie.

I felt that was covered under "doesn't do a goddamned thing all day besides suck up family resources."

5 applications a week is what you do when you're already employed. When you're unemployed, getting a job is your job, and you should be putting in for 20 or more.



Did you know?
In Massachusetts all businesses larger than a very low minimum size are required to offer healthcare benefits?

Fun Fact:
If this guy doesn't already have benefits he's paying for out of pocket, or that mommy and daddy are providing for him, he's in violation of state law.

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“The duty of a patriot is to protect his country from its government.” - Thomas Paine

What the ****? You're required by law to pay for medical benefits/insurance even when unemployed?

Yes.

Now, if you can prove that your income is low enough for Medicaid you could file for that, which in Massachusetts is known as MassHealth (and includes SCHIP).

Alternatively, you can pay the tax penalty at the end of the year, rather than obtain coverage.


I should note that this is exactly the same as the proposed Federal mandate. I do not know if that mandate survived reconciliation.

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“The duty of a patriot is to protect his country from its government.” - Thomas Paine

Remember!

It's better to be unemployed without any health coverage and with no upward mobility than to have a job that lacks health coverage or upward mobility!

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"Hysterical children shrieking about right-wing anything need to go sit in the corner and be quiet while the adults are talking."

I want to know what field you work in that there's 20 unique opportunities every week to apply for. Last time I was unemployed I certainly could not have applied to 20 jobs a week that were even tangentially related to my degree, without applying to jobs over 100 miles away. (which you will almost never be considered for for entry level stuff) It's actually kind of sad how little you can do in the Internet age if you're bad at networking. (read: have lots of friends who recommend you for jobs) I tried to fill my time by driving out to various employers and trying to talk to HR people, but the response I got to this generally ranged from annoyance to people thinking I was outright crazy for just walking in there or trying to make an appointment to talk to someone from HR without applying through their job site.

Really? You have included area specific employment in your entry level requirements? Yet you expect real returns on your efforts?

You cause your own problems. Again.

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Ezekiel 23:19-20 

And here we have the crux of it. Let me be as clear as I can on this. If you have no empolyment; especially in the current economy, and you need income.... why in the hell are you only applying to things pertaining to your degree? You take anything that you can... and then look for better once you have income. Step 1- Get income, step 2- find income related to your degree.

Again, let me repeat to really let the importance of this sink in... any work is better than no work so: step 1- get income. step 2- get income related to your degree.

I work in IT. I did not start out this way. My employment history started at McDonald's.. at 16. I have busted my tail to make sure that I raised my own levels and employability. But if need were to arise, My *** would be back in a McDonald's while I looked for better work. FFS, I would have my *** in a McDonalds and a Taco Bell.. because neither job is acceptable as a sole income for raising a family.

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

And soon to come to every state near you by Federal law!

I've read in several places and have been told by employees of staffing companies that employers are highly unlikely to consider any resume from someone that does not live in the area for entry level type jobs. They don't want to deal with someone adjusting to a recent relocation if they can find someone in the area.

The only difference in being unemployed is that you don't get paid. You still need to be putting in your 40 hrs a week, you just spend it looking for a job and adding value to your resume with school or whatever.

It's not about how many resume's you send out, it's about how you approach the situation.

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In time, this too shall pass.

Actually, taking 40 hours to apply for jobs is not necessarily the smartest thing to do when you're unemployed, nor is taking the first job that comes down the pipe. If you're an engineer, taking that landscaping job will cost you time to find a job in your field, and money in terms of opportunity costs.

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It feels like all the people who want limited government really just want government limited to Republicans.
---The Daily Show

I'm employed now. However in 3 months I'll likely be unemployed again when this temp contract ends. That's been pretty much my life for the past 2 years, one 3-6 month temp contract after another. This time around I'm going to a class on the weekend to get a pharmacy technician certification, hopefully that and my degree can at least land me a permanent job after this ends.

I really don't understand people telling me to apply out of area. I have had several people who work in the recruiting field, who should know this stuff, tell me that this is a terrible waste of time and the chance of even getting an interview is virtually nil. First, the company does not want to deal with personal problems you may have relating to moving to a new area, like relationships and ****. Second, even for entry level stuff apparently a very high percentage of applicants expect the company to pay to relocate them, so even if you don't expect that, they're still throwing you out based on the very high odds you'll come with that as a requirement and waste their interview time. The scientific staffing agencies I've dealt with have pretty much refused to submit me to anything out my immediate area when I've asked about remote openings as well.

Honestly, even taking money out of it searching for a job while unemployed sucks far worse than being employed. When you work an hour at a job you know you will get paid for it. You could get fired tomorrow but if you do work you're getting a return. When unemployed, you never know if you're ever going to see a return from anything you do, and it is very discouraging.

My advice would be to not make that decision for a prospective employer, and to allow them to make that judgement. Your job is to get a job, not to evaluate the cost benifits of your future bosses.

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Ezekiel 23:19-20 

This is true. However, every man must use his best judgment to decide what risks to take.

For example, I am a mechanical engineer graduate. I took a risk just going to school because there is no requirement for anyone to hire me just because I invested the time and debt in my education.

It sucks, but some people are going to fail and some will make it out.

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"It's real, grew up in trife life, the times of white lines
The hype vice, murderous nighttimes and knife fights invite crimes" - Nasir Jones

I want to know what field you work in that there's 20 unique opportunities every week to apply for.

My field is irrelevant, unless you're looking in an industry and have an expertise level so elite and specific that there are a tiny number of global jobs, there should be 20 opportunities per week you can find. Everything else you state is also irrelevant. Disqualifying yourself for jobs for reasons that aren't listed on paper is a great way to stay unemployed.

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“The duty of a patriot is to protect his country from its government.” - Thomas Paine

Marine archeologist with a concentration in Viking Longships.

I want to know why people think more college degrees is good for the country.

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Well, the country doesn't need them, but individually, they're common enough that if you don't have one no employer looks twice at you.

That's the problem. It used to be that you worked hard, put in effort and got a degree. Now some colleges have degraded to the point where they rubber stamp you through a program which degrades the value of them to the point that jobs that used to require a HS/GED now require a college degree.

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Eh, diploma mills will always exist. I'm pretty sure they existed in 1950, and today you can get an MS or PHD from a diploma mill too, degrees that haven't been theoretically "degraded" yet. Good HR departments can recognize these.

The real challenge with degrees is how to make them less common without just making them harder for the sake of making them harder, like making engineers take a year of English and learn Latin.

Right, because breadth of knowledge is useless?

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That's not been my experience.

A degree sure could have made things easier though.

It's like going for an "OCP" certification - I'm banking on the cert giving me credibility 'cause I'd not have any as a dba without it. With it, I'm a sysadmin with 30 years experience who is certified as an Oracle Database Administrator, which I'm hoping to use to broaden my attractiveness to potential clients.

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In time, this too shall pass.

Taskiss:

You fail at sarcasm.

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Khross:

Technically didn't you fail since you were performing the sarcasm?

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"It's real, grew up in trife life, the times of white lines
The hype vice, murderous nighttimes and knife fights invite crimes" - Nasir Jones