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Antiwork 2: No One Is Getting A Pay Raise

Deutsche Gopher Fan said:
I’ve now not worked for seven months, cannot believe how fast time goes.

I’ve passed four exams in that time to gain some skills and confidence in the new industry I want to work in. Joining some clubs for networking. And networking is going to be how I get a job.

it’s scary but I’m reading the 20 minute networking meeting to hone my story. I have some good connections and I need to be ready to exercise them.

im on unemployment now and while I understand why and how it works, it can be frustrating. They just want you applying to jobs all day and getting employed. I’ve got advanced degree and online apps get you nowhere. But I have to track how I’m spending 40 hours a week searching.

I hate this part but keep telling myself I will find something I like.

now if only I can sell my house. I’m doing hospice care for a dog, my best buddy. Trying to sell my house without anyone to help (other than realtor) - and unemployed and looking for work. Three stressful things all at once
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Really sorry to hear about this. I cannot believe they expect anyone to job search for 40 hours a week. I mean 1) how do you prove it and 2) Do they expect you to apply for every open job out there?

Best of luck to you and I hope things turn for the better quickly.
 
You got this DGF. My wife recently went eight months unemployed. The length was partially because she was a little more selective and didn't want a three hour round trip commute coupled with excessive OT where corporate would just sh*t on her for doing the job of two people (and holding her to the metrics of two people) while refusing to hire a second person.


Meanwhile I was gonna vent that my boss was just let go by my company because our team hasn't had a key win in two years.

We have been told by state officials that there is a two year moratorium on "new" companies winning state work, so I don't know what that means for our small group beyond the end of this fall's construction season. We have been told that the company will still "support us," whatever that is supposed to mean.

I'd like to stay with this company as in two short years it has provided the best professional growth I've had in my career, but... I gotta make sure the bill stay paid.
 
Slap Shot said:
Really sorry to hear about this. I cannot believe they expect anyone to job search for 40 hours a week. I mean 1) how do you prove it and 2) Do they expect you to apply for every open job out there?

Best of luck to you and I hope things turn for the better quickly.
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It's actually not hard to hit 40 hours/week searching & applying for jobs. It's probably a 60-90 minute commitment to fill out any online application (although DGF does sound like she's in a position where the jobs aren't posted to the general public). Searching for work has become a full-time job in itself, which is part of the reason why it's difficult to move from Job A to Job B while still working at Job A.
 
Mental note for the future - carefully file away all your W-2s going back 7 years for when background check companies ask you to provide them as evidence for the employment verification portion of their investigation.

I used to be pretty diligent about it, but got lackadaisical during the pandemic when I started getting them electronically. I'm missing one for 2021, which means time spent digging up my personal records from the IRS' website. Annoying!

EDIT: The best part is that I had to provide all of this because my previous mega-firm will only use TALX (Equifax) to verify employment with them, and the company who I'm in pre-hire with refuses to accept TALX as a trustworthy source. I'm assuming it's because of the big Equifax data breach from 2017.
 
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RaceBoarder said:
It's actually not hard to hit 40 hours/week searching & applying for jobs. It's probably a 60-90 minute commitment to fill out any online application (although DGF does sound like she's in a position where the jobs aren't posted to the general public). Searching for work has become a full-time job in itself, which is part of the reason why it's difficult to move from Job A to Job B while still working at Job A.
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And you’ve hit on why I’m not taking temp work. I’m afraid if I get distracted I’ll never actually find a role that I want. And I’m already open to taking a 50% pay cut here- I am serious about doing a different kind of work.


AI is so prevalent now in applications and the process, it’s absolutely nuts. Without knowing someone somewhere on the inside, getting hired at any job can be tough, nevermind trying to change industries.
 
Slap Shot said:
Really sorry to hear about this. I cannot believe they expect anyone to job search for 40 hours a week. I mean 1) how do you prove it and 2) Do they expect you to apply for every open job out there?

Best of luck to you and I hope things turn for the better quickly.
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I may do 4-5 apps a week, but most of my time is spent in webinars/live classes, which are numerous. You meet people in those sessions and keep networking. Then I spend more time reading about current events in the industry, learning more and digging for more contacts.
some apps are fast, esp if you apply via linked in. Others require more than an hour (I hate cover letters btw).
 
MichVandal said:
Hang in there DGF.

To change the tone a little, what overall industry are you moving to? Quite the adventure to change like that- scary and exciting at the same time.
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It is! Thanks for asking.

I’ve spent entire career in healthcare consulting/operations. I want to work in climate/environment/sustainability. I love the built environment and how it intersects with health - so I have my well AP and LEED GA. Also have a cert for sustainability reporting.

last 15 years were spent at a fortune 5, so I should have some decent skills even if I don’t always think about them.
 
Slap Shot said:
Really sorry to hear about this. I cannot believe they expect anyone to job search for 40 hours a week. I mean 1) how do you prove it and 2) Do they expect you to apply for every open job out there?
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My wife is a genetic counselor and was laid off from a large company during a large downsizing. Unemployment suggested she apply to door dash, starbucks etc.
 
WisconsinWildcard said:
My wife is a genetic counselor and was laid off from a large company during a large downsizing. Unemployment suggested she apply to door dash, starbucks etc.
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Wow, I haven’t heard that yet. When they called me, i mentioned master of science and the guy seemed surprised when I told him how long I’d been in my previous job. So I’m not a regular user or a suspicious one, at least I hope.

Minnesota has quite generous benefits. For that, I don’t blame them for doing due diligence but I do think execs and people with lots of experience should be trying for meaningful work. I’m in a dislocated worker program with good benefits and they work with you until you find a comparable job or a job you’re targeting. But honestly once I sell my house I will not request unemployment since I’m not buying another house.

Minnesota may be the best place to go through this, at least.
 
I haven’t had to do unemployment but I know it’s a bit different here in Alaska because we actually pay an unemployment tax.

My dad felt bad applying for unemployment during COVID and I had to tell him “you paid unemployment tax for like 30 years, you’re just getting your money back.”
 
dxmnkd316 said:
I've never gone through unemployment, can you explain this part to me? A user of what? Suspicious how?
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Around here you see it a lot with construction workers. Their work is seasonal in some cases, so they will go on unemployment for Dec/Jan/Feb. But that entire time, they continue to work, but just "side jobs" for cash. Some circles jokingly refer to it as their "Winter Bonus".

Ironically, many of them that I know personally wear a red hat and lose their sh*t at the mere mention of "Welfare Queens" and the like...
 
RaceBoarder said:
Around here you see it a lot with construction workers. Their work is seasonal in some cases, so they will go on unemployment for Dec/Jan/Feb. But that entire time, they continue to work, but just "side jobs" for cash. Some circles jokingly refer to it as their "Winter Bonus".

Ironically, many of them that I know personally wear a red hat and lose their sh*t at the mere mention of "Welfare Queens" and the like...
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One of my uncles has ridden that gravy train for years - i.e., make bank running a trades business all summer, hide as much of it from Uncle Sam as possible, then collect UI all winter. To be fair, the sealcoating plant closes from Nov-Mar each year and Michigan weather isn't conducive to doing that line of work over the winter months. His business presumably does pay some tax to the state to support UI for everyone including himself. However, for as long as I can remember, he likes to whine about others, especially brown/black folks, getting handouts. He's got that overly proud Boomer attitude about never having gone to college/uni, mixed with Younger Brother Syndrome (my dad was the spoiled elder son who got all the opportunities, blah blah blah). It's all masking a deep inadequacy and jealousy that fuels his little one-sided sibling rivalry and need to one-up whenever he can (build a bigger house, bag the bigger deer, take the fancier vacation, etc.). He needs therapy, but will never get it.

He doesn't wear the hat or attend the rallies, but I bet you can guess who he's voting for. :rolleyes:
 
Deutsche Gopher Fan said:
And you’ve hit on why I’m not taking temp work. I’m afraid if I get distracted I’ll never actually find a role that I want. And I’m already open to taking a 50% pay cut here- I am serious about doing a different kind of work.


AI is so prevalent now in applications and the process, it’s absolutely nuts. Without knowing someone somewhere on the inside, getting hired at any job can be tough, nevermind trying to change industries.
Click to expand...

Here's my old person story for the day: when I was laid off back in 2011, I went to the library to get the newest edition book I could find on writing resumes. It helped by telling me to put a 'core competencies' section in my resume. This way I could use all the buzzwords that the computer programs were searching for. It helped as I think I heard back on about 25% of the jobs I applied to on what I refer to as the internet black hole.
 
Yes - the best resume formatting I've seen is basically:

Name/contacts

Intro (few sentences at most)

Skills/competencies

Job history (a sentence or two defining the role, and then bullets of key accomplishments)

Certs/degrees
 
I have written my resume a hundred times, and I have read at least 500 resumes on hiring committees. Each successive version of my resume since I turned 40 has become simpler, cleaner, and shorter.
  • Name and contact info
  • One line "/" delimited list of 2 or 3 positions sought -- I put this in pale blue and the rest of the resume is simple black
  • One intro sentence and 4 bullet points summarizing my highlighted talents and desired work at very high level (.3 page)
  • Work Experience: (2.1 pages)
    • Single line with title, company, location
    • Single line with tenure dates
    • Short bullet-points with direct statements of duties -- most recent job up to 10 bullets, second no more than 5, third and after no more than 3.
  • Clearance
  • Certs
  • Training
  • Education
I never allow it to run over 3 pages, but I let them have a very open feel with a lot of white space for ease of reading. I hate dense text. Only one sans serif font (currently I use Calibri).

Normal margins for a clean look, and I put a running header on pages 2-3 with my name and contact info in case they print and the pages are separated.
 
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