Finding a job once they get to the U.S

[Staashi 371]

Salaam Babyeshell,

We are going through this same thing right now. My hubbie is out looking for work, with no real prospects yet. His English is minimal and he doesn't have a college degree. He's gone around store to store, and we are blanketing anything we see on Craig's List, but it is slow pickin's... i think for everyone. The economy is really in the gutter and i think there are a lot more applicants for each job... that's for immigrants, American citizens, everyone... The important thing is to keep trying, something will come along inchallah.

Something interesting... my hubbie is reluctant to ask at the mosque or at any Arab businesses here in NYC. Is that weird that he is reluctant? Maybe he is just trying to get comfortable and see his prospects first? i mentioned it several times, and he was pretty clear that he wanted to find a job working with "other people" not just "Arabs".

Good luck!

hz

Mine was too, but given that he only speaks french and arabic and had absolutely NO english when he got here, his choices were pretty limited. He's really frustrated bc he speaks arabic or spanish all day with the type of work he can find and I'm the only one who ever speaks english with him

Hopefully he will start to pick up the english faster now that he has a little bit of a basis - I really wish we could afford some school for him bc all the free classes are teaching spanish to english ((sigh)) He wants english to be able to find a better job.

Polar, what part of Miami are you in? I used to live there so I know it pretty well. There should be ESL classes that aren't taught with a Spanish to English - it should be all english.

[Imua 0]

A bit of a hijack: Did any of your hubbies get a job with benefits at the beginning? From your descriptions I would think not and this scares me the most... To add Govi onto my work plan it would cost $300/month which we will not have. Did you add your hubbies to your insurance or do they not have insurance?

I did...but I could do it for about $100 a month 4 years ago. It is scary, and they always say - oh, I'm healthy. I just think insurance means, as Chris Rock said, "In case $#!T happens" which it inevitably will.

i luckily just got this office job in June with insurance, and i hope to add Habibi to mine, inchallah, when we get the official US marriage certificate.

you are right though... insurance costs are through the roof! i really don't know how people are making ends meet... i don't know if I'LL be able to make ends meet.

Yep, we are going to be living 3 people in a 1br when he gets here(G and I will be sleeping on a futon in the living room - luckily he is used to tight living) and then hope to save for our own place - there is no way I can spend $300/month on insurance, especially while he is not working. We are unionizing at my work and hopefully if/when it is all done then our premiums for family plan will be lower(maybe by the time G gets here) but until then I am looking at him going uninsured - of course he doesn't realize it's a problem...

One other thing you can check out is catastrophic coverage...it is typically very reasonable and can be a wonderful resource if you do have a truly worst case scenario. My mother, who goes on Medicare in 3 months, is dropping her traditional coverage of $1200 a month and going with catastrophic for about $550 total for these 3 months.

Thanks, sounds more reasonable. I think there was an insurance thread a while back and someone posted a link to a company which specializes in catastrophic coverage for new immigrants, I'll have to hunt that down when he FINALLY gets here.

[Staashi 371]

Salaam Babyeshell,

We are going through this same thing right now. My hubbie is out looking for work, with no real prospects yet. His English is minimal and he doesn't have a college degree. He's gone around store to store, and we are blanketing anything we see on Craig's List, but it is slow pickin's... i think for everyone. The economy is really in the gutter and i think there are a lot more applicants for each job... that's for immigrants, American citizens, everyone... The important thing is to keep trying, something will come along inchallah.

Something interesting... my hubbie is reluctant to ask at the mosque or at any Arab businesses here in NYC. Is that weird that he is reluctant? Maybe he is just trying to get comfortable and see his prospects first? i mentioned it several times, and he was pretty clear that he wanted to find a job working with "other people" not just "Arabs".

Good luck!

hz

Mine was too, but given that he only speaks french and arabic and had absolutely NO english when he got here, his choices were pretty limited. He's really frustrated bc he speaks arabic or spanish all day with the type of work he can find and I'm the only one who ever speaks english with him

Hopefully he will start to pick up the english faster now that he has a little bit of a basis - I really wish we could afford some school for him bc all the free classes are teaching spanish to english ((sigh)) He wants english to be able to find a better job.

Polar, what part of Miami are you in? I used to live there so I know it pretty well. There should be ESL classes that aren't taught with a Spanish to English - it should be all english.

To update my post - Polar, here's some helpful info:

OK - here's some links to Miami-Dade Adult Ed classes -

For a listing of their courses, which offers a standard ESOL class - http://www2.edworks.org/VOC_AD_Courses.pdf

For a listing of all their service centers - which should have one in your area - http://www2.edworks.org/vocationalcenters.shtml

Best of luck!

[Carolyn 1]

Most communities have ESL classes...it might be listed under Adult Basic Education--there are HUNDREDS of free classes in my medium-sized city...my husband took classes for about 6 months--they were great! (his English was already quite good, but it really helped introduce him to new people and ideas).

Like a previous poster mentioned: I'm sorry, but I would be careful about getting a job with Arabic businesses...some business owners see immigrants/other Arabs as being ripe for taking advantage of. My husband's first job was at a local Palestinian restaurant. The owner paid only $7 an hour and worked his employees (most of whom didn't last very long) like a slavedriver. The owner was swearing at and insulting employees in Arabic--the other employees, who spoke Spanish, didn't know what he was saying. He was also incredibly racist towards Jews and other Americans, but that is besides the point. I encouraged my husband, though he was anxious to be working, to quit after 3 days.

When he finally got a real job (after applying to countless places with few bites) it was at a nice Country Club with ok pay and good benefits. He's still there 2 1/2 years later. They treat him well, but it feels low status. I know he'd like something else, but with the current economy he'll probably stick with it unless something better appears.

Edited July 29, 2008 by Carolyn

[polarbear 0]

Salaam Babyeshell,

We are going through this same thing right now. My hubbie is out looking for work, with no real prospects yet. His English is minimal and he doesn't have a college degree. He's gone around store to store, and we are blanketing anything we see on Craig's List, but it is slow pickin's... i think for everyone. The economy is really in the gutter and i think there are a lot more applicants for each job... that's for immigrants, American citizens, everyone... The important thing is to keep trying, something will come along inchallah.

Something interesting... my hubbie is reluctant to ask at the mosque or at any Arab businesses here in NYC. Is that weird that he is reluctant? Maybe he is just trying to get comfortable and see his prospects first? i mentioned it several times, and he was pretty clear that he wanted to find a job working with "other people" not just "Arabs".

Good luck!

hz

Mine was too, but given that he only speaks french and arabic and had absolutely NO english when he got here, his choices were pretty limited. He's really frustrated bc he speaks arabic or spanish all day with the type of work he can find and I'm the only one who ever speaks english with him

Hopefully he will start to pick up the english faster now that he has a little bit of a basis - I really wish we could afford some school for him bc all the free classes are teaching spanish to english ((sigh)) He wants english to be able to find a better job.

Polar, what part of Miami are you in? I used to live there so I know it pretty well. There should be ESL classes that aren't taught with a Spanish to English - it should be all english.

To update my post - Polar, here's some helpful info:

OK - here's some links to Miami-Dade Adult Ed classes -

For a listing of their courses, which offers a standard ESOL class - http://www2.edworks.org/VOC_AD_Courses.pdf

For a listing of all their service centers - which should have one in your area - http://www2.edworks.org/vocationalcenters.shtml

Best of luck!

Thanks for the link He might be able to attend a 6:30pm class, but he doesn't always finish work before 9pm. He just doesn't have a set schedule, which is why we were looking for free ones where it wouldn't matter if he missed classes.

I sometimes think his boss is taking advantage of him bc of the crazy hours and flexible pay, but he pays fairly depending on how much work they do, just not by hour, and seems to actually be a good person. They have a company van they drive all over the city for jobs and sometimes it can take hours to go to the store and pick up supplies, ect... and he's stuck with the guy bc driving two cars around with gas prices the way they are is insane so he wastes hours of the day not working sometimes and comes home pretty late (still before me though )

[Staashi 371]

Salaam Babyeshell,

We are going through this same thing right now. My hubbie is out looking for work, with no real prospects yet. His English is minimal and he doesn't have a college degree. He's gone around store to store, and we are blanketing anything we see on Craig's List, but it is slow pickin's... i think for everyone. The economy is really in the gutter and i think there are a lot more applicants for each job... that's for immigrants, American citizens, everyone... The important thing is to keep trying, something will come along inchallah.

Something interesting... my hubbie is reluctant to ask at the mosque or at any Arab businesses here in NYC. Is that weird that he is reluctant? Maybe he is just trying to get comfortable and see his prospects first? i mentioned it several times, and he was pretty clear that he wanted to find a job working with "other people" not just "Arabs".

Good luck!

hz

Mine was too, but given that he only speaks french and arabic and had absolutely NO english when he got here, his choices were pretty limited. He's really frustrated bc he speaks arabic or spanish all day with the type of work he can find and I'm the only one who ever speaks english with him

Hopefully he will start to pick up the english faster now that he has a little bit of a basis - I really wish we could afford some school for him bc all the free classes are teaching spanish to english ((sigh)) He wants english to be able to find a better job.

Polar, what part of Miami are you in? I used to live there so I know it pretty well. There should be ESL classes that aren't taught with a Spanish to English - it should be all english.

To update my post - Polar, here's some helpful info:

OK - here's some links to Miami-Dade Adult Ed classes -

For a listing of their courses, which offers a standard ESOL class - http://www2.edworks.org/VOC_AD_Courses.pdf

For a listing of all their service centers - which should have one in your area - http://www2.edworks.org/vocationalcenters.shtml

Best of luck!

Thanks for the link He might be able to attend a 6:30pm class, but he doesn't always finish work before 9pm. He just doesn't have a set schedule, which is why we were looking for free ones where it wouldn't matter if he missed classes.

I sometimes think his boss is taking advantage of him bc of the crazy hours and flexible pay, but he pays fairly depending on how much work they do, just not by hour, and seems to actually be a good person. They have a company van they drive all over the city for jobs and sometimes it can take hours to go to the store and pick up supplies, ect... and he's stuck with the guy bc driving two cars around with gas prices the way they are is insane so he wastes hours of the day not working sometimes and comes home pretty late (still before me though )

You are welcome. I know it can be so tough - and Miami is even more difficult. Believe me, I know. It almost destroyed my husband's sense of self. Good luck with everything. I hope the links will provide some good insight.

[AlHayatZween 2]

i luckily just got this office job in June with insurance, and i hope to add Habibi to mine, inchallah, when we get the official US marriage certificate.

you are right though... insurance costs are through the roof! i really don't know how people are making ends meet... i don't know if I'LL be able to make ends meet.

Yep, we are going to be living 3 people in a 1br when he gets here(G and I will be sleeping on a futon in the living room - luckily he is used to tight living) and then hope to save for our own place - there is no way I can spend $300/month on insurance, especially while he is not working. We are unionizing at my work and hopefully if/when it is all done then our premiums for family plan will be lower(maybe by the time G gets here) but until then I am looking at him going uninsured - of course he doesn't realize it's a problem...

Dear P,

Something i thought of, but don't exactly remember the specifics of...

When i had no insurance, i learned that immigrants in NYC can get free or sliding scale coverage at Bellevue Hospital. i believe it might be through HealthPlus... you'd have to look into it... if nothing more than to ease your mind a bit. You, as a working USC, won't be eligible, but your hubbie may be... ?

Is there an employment agency which works specifically with Moroccan applicants or other MENA people? There is actually an agency in Jackson Heights which places Nepalis in jobs and I am hoping they can help Govi but I am afraid because he doesn't have a degree, only SLC(like HS diploma). I have noticed in certain stores/jobs there are clusters of immigrants from the same country/region and I suspect that the agencies place these workers, like I see all African guys doing supermarket deliveries on the UES and Nepalis stocking shelves at the Health Nuts store on 2nd Ave.

Great idea... will have to check it out...

OMG! Health Nuts! i work right near there!!!

[Nothing1234 2]

i luckily just got this office job in June with insurance, and i hope to add Habibi to mine, inchallah, when we get the official US marriage certificate.

you are right though... insurance costs are through the roof! i really don't know how people are making ends meet... i don't know if I'LL be able to make ends meet.

Yep, we are going to be living 3 people in a 1br when he gets here(G and I will be sleeping on a futon in the living room - luckily he is used to tight living) and then hope to save for our own place - there is no way I can spend $300/month on insurance, especially while he is not working. We are unionizing at my work and hopefully if/when it is all done then our premiums for family plan will be lower(maybe by the time G gets here) but until then I am looking at him going uninsured - of course he doesn't realize it's a problem...

Careful with Unions...they sing a beautiful song and dance until they "dance" away with your money and their "fees" for everything. You might save on insurance (not so much wait until the next year..they are famous for that raising costs one year later) and then they will tag you with joining and monthly fees. Blah!

Edited July 29, 2008 by Nawal

[Nothing1234 2]

Hey MENA! I pray for the best for all of you!

My fiance, Tarik has managed his own cafe for 10 years now but he doesn't have a college degree. So I am not sure what he will be able to do here.

I was wondering for those of you who have your man here already, what kind of job do they have?

You can try temporary agencies and some even offer health benefits! AppleOne, LaborReady, Manpower, Adecco, Express Personnel, Officeteam, etc...there are tons and its free. He goes to apply and they place him in jobs locally. You can google locally and even try talking to the recruiter yourself....they get money for every head they place in a job and if the person goes permanet...they get even more....so they are "working" to get you a job. Craigslist works as well. But I'd recommend a Temporary to Perm agency. Ask Human Resources at your job too...if they use a temp agency..if they do, ask them their contacts name and tell that contact who you work for and what you need from them.

Good luck!!

[Imua 0]

i luckily just got this office job in June with insurance, and i hope to add Habibi to mine, inchallah, when we get the official US marriage certificate.

you are right though... insurance costs are through the roof! i really don't know how people are making ends meet... i don't know if I'LL be able to make ends meet.

Yep, we are going to be living 3 people in a 1br when he gets here(G and I will be sleeping on a futon in the living room - luckily he is used to tight living) and then hope to save for our own place - there is no way I can spend $300/month on insurance, especially while he is not working. We are unionizing at my work and hopefully if/when it is all done then our premiums for family plan will be lower(maybe by the time G gets here) but until then I am looking at him going uninsured - of course he doesn't realize it's a problem...

Dear P,

Something i thought of, but don't exactly remember the specifics of...

When i had no insurance, i learned that immigrants in NYC can get free or sliding scale coverage at Bellevue Hospital. i believe it might be through HealthPlus... you'd have to look into it... if nothing more than to ease your mind a bit. You, as a working USC, won't be eligible, but your hubbie may be... ?

Is there an employment agency which works specifically with Moroccan applicants or other MENA people? There is actually an agency in Jackson Heights which places Nepalis in jobs and I am hoping they can help Govi but I am afraid because he doesn't have a degree, only SLC(like HS diploma). I have noticed in certain stores/jobs there are clusters of immigrants from the same country/region and I suspect that the agencies place these workers, like I see all African guys doing supermarket deliveries on the UES and Nepalis stocking shelves at the Health Nuts store on 2nd Ave.

Great idea... will have to check it out...

OMG! Health Nuts! i work right near there!!!

Cool - I've gone in there a few times when I am in the neighborhood and the guys stocking the shelves were speaking Nepali - I am so tempted to go up and talk to them but I am shy... Seriously, maybe ask around or go to a Moroccan/MENA neighborhood(maybe Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn or Astoria) - I actually found out about the emp. agency through an ad in a Nepali-American newspaper that I picked up in a Nepali video store.

Edited July 29, 2008 by Pattu Rani

[Mommy2ZaidnSalma 11]

Sofyan has been here for over 2 years and has just landed what I say loosely "a real job" Since coming here he sold cars at 3 different dealerships and drove a cab. There were no benefits, and NO STEADY PAYCHECK...there were weeks at a time where he couldnt even come up with money for bills..he was making enough to have lunch and cigarettes for the week...Now, thank god, he is my dads partner at his chemical plant..He isnt making a ton, but, it is a guaranteed check every friday and after 3 months, he will be offered all the benefits..

I, the USC have always had to be the breadwinner, and it may be hard for some to get adjusted to that...My health insurance for myself, sofyan and zaid is almost 325$ a month...

I guess my point is, dont be surprised if it takes time for him/her to adjust to the working environment here, and also it may take time to even find a minimum wage job..Sofyan was waaay too proud to ever work at a fast food chain or gas station, so i just had to grin and bear it..

ETA: Sofyan has no education any only previous work history was in Jordan in a clothing store...Those who have degrees and such may not have such a hard time

Edited July 29, 2008 by ks71905

[~~~water~~~ 0]

my husband speaks good english and has two BS degrees, it has been so hard to find anything and even harder in his field. Just don't give up, nothing in this process has been easy. My husband has found a part time computer job, but is still looking for a full time job in his field.

[JeanneVictoria 55]

During the 4yrs I have known Wael, and the many trips I went to see him in Egypt, we spoke alot about jobs here in the states. He knew pretty much what to expect with applications and interviews. This helped him and there were no surprises.

Wael was very fortunate to find a job two weeks after he arrived here. He works for a government contractor and had his benefits beginning the first week of work. During the first two weeks he applied online for many positions and he had a 80% reponse rate from these applications! He is also very fortunate to speak, read and write english which was a real plus. He also has his Bachelors in Accounting.

His plan is to pursue his MBA next year! I'm very proud of him what he has accomplished in his 7 months here in the states!

[S and S 12]

I worry about this for my husband too. His english is great, but he is a medical school graduate so he is too educated for a lot of jobs. I have been working on ideas for him, but we can't know what will happen until he gets here. The refugee place is supposed to help him, but I heard the jobs they find refugees are basically like factory work for almost no pay Iraq has been a weird exception to most refugee countries because many Iraqis are well educated and we aren't set up to deal with that. I have been considering having my husband apply at Walmart or Walgreens. Has anyone tried that for their husbands?

Edited July 30, 2008 by S and S

[♥Sora_9_Dam3a♥ 0]

During the 4yrs I have known Wael, and the many trips I went to see him in Egypt, we spoke alot about jobs here in the states. He knew pretty much what to expect with applications and interviews. This helped him and there were no surprises.

Wael was very fortunate to find a job two weeks after he arrived here. He works for a government contractor and had his benefits beginning the first week of work. During the first two weeks he applied online for many positions and he had a 80% reponse rate from these applications! He is also very fortunate to speak, read and write english which was a real plus. He also has his Bachelors in Accounting.

His plan is to pursue his MBA next year! I'm very proud of him what he has accomplished in his 7 months here in the states!

we're in the same boat. my hubby and i were job-searching before he got here...so he knew what to expect. the most important thing is PATIENCE. there were some days that my hubby would just get all stressed and upset and would not speak a word all day. alhamdulillah, it didn't happen often...but it happened.

his first job did not have benefits, but it had a pretty good salary and he wasn't flipping burgers.. he was a site manager in egypt, so jobs of that sort were out of the question for him....

the job he was doing required a specific certificate in asbestos sampling (or something like that)--he took a 5 day course and an exam and then applied to consulting companies that deal with that stuff...the job was not very stable, they would call him whenever they needed him, and it depended a great deal on his relationship with his boss...if he liked him, he'd call him more often--BUT, it was a job and it made him feel a lot better about himself!!

anyway, so my point is.....look around for things like that. the course he took cost about $800--then, he had to pay about $200 to be licensed, but the money he made from the job was wayyy more--and a certificate like that looks good on a resume

the only thing with that is language--my hubby speaks and reads and writes english..he learned it in high school and college....his listening was a problem, because it was difficult for him to get used to new yorker english...but he was able to get by in the course by studying... so, try searching for courses like that in your area...maybe on state websites, like the Department of Environmental Protection in NY and stuff like that....certification courses, etc...

also, monster.com is great....its slowww...but it works. you have to be persistent with it...just keep applying to jobs everyday..have someone put a nice resume together for him...i'm not so good with that, i had a friend do it for me. we would apply to a bunch of jobs every day and he would get a call once and 20 times not....but, after a few months, he got his first "real" job with benefits and all, working in his field with his degree..thank God!!!

anyway, i think i wrote a little tooo much i hope the info is helpful..otherwise, i apologize for wasting so much of your time.

take care! i wish you all the best