GUYS: Taking a temporary/low paying job while waiting on permanent one . . .

[britbird 4]

for references get some volunteer jobs....they are easy to get, allow you to meet people and will get you character references.

[ChristinaM 0]

I volunteer as an interpreter all the time and the companies that I do it for accept it with no problem and keep telling me how grateful they are.

There are your references!

Good luck to everyone jobhunting still.

[Yodrak 7]

Shari,

I was 50 when I lost my good-paying job, had a son in college, an engaged daughter who wanted a nice wedding, a wife who had gone back to school, and a mortgage still to pay. I put together 3 jobs, 1 full-time and 2 part-time, working 8 AM to 4 PM, 6 PM to 10 PM, and 11 PM to 4 AM, for 6 months. Then lost the late night job and money got tight again until another 3 months had gone by and I found a very nice paying job in my field (as an expat, which is how I wound up where I am today). This allowed me to get the kid and wife through their schooling, but the daughter and son-in-law had to pay for their own wedding and we had to sell the custom house we'd built and buy a condo to keep the mortgage payments affordable.

Having been there and done that, in my opinion being 'manly' means sucking it up and doing what has to be done to provide for one's family, not crying in one's beer while waiting around for the world to discover how valuable one is.

Happened again at ages 53 (the expat contract expired and Asia was in its economic crisis) and 55 (dotcom bubble burst), but those times I was able to find new and rewarding work more quickly, only about 3 months each time. Guess I'd paid my dues and learned how to cope.

One last word of advice - employers can sense sad and dejected, so put on a happy face and don't let it show.

Yodrak

I know there must be many others in this boat, but guys, what kind of jobs have you taken on a temporary basis until you found a permanent one? My husband is so down and depressed as he is getting no responses (like everyone else), but finances are almost nil. He even sent resumes to the temporary agencies (Manpower) who have not gotten back with him. Is the only solution retail (Walmart, etc.)? He is a 40-something year old engineer who has had his spirit broken, or as he said today, his "soul destroyed" because no one is getting back to him. Yes, we know it takes time. That is hard when groceries need to be bought for a family of 5, gas needs to be purchased for cars, and bills need to be paid. He is on the computer at LEAST 6 hours a day checking job sites, applying for jobs, and searching, searching, searching. I know he knows he has to find ANYTHING now, but I also hate him having to do something so way below his qualifications (not that there is anything wrong with retail at all). So guys - what have you done in the interim - stocked, delivered pizzas, ran a cash register, etc.? Are they any more "manly" jobs out there that I haven't thought about for interim jobs. I hate he is so sad!!!!!!!!!!

[ChristinaM 0]

Wow, Yodrak, that's pretty impressive and inspiring. I think that's also the most personal post I've seen you make.

It sucks not working, and it sucks not being appreciated, but I guess sometimes we just have to take what we can get in the short term, regardless.

[Yodrak 7]

clmarsh,

Thanks, and you're right. I don't know what inspired me to puke my guts out on that one - it may have been the 'manly job' #######.

It wasn't a pleasant 9 months, and I wouldn't want to do it again. But I lived, and I'm very happy with where I've ended up today. And I wouldn't be here if I hadn't been there.

If it happens again, I'm old enough to retire this time. And maybe apply for an un-manly retail job at a manly store like Lowe's or Home Depot so I can buy tools at a discount and finish all of my half-done projects.

Yodrak

Wow, Yodrak, that's pretty impressive and inspiring. I think that's also the most personal post I've seen you make.

It sucks not working, and it sucks not being appreciated, but I guess sometimes we just have to take what we can get in the short term, regardless.

[ChristinaM 0]

If it happens again, I'm old enough to retire this time. And maybe apply for an un-manly retail job at a manly store like Lowe's or Home Depot so I can buy tools at a discount and finish all of my half-done projects.

I laughed out loud at that one. It's a damn good excuse for working retail! I know I always had a lot of friends when I was working in the compuet store, since I got 25% off. It's hard when your job disappears from under you when you have things to pay though, and I admire your tenacity Yodrak.

Thanking about crummy jobs which aren't as bad as they seem, once you get over the shift pattern working in a gas station isn't too bad. You get to meet a lot of people, the work isn't too challenging, and you usually have a good block of time to yourself. I used to work a week of lates (3-11pm) and a week of earlies (7am-3pm) with the occasional night shift and having either the morning or evening to yourself is a real plus when it comes to job interview scheduling.

Just a thought

[rebeccajo 14]

Here's an analogy about how valuable one is in the real world.

Put your hand in a bucket full of water. Splash around a lot - make quite a stir. Make quite a lot of noise and stir things up. Splash, splash, splash - you can see how much attention it gets and all the noise the water makes.

Then quick - pull your hand out of the bucket. See how fast the hole fills back up and how quickly the water calms down.

That's how quickly you can be replaced.

Not something to depress you. Just something to make you think.

And to make you see why you have to take care of your own.

.......Having been there and done that, in my opinion being 'manly' means sucking it up and doing what has to be done to provide for one's family, not crying in one's beer while waiting around for the world to discover how valuable one is.......

Yodrak

I know there must be many others in this boat, but guys, what kind of jobs have you taken on a temporary basis until you found a permanent one? My husband is so down and depressed as he is getting no responses (like everyone else), but finances are almost nil. He even sent resumes to the temporary agencies (Manpower) who have not gotten back with him. Is the only solution retail (Walmart, etc.)? He is a 40-something year old engineer who has had his spirit broken, or as he said today, his "soul destroyed" because no one is getting back to him. Yes, we know it takes time. That is hard when groceries need to be bought for a family of 5, gas needs to be purchased for cars, and bills need to be paid. He is on the computer at LEAST 6 hours a day checking job sites, applying for jobs, and searching, searching, searching. I know he knows he has to find ANYTHING now, but I also hate him having to do something so way below his qualifications (not that there is anything wrong with retail at all). So guys - what have you done in the interim - stocked, delivered pizzas, ran a cash register, etc.? Are they any more "manly" jobs out there that I haven't thought about for interim jobs. I hate he is so sad!!!!!!!!!!

[caviar22 1]

How very true... there is no employer/employee loyalty anymore and I have been cut twice now from my high-paying jobs: once because of reorganization and the new Executive Director felt threatened by my position as Program Director (which was 75% of the organization) and the second time was due to lack of budget and my position was cut.

I must say that usually I go on to bigger and better things... only this time I am trying to make a new start in a different country and that is difficult because my experience is so tied to Canadian policies that are very different in the US. But, for now, I will do what I can. At least my husband is extremely supportive and I know I will receive employment insurance for up to 6 months or until I find a job. After that... Hmmm, Lowes?... I do need to finish my basement and make more shelves...

[pax 0]

Yodrak makes a really good point here, I think; it's not a question of "un-manliness" if one has to take a lower-paying job than perhaps one feels he deserves, but isn't it more responsible (let's not use "manly") to just pull oneself together and do what needs to be done to make ends meet?

Great post, Yodrak, and thanks for sharing that with us.

[TenderCat 0]

I am in a similar situation to a lot of members that have posted on this topic.

I received my EAD back in September. I applied for so many jobs in my field ( Accounting Clerk etc ) and did not receive any word back. In December i started to look for any job, applying to retail stores, fast food restaurants, factories etc. Again, i never received a phone call or interview back from any one.

So from September till January, i was job hunting like crazy. I had my AOS interview at the end of Jan, where they took my EAD. Needless to say, i have yet to receive my green card or even notice of approval.

I am depressed from being unable to work, and i take my frustrations out on my wife. Its affecting our relationship because of this.

I for one do not know what to do anymore, nor where to look. Even if we had to move back to Scotland, i would be finding it difficult to seek employment there, due to the fact that there seems to be no opportunities there at this current time.

I search everyday, in the newspapers, in stores, online, and will keep searching till i find employment, so i can start to live life again. Just a shame if i find one i may need to reject it until i get my Green Card

Good luck to everyone job hunting...try to keep the faith, no matter how hard it becomes.

Davie (male half of TC)

[tom&tata 2]

Just want to thank everyone for sharing experience. It does help to have "reality check" on what expectation to have when I finally move for good.

[Garfield fan 0]

I found lots of wonderful posts here and they definitely make me feel much better knowing that I'm not the only one having to "downgrade" myself to find decent job here in US. Also want to share my experience.

I have degree in pharmacy back home, never really worked as one since it was low payment job there (yea, can you believe it ?? It's a very prestigious profession here from what I heard), I am licensed there but need to take some certification to get my license here, not to mention that I have to re-do all the internship for a total of 1 year. The fee is just absolutely ridiculous (will cost more than $1000 in total) and the waiting time is worse than USCIS. I used to work in marketing field, got decent paying job back home but gave up everything for my hubby...

I got my first job from a chain restaurant, only 3 weeks after I got my EAD, definitely not a good pay, but I like to work and stay busy so I do it anyway. I live in small town and there is not much choice here. And believe it or not, I applied to Walmart to get some seasonal job and they didn't even call me. After 4 months I went to a temp agency and got a job as data entry and admin assistant. Worked there for about 6 months, then another temp agency called me (I applied like crazy... ) and got another data entry job for 2 month, got transferred to a call center and here I am now.

There was some stressful periods due to my "downgrading" and it put a strain to our relationship, but my hubby is very supportive and patient and always encourages me that I will get better job eventually. It's hard for me at first but it's better than do nothing. I almost broke down in tears during my first days in the restaurant, but I tried to keep my chin up and told myself that it's still a job, I mean it's better than do nothing and live in poverty or asking for some assistance from the government. My current job is not bad, but I would not call it my dream job of course. Hopefully I can nail something that I really like one day but for now I try to be thankful for what I got.

Good luck to everyone out there !!

[RaspberrySwirl 20]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, everyone. Yodrak, have to agree with clmarsh, that has to be your most personal post on here.

I'm close to tears on each pay-day but heck, it pays for that nice car we just bought.

[ChristinaM 0]

I'm close to tears on payday because my paycheque covers the fixed expenses (most of the time - February was a killer month, only being four weeks long) and nothing more. I share your pain, Swirlie.

[Jo1973 0]

Don't get disheartened looking for a job. I looked for about 5 months sending and posting out my Resume with no luck whatsoever. In the end I applied to Wal-mart (as a last resort) which I got the job, stocking. Easy job, nice enough people there (Instant Staff discount too).

Anyway, I have still been looking for another job and finally today I was offered a job I have been after for all those months of searching.

Don't give up hope searching. If you have to take a low paid job then don't worry too much, at least its (X) amount of cash that you don't have.

I might not have been paid well with Walmart, but over $500 every 2 weeks sure helped us out financially.

All the best to everyone Job Hunting.