finding a job

[UmmSqueakster 54]

You know, x-mas is approaching and maybe there's a good chance he can get hired for at least x-mas help. It can be a foot in the door. Maybe it would be a good idea to put another application at some retail shops. Crossing my fingers for you Amanda and hoping some good things come out for you.

Fedex and UPS hire a lot of temp workers during the holidays. It isn't full time and it doesn't pay very much, but it gets the foot in the door experience wise.

One thing that AbuS did that got him his job was working an internship in his chosen profession. Literally, that's what did it. He got experience to put on his resume, and good recommendation from his supervisor, which were the lynchpins in the the whole process.

[prince+angel 3]

with school now being open, has he thought about becoming a school bus driver? Most companies pay for training and the CDL testing, decent way to get experience and move onto to something more lucrative.

How about labor ready (pay for a day)? local hospitals? local colleges? state/county/city positions? Many places like ARC and Catholic Charities look for folks on a regular basis to work in community residences etc ... Home Depot/Lowes/Walmarts? Warehouse work? Grocery store distrubution centers?

Just a few ideas ...

I dont know what your hubbys interest are and/or what he's qualified to do but were looking at every possible option just to 1st get his foot in the door somewhere. Good luck to all.

[AlHayatZween 2]

My husband is having the same dificulties. He has been here 3 months and has applied everywhere and had only one interview. He needs to have his drivers license and that has been a difficult road. He gets very depressed especially when I get up at 5 am to drive an hour to work everyday. I moved back to the small town where I am from to be closer to my family and because before my husband arrived, my house was broken into and I moved for security too. So the small town, plus his name (his middle name is Mohammad) and the fact that he doesn't have any work experience here (people don't want to call Jordan for references, plus they don't speak Arabic even if they would call) and he has no drivers license yet...it is difficult. I mean, I can't even find a second job to keep us above water until he finds a job. The economy right now makes things harder. It is a very difficult time. There is a small community college nearby and there were several programs offered for free if you are unemployed, so he is taking advantage of that now and taking an In Home Aide class for now. It worries the heck out of both of us though.

It is really rough out there... i wish you both the best of luck...

Just remember you can use your friends for references if he knows them. Put the Jordanian work references, too, but your friends as personal references can vouch for him, saying that he's newly arrived here and he's a great guy. Also, if you can get him into any kind of class--Business English, GED, the CDL class is a great idea--he can use his teachers as references.

If he knows anything about construction or cleaning, sometimes you can find one or two day gigs on Craig's List. Even if he helps someone move for a day, it's some cash money in his pocket and you never know what it could lead to...

p.s.

UPS is an awesome job if you can get in... They start everyone part-time, but i think you can quickly move to full-time and quickly move up the ranks. They also offer tuition reimbursement and i think they are unionized...

Edited October 6, 2009 by AlHayatZween

[ya falaha! 0]

Mine's been out of state since April working, too. Same situation, he's staying with friends and happy to be working but not happy to be away. Jobs are real hard to come by here.

My husband also suspected his name had something to do with not getting any call backs. We sent out resume after resume but got nothing. He did find a job through men at the local mosque a couple months after he got here back in '07 but lost his job by the following spring due to the place going under. I agree that extra education would help a lot. My husband plans on going back to school when he returns in the winter. He finally realizes that that may be the way to go.

Good luck to you and your husband.

Not sure where in the US you are - most bigger towns have job centers. They can help with resumes and interview coaching workshops. They have job listings - which may or may not be helpful - but the search skills may be. Seems most jobs are found through friends/acquaintances --- I'm sure you both have told everyone you know he is looking.

Good Luck!

(fyi - my husband has been working out of state for several months --- not our preferred situation, but he is happy to be working and has friends to stay with)

[S and S 12]

Thank you, everyone - I got lots of good ideas. We'll have to try them out now.

I wasn't planning to pay again to have his resume done - that was a waste of money, and (more than a year later) hasn't resulted in even one call. I think cover letters are a really good thing to mention - I was making the same mistake recently when trying for a job. I wasn't getting any responses until I started adding cover letters (it's easy to forget that when you're applying online).

Maybe the difficult job search is to "make up for" the relatively quick and pain free visa/green card process? just kidding

His English is really good, and he does have his GED and DL. I did find a place nearby that might be able to help him with this process. I just didn't realize how much was out there! I also found a volunteer job that he might be interested in. A paycheck would be really nice, but getting work experience is even more important right now. I never knew about apprenticeship programs - great idea! Also about putting "Mr." to indicate gender.

Temp agencies, job centers, etc - lots of good ideas. I will let everyone know how it works out for us. I hope all of this information helps the others who are in the same situation. Maybe we can all keep each other updated on our progress, and let everyone know what does and does not work.

Good luck to all!

I know you were joking about the quick visa process resulting in long job process, but I can testify that makes no difference, lol. It took us 18 months to get him here and another 8 months to find a minimum wage job!

I really wish you the best of luck and hope things work out. This economy is just making things worse for all of us right now. Maybe all the advice on here can help us all.

[*Maureen* 0]

Mine's been out of state since April working, too. Same situation, he's staying with friends and happy to be working but not happy to be away. Jobs are real hard to come by here.

My husband also suspected his name had something to do with not getting any call backs. We sent out resume after resume but got nothing. He did find a job through men at the local mosque a couple months after he got here back in '07 but lost his job by the following spring due to the place going under. I agree that extra education would help a lot. My husband plans on going back to school when he returns in the winter. He finally realizes that that may be the way to go.

Good luck to you and your husband.

Not sure where in the US you are - most bigger towns have job centers. They can help with resumes and interview coaching workshops. They have job listings - which may or may not be helpful - but the search skills may be. Seems most jobs are found through friends/acquaintances --- I'm sure you both have told everyone you know he is looking.

Good Luck!

(fyi - my husband has been working out of state for several months --- not our preferred situation, but he is happy to be working and has friends to stay with)

What kind of work does he do there? That's gotta be rough on you at times, huh? How often does he come back home?

[ya falaha! 0]

He's a cook. He doesn't come home, I go there. He works 7 days a week so he takes days off when I go to visit. Plus, it's nice for me to get away. Actually aside from missing him, it's not rough for me. I'm good at finding things to occupy my time. He'll be home for good in a few months, God willing.

Mine's been out of state since April working, too. Same situation, he's staying with friends and happy to be working but not happy to be away. Jobs are real hard to come by here.

My husband also suspected his name had something to do with not getting any call backs. We sent out resume after resume but got nothing. He did find a job through men at the local mosque a couple months after he got here back in '07 but lost his job by the following spring due to the place going under. I agree that extra education would help a lot. My husband plans on going back to school when he returns in the winter. He finally realizes that that may be the way to go.

Good luck to you and your husband.

Not sure where in the US you are - most bigger towns have job centers. They can help with resumes and interview coaching workshops. They have job listings - which may or may not be helpful - but the search skills may be. Seems most jobs are found through friends/acquaintances --- I'm sure you both have told everyone you know he is looking.

Good Luck!

(fyi - my husband has been working out of state for several months --- not our preferred situation, but he is happy to be working and has friends to stay with)

What kind of work does he do there? That's gotta be rough on you at times, huh? How often does he come back home?

[Nothing1234 2]

He's a cook. He doesn't come home, I go there. He works 7 days a week so he takes days off when I go to visit. Plus, it's nice for me to get away. Actually aside from missing him, it's not rough for me. I'm good at finding things to occupy my time. He'll be home for good in a few months, God willing.

Mine's been out of state since April working, too. Same situation, he's staying with friends and happy to be working but not happy to be away. Jobs are real hard to come by here.

My husband also suspected his name had something to do with not getting any call backs. We sent out resume after resume but got nothing. He did find a job through men at the local mosque a couple months after he got here back in '07 but lost his job by the following spring due to the place going under. I agree that extra education would help a lot. My husband plans on going back to school when he returns in the winter. He finally realizes that that may be the way to go.

Good luck to you and your husband.

Not sure where in the US you are - most bigger towns have job centers. They can help with resumes and interview coaching workshops. They have job listings - which may or may not be helpful - but the search skills may be. Seems most jobs are found through friends/acquaintances --- I'm sure you both have told everyone you know he is looking.

Good Luck!

(fyi - my husband has been working out of state for several months --- not our preferred situation, but he is happy to be working and has friends to stay with)

What kind of work does he do there? That's gotta be rough on you at times, huh? How often does he come back home?

[AlHayatZween 2]

Has anyone actually tried "Americanizing" their or their SO's name and found it to make a difference?

i'm just curious... i think about it sometimes myself.

[Y's_habibitk 2]

Has anyone actually tried "Americanizing" their or their SO's name and found it to make a difference?

i'm just curious... i think about it sometimes myself.

I read a long time ago about a study where people used their "african american" given names and then used a "common" american name on resume's and I was amazed at the difference in the responses from companies. The Shaniqua's got 1-2 calls while the Sara's got up to 10 for the same exact resume sent to the very same companies. Unfortunately it's a fact of life in many places still

[ya falaha! 0]

This has been suggested to my husband (not by me) but he adamantly refuses. He doesn't even like to be called "Mo".

Has anyone actually tried "Americanizing" their or their SO's name and found it to make a difference?

i'm just curious... i think about it sometimes myself.

[venusfire503 54]

Has anyone actually tried "Americanizing" their or their SO's name and found it to make a difference?

i'm just curious... i think about it sometimes myself.

I read a long time ago about a study where people used their "african american" given names and then used a "common" american name on resume's and I was amazed at the difference in the responses from companies. The Shaniqua's got 1-2 calls while the Sara's got up to 10 for the same exact resume sent to the very same companies. Unfortunately it's a fact of life in many places still

I can attest to it - my husband looked for a looooooooooong time with no luck - not a single call or interview. Then he used his first initial, "American" middle name that he gave himself, and his last name on his resume, and finally got a call for a seasonal position, and was able to work a few months.

venusfire

[AlHayatZween 2]

Sometimes things just suck...

I heard on the radio yesterday that one study showed that teachers graded students with unusual names more harshly than students with traditional names (i.e., Sarah, David, Michael). Don't know if it is true, but how crazy is THAT!

[Y's_habibitk 2]

Sometimes things just suck...

I heard on the radio yesterday that one study showed that teachers graded students with unusual names more harshly than students with traditional names (i.e., Sarah, David, Michael). Don't know if it is true, but how crazy is THAT!

if that is true, its really f'd up. teachers of all people are held to higher standards in my mind.

Venus,

Yazied's 3 jobs that he has been offered(took 2) were all "walk in's". He didnt get any calls from sending out his resume online. I hadnt thought of the name issue at all. Maybe when there is a smiling face to go with the name, its harder to judge/dismiss right off the bat

[Jenn! 918]

My husband has changed his name from "Wadi" to "Wade" for the purposes of getting a job. It's very strange to hear him say, "Yes, this is Wade." on the phone, but I absolutely think it helps.