Tuesday 30 April 2013

Ways to look for a job...

Ways to look for a job...

Here is a list of perhaps ideas to inspire your thoughts on ways to look for a job..it is very easy to just sit indoors by the computer and fire off CV's, which sadly often result in no more than an automated message that your CV will be passed to the recruiter.

  • Call a recruitment agency/consultant
  • Visit a recruitment agency's website
  • Visit a recruitment website (e.g. Totaljobs.com, monster.co.uk)
  • Look in your local newspaper ...quite often your local newspaper is part of a network of local editions, so if you look at the online versions then you can also see jobs in other nearby localities.
  • Look in a national newspaper ...again, you cannot possibly afford all the newspapers ( if any) , so use the online editions if they are free or go to the local library. Also job clubs often have subscriptions to newspapers, plus at a job club you get the company of people job hunting like yourself. Once people get to know what someone is looking for, quite often they might not find a job for themselves but they will for you !!!
  • Look in publications specific to your sector (trade magazines)
  • Google subjects such as unemployment forums. Again ,there is companionship with people who understand the frustrations you are going through, and people often do help each other to get a job by spotting something that will suit people they have come to know.
  • Contact old colleagues and friends by phone ...let your friends know that you are job hunting
  • Contact old colleagues and friends by email
  • Network, network, network....Facebook, LinkedIn, even Twitter and Pinterest...Google how to use each one to get a job
  • Visit a company website (i.e. where you want to work) ...companies in your niche that attract you to wanting to work for them.
  • Hand your CV in to companies …send your CV to companies via email
  • Use the Job centre YouGov site..or whatever your government has to help job seekers
  • Google Ways to look for a job and follow up as many of the ideas that are practical for you.

                                                photo credit: Steve Rhodes via photopin cc

Monday 29 April 2013

Job ads and hidden age discrimination...

Since the changes to equality laws brought in to support and enable the government to delay the age at which state pensions are paid, there has been an increase in age discrimination employment cases going to court....

I'm not certain that as of today, this is the case. Most people who are affected by the raising of the pension age i.e., those who have no option but to work until they can claim the state pension may well be unemployed , on Job Seekers Allowance or sick and disabled but unable to get sickness benefits that under the last government they were entitled to. When people like myself are at the mercy of job centre demands that we apply for work or face sanctions, this rather than protesting and campaigning becomes the priority.. Those who most need to campaign and protest against injustice have the least time and resources available to do so...just surviving is the priority and I speak from experience.

However, when scanning the job ads I receive daily in my in box, I frequently see illegal attempts on the part of employers to avoid older applicants eg..'This is a young and funky office environment. Feisty I may be , plucky yes....but young and funky I aunt !!! My days of being funky are long gone...although I had my moments …

Employers are in the wording of their ads, trying to avoid older workers and deter them from applying, but they are not as clever as they think. In doing so they leave themselves open to discrimination law, using such terms as energetic, dynamic or asking for a 'recent' graduate...who may of course be a pensioner !!!

Another tactic employers are frequently using is to advertise the vacancy as an apprenticeship. This means paying a lower wage,and the increase in the number of posts advertised benefits young job hunters but not the thousands of older people being forced to work until they drop.

However, as with most arguments , there are two sides and with this as with most cases of the employer versus the employee or job seeker, while it is unwise for employers to use such language in a job ad , it is up to the applicant to prove the discrimination. It is not enough to say that an ad is discriminatory, you have to prove that discrimination is taking place by applying and then proving that you were rejected on the basis of your age ….very difficult to do. This is an almost impossible task since an employer only has to say 'we had many suitable applicants , we are sorry you were not successful on this occasion, but we will keep your details on file ..and it is up to the applicant to prove that it is in the bin....


Job Hunting Tips : How to Make a Job Search Plan

How to Get a Job With No Experience

Female unemployment total set to hit record 1.5m due to austerity cuts, Fawcett Society figures reveal

Female unemployment total set to hit record 1.5m due to austerity cuts, Fawcett Society figures reveal

David Cameron's war on women: Female jobless total set to hit record 1.5m due to austerity cuts

Valerie Hedges : Blog Writer & Article Writer

Valerie Hedges : Blog Writer & Article Writer

See my profile on Freelanced

What you need to know about Atos assessments.

What you need to know about Atos assessments.

397514_433063430096524_259754982_n

Two regulations ‘could hold the key to winning ESA appeals’

Two regulations ‘could hold the key to winning ESA appeals’


Anti-Defamation Campaign in Defence of Disability Rights

Monday 22 April 2013

How To Write A Good Cv


How To Write A Good Cv

Author:

CV Phoenix

This article describes how to write a good CV, regarding the philosophy of how to approach creating the CV and tips on what to include and how to communicate it.
A CV is a sales document; it conveys succinctly the information of what you are looking for and why. Why you are qualified for such work and a story as to how you got to this point, covering your previous work experience, education, qualifications and interests.
I believe a CV should be a succinct story backing up a tag line about yourself. Often in interviews the main asked of the candidate is:
'Tell me about yourself'
This answer and the CV to back it up should be made as succinct, clear and relevant as possible to the position sought.
Obviously life is not as clear and simple as this and many of us have a complicated and confusing history in regards to work experience, education and life story, but effort should be made to make this as clear as possible in interview and on the CV. To present only the relevant facts to sell you most effectively for the post in which you are applying.
Profile
The profile should be a short sentence stating clearly:
  • What work you are looking for
  • What you have to offer (why you are qualified)
I believe in starting the CV with a profile. This explains to the employer or recruiter what you are looking for and summarises all of the attributes that can be found in detail on the rest of your CV.
The recruiter will know what they are looking for and if your profile states this in summary then you are making their job a lot easier and they are more likely to put you in the 'yes' pile, as they quickly check a large volume of CVs.
Remember the recruiter is human too, think how frustrating it is when you look at a website that is not clear and it is hard to find the information you need quickly. Now think of the recruiter who has to look through a large volume of CVs for any advertised positions, if they have to look at a large number and it takes too long for them to find the information they need from your CV they may not take the time to do so.
Work Experience
Work experience should come directly after the profile in reverse chronological order.
The first thing a recruiter or prospective employer will look at is the last job you have had and if you had the relevant experience or achieved something relevant to the job you are applying for in previous roles.
Do them and yourself a favour and put this experience where they can find it easily. I.e. your most recent job at the top and your previous roles below this.
There will always be gaps and times when you worked for a short time, temping, travelling etc. It is your call as to how to include these but remember your story needs to be made as clear as possible, so if you worked somewhere for a short time then make the story relevant as to why or consider omitting some jobs altogether. Maybe include one line with the dates and mention what happened, e.g. temping role, or went travelling between these dates etc. This answers the question quicker than leaving gaps and having to explain them in interview.
Education
Education should be also in reverse chronological order.
Other Qualifications
If you have attended any training courses or have industrial qualifications they should be entered here. Remember this is a sales document – list everything you have done here – sell yourself!
Interests
Qualify your hobbies and interests. Do not mention generic things such as ‘I like to go running\' without qualifying it as to what has been achieved. For example, it would be better to say: 'I am part of the Harriers running club' - or 'I recently completed the Great North Run'
Good luck!
Steve
http://www.cvphoenix.com
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/resumes-articles/how-to-write-a-good-cv-1955143.html
About the Author
http://www.CVPhoenix.com offers and effective and affordable personalised CV improvement/creation service.
I offer a one to one CV writing service, via email and phone, for an affordable one off upfront payment.
Based on my experience and your needs; your CV will be specifically designed for your goals and market, to get you the job you want. The CV will be effective and 'recruitment friendly' to help you get that interview!

This article describes how to write a good CV, regarding the philosophy of how to approach creating the CV and tips on what to include and how to communicate it.

Hire me at Freelanced.com..my portfolio

Valerie Hedges is a freelance Blog Writer interested in Freelance Jobs.

Friday 19 April 2013

Something for the weekend..free or cheap ways to have fun

When looking for a job and unemployed on a very limited income, it is important to still try to maintain interests and hobbies. One of the best things about being online looking for a job is that possibly ( although I appreciate not everyone is in this position) you have your own PC at home and can spend time on it rather than perhaps being limited to an hour at the library.

I have recently discovered Pinterest..or rather what to do with it and what can be done with it. Pinterest is based on visual images..no picture? then it can't be posted....or rather pinned. Many people are known to learn more easily with visual images as a learning style and also there is no doubt that although not suitable and acceptable for many traditional job applications...where it would not be seen in a good light, a visual CV is particularly appropriate for art and design and many IT roles where a portfolio of work is useful.

Increasing job seekers are aware of just how futile it can seem to be, just firing off CV after CV to different jobs and getting nowhere with not even an acknowledgement, so to make their CV stand out and draw attention they have developed the Info graphic CV format...Google free infographic resume template for some ideas and resources to use or adapt.

Also when applying for jobs you may come to realize than an advertiser knows far more about you than you think. This is because most potential employers Google an applicant to find out about them. Of course they tend to look initially at LinkedIn profiles and maybe Facebook...especially if there is a page for eg a blog or self employed business but Pinterest is becoming increasingly popular. This is especially because a user can make boards which show many varied parts of their lives and the employer gets a great picture of the user and other interests they may have eg art, books etc as well as their employment activities.

Also on Pinterst you will find many resources to assist you in your job hunting.

using pinterest to find a job
Make a Pinterest CV



Resume Skills | Hobbies & Interests

Resume Skills | Hobbies & Interests

Its one of the few things on your resume, that you probably don’t even know! Every candidate I interview, knows where he/she was born, what they did, education, parents etc. somehow when I get to the hobbies and interests part it all seems pointless.

Resume Skills | Hobbies & Interests

Author: Prabhjot Bedi
Be honest. How many of you have one of the following in there?

Reading

Traveling

Music

Internet Browsing

If you do, you are only one of the 96candidates out there.

Hobbies and Interests are something to talk about. It\'s a window into your personality, that is beyond the standard work stuff. These are things you are supposed to be passionate about. You should be using this extensively to not just market yourself, but also to steer the direction the interview takes.

I will talk about how to manage the interview flow, but some other day. Today about your hobbies & interests.

Here are the rules:

Make them true. Have something you are passionate about. Something no one needs you to work upon, or do. Something that excites you, something that makes your eyes sparkle when you talk about it.

Make them Unique. As far as possible mention your hobby in a way that sounds unique. Use this as a lever for the interviewer to remember you. Don\'t say reading, when you can say ‘classics\' or ‘Indian art history\' or something more specific. If it is music talk about genre, artist or just decade!

Make them demonstrable. You may like to think, but really that is not a hobby. If you put something like singing, be ready to sing in the interview. If you put something like dramatics, be ready to emote. Put something that can give the interviewers a little break from the monotony of taking interviews. If you say coin collection, carry a unique coin with you!

Make them relatable. Be honest at all times, but if you have more than one hobby, choose the one that the interviewers may be able to relate to. Yes, you read that right. This like all other parts of your resume needs to be customized according to the people you are sending it out to.

Get a life! If you don\'t have a hobby or interest, get one! It\'s not just something to talk about in a an interview, it is something to treasure and add value to yourself as an individual.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/resumes-articles/resume-skills-hobbies-interests-335226.html
About the Author
Prabhjot is a hospitality trainer & career coach.

You can write to him at bedi.hospitality@gmail.com

His career blog is at http://www.myeclatcoach.com/

We are on Pinterest...find lots more to help and inspire your job search



Thursday 18 April 2013

22 Free Creative Resume template

22 Free Creative Resume template

These infographic type CV's are not right for every job application but they are attention grabbing and especially good for media jobs.



creative resume template 01 22 Free Creative Resume template

Unemployment levels vs jobs available - Confused.com

Unemployment levels vs jobs available - Confused.com


Unemployment levels vs jobs available

  • ,
  •  25 Apr, 2012...but still a very informative and relevant infographic

Thursday 11 April 2013

Publicity Assistant - London

Publicity Assistant - UK Media Job Vacancies at Media Job Vacancies

 Publicity Assistant - London
A great temporary opportunity has arisen for a Publicity Assistant to provide administrative support to the Publicity team to facilitate the smooth running of the department. You will also be involved in supporting campaigns and events at a junior level.

 Media Job Vacancies

The History of the CV

The History of the CV

This is so interesting...and thought provoking re How the CV will evolve in the future

 This infographic (from the National Careers Service) shows the history of the CV.

From Telegraph Jobs How to find a job when you're over 50

Career Advice Article: How to find a job when you’re over 50 - Telegraph Jobs

 More than 100 readers joined the Telegraph’s job-hunting Q&A to ask for advice and tips on how to find a decent job.

 Telegraph Jobs Logo