Job market BLOWS!

Well I've been out of work for way too long now but I just can't believe how little jobs there are out there. 90% of craigslist is a scam front. The jobs read real with real companies that want an email so you send one along and they reply with "that position is full but we need an account manager, can you cash some checks?" Hell, even real job sites are inundated with total BS like monster or hotjobs. You'll have the requisite 4-5 nursing jobs then a dozen ads for bogus "work from home!" scams then they'll list crap jobs from timbucktoo like it's close to where you live. If I wanted to swab decks on a fish processor boat in Alaska, I would have searched in Alaska, not flipping southern Washington!!!! Sorry for the rant but I had to blow off some steam.

Today is my last day.

Cheers to unemployment everybody!

yup

this guy had an offer from my old employer and then had it recinded. Companies generally don't do this as it ruins their reputation as a target for top talent.

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/mar2009/bs20090330_869479.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index+-+temp_business+schools

That happened to my brother and his wife. They were both offered teaching jobs in North Carolina, and when they got down there they were told that there would be no hiring due to budget problems. Now, he's working as the cable repo man and his wife is working in a day care center until something opens up.

posts like this make me glad I graduate in 3 weeks...

Yeah out where I live there is a town with over 30% unemployment rate. Where I was living last year is about to turn into a ghost town as the mill is days from being shut down.

Makes me happy I graduate August 16th....and I still don't know whether or not if I'll be keeping my job at Honder.

Well, not sure if it helps anyone on here, but I'm looking for a Copier/Printer/PC/IT tech for Indiana - preferably in either the Indy or Lafayette area.

Yup, it sure does. There is NOTHING out there for architects, since the whole profession depends on the ability of people and businesses to secure financing to build large buildings. I just got a call back from the US Census Bureau, since I had applied with them in the absence of any real jobs. This work barely requires basic literacy. I am a graduate of one of the top universities in the country, and I got a PERFECT score on their placement exam. I was just informed that I am an ALTERNATE enumerator, which means that I MAY eventually get an opportunity to work the lowest ranking job in their organization. The worst part is that I actually felt happy to get this call, since it means I can sit through a week of training at the end of the month and get a check that's $220 more than my unemployment check would have been. If I wasn't young and able to live at home during this E36 M3storm I don't know what I'd do.

I sold off nearly every hoarded part in my garage. Now I'm selling of diecasts and slot cars and stuff, doing details (anybody in WA/OR need one? I travel!), doing light mechanic work, and picking up any oddjobs I can. My college closed all off-campus Work Study positions (Washington State is in Pullman, which might as well be Antarctica for how close it is to me) and the VA pulled all outreach Work Study positions (I had a damn contract through May of 2010 and got flipping canned! Thanks for the Change!!!). My alumni college isn't helping either, their idea of an acceptable job is a 1-day gig holding a sign dressed like a chicken on the street corner for minimum wage plus they take a cut.

Sucks to here man, I'm sorry!

I keep telling my girlfirend she is lucky to even have a job. She is bitching that she is only get x amount of hours a week, but something is better than nothing. She makes enough to pay her bills, but not enough to go shopping, so she begs me for money, to use my car, etc. She's gotten pretty damn good at detailing my car and I've also shown her how to wetsand! She ain't getting money for nothing haha!

But I've also had friends resort to working at a gas station and crap like that. It sucks to resort to that when you have a BA or BS but man something is better than nothing.

I'm also thankful I can still crash at my parents until things get better(well at least until I have school paid off for, already started paying off some loans).

Josh wrote: Yup, it sure does. There is NOTHING out there for architects, since the whole profession depends on the ability of people and businesses to secure financing to build large buildings.

You'll get there, man. I graduated in 1989, just in time for the 1990 recession, and a number of my classmates took a while to get jobs in architecture. It's brutal out there in the design professions. Most of the MPE engineers around here are laying off and going to 32-hour weeks for the people they do keep.

A friend of mine who is an architectural designer went for a job interview last week where they had 150+ candidates applying for a single position.

Once a building is under construction and enough dirt has been pushed around, it has some momentum and it tends to get completed regardless, so tradesmen and contractors are sometimes better off. But it doesn't cost a dime to call your architect and tell him to put down his pencil.

Here in the Denver area, there are more jobs posted than many areas, but no such thing as "entry level."

A cabinet shop had an "entry" level opening posted on CL a few weeks ago. The position was sanding and staining cabinets, the pay was something like $9.00/hr. Sounds simple enough, it would be a way to get a foot in the door at a shop if nothing else. However, to qualify, the shop wanted 2 years experience finishing wood.

Staffing agencies are also making themselves look bad at the moment. There seem to be quite a few openings for CNC machinists in this area. Most of the positions require 3-5 years experience, and the starting pay is in the $17-$19/hr. range for M-F, 9-5.

A staffing agency had a CNC machinist job listed, wanted 3-5 years exp. , the hours were "mostly" 1st shift, with "some" 2nd shift and weekends. They were willing to pay $11-$13 an hour. Why they didn't tell that client to get lost is beyond me. It makes their agency, a technical agency no less, look great to potential job seekers.

Duke wrote: But it doesn't cost a dime to call your architect and tell him to put down his pencil.

Exactly. I've come to understand that architects get screwed from all angles economically. We have to coordinate all of the other consultants' work while they just do the what they are asked and collect checks. When the client decides he needs to save money and scale back a project, we get to do a bunch of extra work, and get paid less. And yes, when the client decides to stop paying someone, it's always the architect. And maybe the worst part is that if one of your projects gets mentioned in the press, the owner and builder are always named, while the architect rarely is. Unless of course the architect is one of those precious few (less than 1% in the real world) who has already made a recognizable name for themselves with widely-published work, and of course they don't need the publicity anyway :).

Right now I am workng to become a LEED AP (test next week) in the hopes that it will make me more attractive to a firm that is doing or wants to do more green projects. Not to mention that many publicly funded projects are starting to require it, and that may be where most of the new work comes from for the next few years. Or maybe I could even end up working on the consulting end of things, as more projects require this type of effort and certification, the consulting businesses seem poised to grow. Ok, now I need to get back to studying, thanks for keeping me on task .

Josh

Yup. Job hunting here sucks too.

My best resource has actually been the job board run by the CSUS career center. Very slim pickings, but at least there are no completely bogus jobs. I'm delighted over the fact that you can jump on a posting fast enough, and actually secure an on-campus interview slot with a recruiter. Of course, that's a recruiter that will be seeing 50 other people that week.

Oh, and the unemployment office needs me to fill out and re-send my last statement again. I earned $150 doing some upgrades to someone's website, and apparently listed that incorrectly somehow... grr...

I use and like Indeed.com for looking for jobs. I also think looking up acquantces on Linked in is a great thing to do. www.linkedin.com <-- Send me a PM and I'll add you.

Don't forget www.doostang.com <--- Great site for students. Send me a PM with your email address and I'll toss you an invite.

You know the funny thing I just thought about is that the field research stuff that I'm involved with has actually picked up this year. Granted it couldn't get much worse than last year there was not much going on at all.

We're growing and hiring in south GA, if it helps anyone.

what type of business is this SVreX, and what are you looking for?

I LOVE Georgia

My employer is always hiring let then know I reffered and I'll split the 1500 with you once you've signed up. College is a big plus in my field you get tons more respect. Oh and job security, they can't fire you.

wherethefmi wrote: Oh and job security, they can't fire you.

No, but they can fire AT you. I'll pass.

maroon92 wrote: what type of business is this SVreX, and what are you looking for? I LOVE Georgia

Chemical R&D and custom processes. Everything from flavorings and fragrances to fuel cells and advanced green diesel technologies. Pretty interesting stuff.

Operators, maintenance people, capital expansion crew (construction), electrician, sales, etc. We tend to like to find motivated people with differing skill sets from folks we have who are willing to attempt just about anything.

SVreX wrote: Operators, maintenance people, capital expansion crew (construction), electrician, sales, etc. We tend to like to find motivated people with differing skill sets from folks we have who are willing to attempt just about anything.

I started out in Plant engineering as a project engineer. All I can say is that this work is fun. There is never a dull moment.

I saw a sign of the times here last week. Until recently, we had a bit of an oil boom going on with rigs poking holes in everything in sight. Lots of young guys working 100 hour weeks and making big piles of money, much of which get spent on their trucks.

So, I saw one of these oil field trucks. Dodge 2500 crew cab with a lift kit, shiny wheels and various toys bolted on - delivering pizza.

ignorant wrote:

SVreX wrote: Operators, maintenance people, capital expansion crew (construction), electrician, sales, etc. We tend to like to find motivated people with differing skill sets from folks we have who are willing to attempt just about anything.

I started out in Plant engineering as a project engineer. All I can say is that this work is fun. There is never a dull moment.

We are hiring engineers too.