Employment Tips

[The Penguin]

Searching for a job can be very frustrating. To ease your frustration, I will share some tips I learned over the years. Some resources I will share is Canada related since this is the country I live in. Should you have any additional resources to add for Canada and/or other countries, please share as it can be very helpful for many people.

Government Employment Centers

The first suggestion I will share if you're having trouble with resumes, cover letters, interview skills, etc., I recommend you contact Service Canada at 1 800 O-Canada (1-800-622-6232) and inquire about the local employment center. I have used these centers in many cities across Canada the experience has been great. Best of all, the service is free. Many of these centers have workshops to improve employment skills. They have access to computers you can search for jobs, work on resumes, cover letters, fax, printing and other services. You can also get an employment counselor to help with your job search.

Employment Agencies

I have used many of them over the years for work. They can be tricky sometimes as they can only fill so many jobs for so many people. My first recommendation is to register with multiple agencies to increase your odds finding a job. One time I registered with four. When they do find a job, the term can vary from a few days, weeks, months, trial to hire and other scenarios. There can be a case they may terminate your placement at any time. Even sooner than the original end date. This is another reason why it's good to be registered with multiple agencies because should your job placement ends, and it's taking them a while to find a new job, you can try with other agencies to see if they have something sooner.

Computers Proccsing Your Job Applications

It is starting to be common for more companies use computers to process job applications. Many of them are designed to look for certain keywords related to the role you are applying for. I will share a few articles that will share tips to increase your odds of having your resume to be seen.

Jobs: Hiring Process Increasingly Automated by Companies | TIME.com
How To Get Your Resume Past Computer Screening Tactics - The Wall Street Job Report | The Wall Street Job Report


Overquilfed

Applying for a job and being told you are overquilfed can be a pain. When this happens, it's best to tone down your resume. I give you an example of what I have done. My work experience is a software developer. However, since I have been having trouble to find work in my trade and despite for money, I decided to apply for low end jobs such as fast food and retail. Before applying I changed my last work experience to computer phone support. I also confirm with a former employer if he was OK with this and he was. I removed my college education on my resume and only left high school. Because I have done general labor work in the past, I made sure this was most of my work experience on my resume. I was able to get interviews and land a job. For yourself, you might need to use a different technique. I would also Google to search "Overqualified" to get tips on this topic.

I hope someone will find this information useful and don't forget to share great resouces with us when you find something.

 

[OddGirl]

Here's another Canadian resource. Home - Job Bank

This is a link to the Canadian Job Bank website. I've found both temporary and permanent work through this site before. Many employers post all sorts of job openings here - from manual labour and factory jobs to skilled trades to white collar professional positions. It costs nothing to search through the listings, and many employers accept resumes by email.

If you've ever been in the military, and are looking to work in private security, my employer, Commissionaires Security, really gives preferential hiring to military veterans. They're one of the best security agencies to work for, are well organized and have been in the business a long time, and have offices in every province and most larger cities. if you live nearby to the city, but want to work in your own community, Commissionaires will really try to accommodate you if they have sites in your location. I have about a 45 minute commute to my site, but I tolerate that because I really love my work site and get on well with my Sergeant, fellow guards, and client staff. Commissionaires provides security for businesses, hospitals, government buildings, factories, parks, events, schools, prisons, warehouses, stores/malls, airports, and train/bus stations. I am posted at a business. If you have never worked in private security before, training is provided and you will get help applying for your security licence. You don't have to be a military vet to get hired, but it sure helps.

 

[The Penguin]

If you've ever been in the military, and are looking to work in private security, my employer, Commissionaires Security, really gives preferential hiring to military veterans.

Very true. My father got a job with them.

 

[AsheSkyler]

All very good tips. Especially custom tailoring your resume to the job you're applying to, that's very recommended in the business articles I read.

 

[Shiznown]

All very good tips. Especially custom tailoring your resume to the job you're applying to, that's very recommended in the business articles I read.

Society is so asinine, that it requires you to do that. That's just another reason why I want to work at a non-conventional job.

 

[Tia Maria]

A giant bump for this very excellent post Penguin!

 

[The Penguin]

A giant bump for this very excellent post Penguin!

Thanks. I hope some members used some of these tips and it was hopefully.

 

[IrishAspie]

Thanks. I hope some members used some of these tips and it was hopefully.

just to add that recuitment agencies use a keyword search on CV's to match you to jobs so make sure your CV has the relevant words, if you have a qualification companies will look for make sure it's there. if your in college studing for a degree say that and use the word degree so you'll be pulled out of the pile for jobs looking for degree holders.

 

[nowwhat]

I always urge aspies to find a way to turn their special interest into work. For me, growing up in a place where manufacturing equipment for my special interest is a big deal, it was relatively easy. Obviously, this approach will not work for everyone. After 23 years spent as a self-employed contractor manufacturing the aforementioned equipment, I was recently recruited to work in a dirfferent field utilizing many of the same skills and experiences with materials and processes to make something completely different.

When we become interested in something, we become experts at it. Our unusual ways of problem-solving and our analytical ways of processing life can be very useful to many employers, and can make us competitive candidates for certain positions. There are many jobs where social skills are far from primary, and a super knowledgable aspie, with his wizard-like skills when in his element, can be a huge asset. Finding such positions can be difficult, but if one of your special interests has any overlap with the working world, you will already be aware of it.

Life is tough for aspies, in particular because one of our weakest areas, employment, is so essential for indpendence and self-determination. If you can pay your own bills and support yourself, you are not dependent on others approving of you or liking you for survival. Someone who can earn his way is much less subject to the social judgments of others than someone who is relying on charity, goodwill and handouts. We are different than most of humanity, and in order to be happy, must live differently. When you are along on someone else's ride, you will be expected to go where they go, and do what they do, in a way they approve of. This is a horrible situation for an aspie to be in. It is basically crippling and often leads to a worsening spiral of conflict, social persecution, withdrawal of support, etc. etc.

Become a hired gun. Many of the jobs that are hard to fill pay better, and include enhanced tolerance for "eccentricity". Difficult jobs that involve working with things, matter, physics and organic chemistry, rather than positions whose primary work product is alteration in others' mental and emotional states. I have long been the wacko thy hire to stick his finger in the fan. Some jobs are so inherently taxing and unpleasant, that you are expected to be surly, curt, or even downright angry while at work. So have I survived all these years.