Further notes from the trenches

[youngraven]

To better illustrate why the 99% aren't merely laying about doing effall when they should be out working as decent folk do...here are a few of the responses I've got from applications I've submitted in the past few days:

13 October 2011
Dear Leah,

Thank you for your interest in the position of Graphics Assistant - Requisition 998603 for RadioShack

Comments

[youngraven]

I'm not sure whether I agree with $20 per hour as a minimum wage (I've heard rumour that's one of the OWS lot's 'demands'), however, I tend to think that's a tactic rather than something they honestly expect. 'We'll ask for this crazy amount of money knowing full well that we'll not get it - but that's alright, 'cos what we really want is $11 per hour, and when we counter back with that you'll take it 'cos it'll seem reasonable by comparison'.

I begrudge nobody a living - regardless of whether we're all owed one or not, I think society will squeak along better if everybody has the means to put food into mouths, socks onto feet, rooves over heads, and then still have a bit left over for the odd lark and a rainy day. That some would say this is asking too much is baffling, frankly. I don't want the moon on a string, yeh? Where would I put it?

Understanding that I'll have to be a bit flexible, I've sent a message to a friend asking her about voice acting auditions. I went under contract once, perhaps I can do it again. /shrug.

[youngraven]

My sister in law (the HR director) explained to me that potential employers are no longer beholden to respond to candidates. It was proven 'not a good use of time, and therefore, money'. It's frustrating, but with a glut of applicants for scant work...I can see her point.

I'm glad you've found something to tide you over - even if it vexes you now and again.

[rowangolightly]

Yes, me too. It literally makes the difference between making it and not, so I'll deal with the occasional vexation.

[rowangolightly]

Sounds very familiar. I was sending in literally hundreds of resumes every single week over the past year and got not ONE single response back, not even any of these wimpy, "thanks, but no thanks" emails. Not one. Oh, there was the phishing one from Craig's list where they asked me for a copy of my credit report. Erm, no thanks, I didn't just fall off the turnip truck.

Thank ghods for my sewing ability and business or I'd have been out in the streets from the moment the alimony ended.

[cluegirl]

Perhaps, if they can work slow boat passage to China, they might some of them find occupation scrubbing toilets and picking seasonal fruit...

Peaches

[youngraven]

This past fruit harvest season, a message/rant came across the Atlanta board about that very thing. The posted titled it 'Nathan Deal Has a Job for You, but You Don't Want It'; she began by saying 'I might, if I could, like to go and pick some peaches'. Then she shook her verbal finger at all of the lazy Atlantans who were not going to pick peaches.

To all of this I thought '...if you could? So what you're really saying is that you don't want to do it either, but you're couching this in language spun to sound as though you are unable to do it'. Slick.

Re: Peaches

[cluegirl]

And all that without ever once addressing the fact that picking peaches does not yield an actual living wage. Nice...

Re: Peaches

[youngraven]

Well...there was some evidence that it would do (albeit barely) in certain parts of Georgia - but you factor in that pesky cyclical nature of things what grow on trees, and the fact that workers would have to re-locate to said parts of Georgia (which does cost a bit of brass - never minding the social aspect of it), and the ever-present lack of solid benefits (if you're bent over with illness, you can't pick a peach, really) ... does it all come out in the wash? I don't know.

What's worse, is the racism in some of the comments at the article linked in the entry. The feel of it was 'why aren't you black people picking my peaches?!' Well... I don't know, 'cos perhaps their parents, and priests, and teachers, and James Earl Jones's voice on the telly convinced them that education was key, and they all did degrees, and I don't know - why do you think they don't want to do it? Aaaaaargh.

[cgronlund]

It's rough out there, and I hate hearing about friends having a rough time. I've been there myself in recent years. I found my last three jobs through LinkedIn. (One permanent job that ended up closing down a month in, a temp job that lasted for several months, and my current job, which I've had since last March.) I had no luck with the usual things like Monster, CareerBuilder, and some other sites that used to work for me. But by answering questions on LinkedIn and staying more active there (as well as blogging and hitting some tech user groups), I've been fortunate enough to not be unemployed too long, even though I jumped to several places during my last unemployment

[youngraven]

'Freelance, or do your own thing'
The Creative Group and Creative Circle are largely geared towards freelancers. How it works is they send email blasts with freelance opportunities, and designers fight it out to be considered. It's no different than going for a permanent position someplace. You've got to be vetted, and even if you've made it that far, there are easily five (if not more) other people vying for the same three-month gig. The successful freelancers I know are people who've been at it for years (decades in one woman's case) - well before It All Frothed Over. They've got brand equity and regular clients and that's how they make it work.

Thanks very much for thinking of me. :) I'll keep poking about at LinkedIn. I've not been paying that much attention to that site, 'cos it seemed that all of their graphics work required a relocation.

And furthermore, thanks for alerting me to that Q&A bit - I didn't know it was there. I'm just after answering my first question, so hurrah. I'm going see what else I think I know. XD