Why unemployment isn't a r茅sum茅 buster
If you鈥檝e ever been unemployed or underemployed 鈥� working for lower pay at less responsibility just to make ends meet 鈥� you already know what it鈥檚 like to be perceived as damaged goods鈥�
Your friends and family are supportive but uncomfortable around you.聽You apply for jobs and don鈥檛 get called back, even though you鈥檙e qualified. And you wonder if you鈥檒l ever find meaningful work again.
Well, there鈥檚 finally some good news, and it鈥檚 not just Friday鈥檚 big announcement that the jobless rate dropped in January from a year earlier in most metropolitan areas. Two days earlier, a new study was quietly released that shows employers have wised up to reality 鈥� they鈥檙e no longer holding your bad luck against you.
鈥淭he vast majority of employers 鈥� 85 percent 鈥� reported that they are more understanding of employment gaps post-recession,鈥� jobs site CareerBuilder announced Wednesday. In a poll of more than 3,000 hiring managers, 鈥淣ine-in-ten (94 percent) said they wouldn鈥檛 think less of a candidate who took a position during the recession that was at a lower level than the one he/she previously held.鈥�
That should help some of the 5.4 million people the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says have been out of work for at least six months. But the survey also offered advice from those employers on what to do to improve your odds of catching their eye. Here鈥檚 how they suggested you improve marketability if you鈥檙e currently unemployed or underemployed鈥�
- Take a temporary or contract assignment (79 percent)
- Take a class (61 percent)
- Volunteer (60 percent)
- Start your own business (28 percent)
- Start a professional blog (11 percent)
CareerBuilder itself had some tips 鈥� including the novel idea to search-optimize your r茅sum茅. 鈥淢ost employers use electronic scanning devices to screen and rank candidates,鈥� CareerBuilder says. 鈥淢ake sure to pepper in words from the job posting into your r茅sum茅 as it relates to your experience, so your r茅sum茅 comes up higher in employer searches.鈥�
But once they find your r茅sum茅, you have to get them to look at it 鈥� a task employers spend an average of six seconds on, according to a study released last Thursday. So make sure your r茅sum茅 is well-organized and uncluttered. Check out .
CareerBuilder also emphasized networking to find leads, bringing fresh ideas to the interview, and following up with a thank-you note afterward. We鈥檝e got more advice in .
鈥撀燘randon Ballenger is a writer for聽, a consumer/personal finance TV news feature that airs in about 80 cities as well as around the Web. This column first appeared in Money Talks News.
