Job Seekers thread Mark 2

[Torture]

Most companies do electronic ROE submission straight to Service Canada. It's not necessary to get a paper version.

[CaptainCrunch]

Yeah, one of the complaints talking to friends of mine that work for small companies that hadn't been set up for electronic submission of ROE's is that the registration for companies to get setup are a nightmare, and they can't get anyone on the phone to help.

[Locke]

I rarely express sympathy for Government workers (useless layabouts and ne'erdowells!) but they must be absolutely swamped right now on both the CRA and Service Canada sides.

I doubt anything of this scale has ever been presented as a thought experiment let alone rushed into execution.

In a way it reminds me of the Refugee Crisis they experienced in Turkey and the criticisms that they werent working or processing people fast enough.

In that case it was akin to an invading army showing up at their door-step except they also had to house, feed and clothe them all while processing them and attempting to maintain order. Its unprecedented.

Similar here. I envision one IT Guy in a basement somewhere in Ottawa whose job it is to make this all operate seamlessly while his lowly intern is charged with raiding The local Beer Store.

[cSpooge]

Originally Posted by Locke

I rarely express sympathy for Government workers (useless layabouts and ne'erdowells!) but they must be absolutely swamped right now on both the CRA and Service Canada sides.

I doubt anything of this scale has ever been presented as a thought experiment let alone rushed into execution.

In a way it reminds me of the Refugee Crisis they experienced in Turkey and the criticisms that they werent working or processing people fast enough.

In that case it was akin to an invading army showing up at their door-step except they also had to house, feed and clothe them all while processing them and attempting to maintain order. Its unprecedented.

Similar here. I envision one IT Guy in a basement somewhere in Ottawa whose job it is to make this all operate seamlessly while his lowly intern is charged with raiding The local Beer Store.

It's about 100k calls an hour to CRA currently so they're getting slammed.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by cSpooge

It's about 100k calls an hour to CRA currently so they're getting slammed.

Right, and they're doing the best they can serving, frankly, very desperate people.

Like I said, I rarely express sympathy for them but I feel for them on this one and they're doing the best they can because they likely understand how important this is to the people calling.

This isnt fun for anyone, so a little patience, consideration and understanding on all sides is called for.

[Lubicon]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Yeah, one of the complaints talking to friends of mine that work for small companies that hadn't been set up for electronic submission of ROE's is that the registration for companies to get setup are a nightmare, and they can't get anyone on the phone to help.

Can vouch for that. My wife has been off work two weeks now and they are still in the process of setting up electronic submission for ROE's. It's been painful and the final item on the list is for approval to be physically mailed to the owner of the business. I expect that will be another week or two at the earliest. Once that's done they can issue the ROE and she can begin the whole EI process. Or more likely she'll apply for the other benefit once that website is up and running next week.

[Weirdness]

Well my Dad's actually thrown me a lifeline. His work needs to take on more staff (they manufacture pill bottles, hand sanitizer bottles, etc so they're in the supply chain of some essential stuff), but I think they might be a bit worried about bringing in someone who might have COVID. They're putting a call out to family members of current staff so looks like I'm going to forklift school tomorrow. I guess living with my folks is one advantage in this case hah



Looks like potential exposure is another risk of taking on new hires. I can see a negative COVID test being a condition for being hired or admitted into workplaces in the very near future.


I realize I'm pretty lucky to get an opportunity like this. I'm a tad worried as I've always been more of an office "in front of a computer" type but I wouldn't be able to look myself in the mirror if I turn this down. I'm broke, and there's no shame in an honest day's work.


I hope everyone else here finds work soon. It's tough out there

[gladaki]

I never applied for EI. If I get severance for 18 weeks

[CaptainCrunch]

Well the search continues. Week 3.



I applied for another 6 jobs, some that were below my experience level. I've applied to 53 and been rejected for 7 outright, I haven't had any interviews left. I'm not panicking yet, I've got funds to cover me for a while and I have EI hopefully starting soon.


I will say that this is unique, I think that because of the jobless rate, that competition is going to be hyper competitive,



Other things I've done, submitted my resume to as many placement firms as I can.
Reached out to my contacts on Linked in, a lot of them aren't hiring.


There are a lot of stale jobs (older then 30 days) but I'm still throwing my resume in.


I guess today, I'm going to contact my bank on my only real debt which is my car loan to see if there are any deferral opportunities.

[CaptainCrunch]

Things are still slow, still applying, I didn't get beyond the short list on one, but did have another company that I applied to three weeks ago reach out and ask me to do a assesment, so I did that, we'll see where it goes.


Some views of my application. This is going to be a slog.


On the good news front, I got my first EI payment and they waived the eligibility period based on severance and started it from the day I got laid off, so that's found money and helps.


Look, I know I've been a depressing gat here, but its hard to keep a head up and keep grinding in this environment, but I'm convinced its the key. Take time to decide on what you would really like to do but might be a stretch and apply for those as well as you never can tell if your intangibles will come into play.


Again, if any of you need help with resume's cover letters, and all that good stuff, I'm here to help.

[CaptainCrunch]

In terms of on the other side of the job search, because these things might take some time, and it can add to your activities.


Do make sure you get your EI claim or CERB claim in, on the EI side even without your ROE submit submit submit and then push for your ROE, and get them to electronically submit it if possible. You want to get in the cue based on date so it can be evaluated quickly and any questions cleared up.


If you have any debts on payment, ie Car, mortgage all of that, hook up with your bank on deferments, I had one significant monthly debt which is my car, I've reached out and applied for a 2 month deferment, most banks have the ability to do it online instead of waiting on the phone for hours, take advantage of it. At least you can defend yourself by reducing your monthly outflow of cash, if you need to do it with enmax, or your mortgate get it down now because it takes up to a week to get an answer back. Doing this can give you a sense of accomplishment and getting something done.

[ah123]

Having a rough day with the job hunt. The couple of leads I had have all dried up, and it feels like my skills are too generic to fit the current postings; I am not technical enough anymore for the technical roles and don’t have enough project experience for the BA roles.

[CaptainCrunch]

Sorry to hear that AH123, if you want to look at search criterias, or resume work let me know. It'll give us both something to work towards.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Things are still slow, still applying, I didn't get beyond the short list on one, but did have another company that I applied to three weeks ago reach out and ask me to do a assesment, so I did that, we'll see where it goes.

Some views of my application. This is going to be a slog.

On the good news front, I got my first EI payment and they waived the eligibility period based on severance and started it from the day I got laid off, so that's found money and helps.

Look, I know I've been a depressing gat here, but its hard to keep a head up and keep grinding in this environment, but I'm convinced its the key. Take time to decide on what you would really like to do but might be a stretch and apply for those as well as you never can tell if your intangibles will come into play.

Again, if any of you need help with resume's cover letters, and all that good stuff, I'm here to help.

What are your thoughts on getting a job stocking groceries or something right now? If for no other reason than to slide that into your cover letter. I'd think it would show you have no issue setting aside your ego to keep moving things forward. As an employer, you'd shoot straight to the top of my list with an attitude like that. I wouldn't be able to help but want to meet you. It'll bring in a few bucks, help Calgarians, and would be an ace up your sleeve in a cover letter and interview. Only a rad dude would do that.

Might also feel better than applying for a handful of jobs everyday knowing there is such a slim chance of something landing right now, although obviously keep applying. Sometimes a job search can almost be a full-time job, but this is not one of those periods. Too much free time with joblessness can weigh too heavy on a guy.

Easy to make my comment from the sidelines, though. I get that. Good luck.

[ah123]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

Sorry to hear that AH123, if you want to look at search criterias, or resume work let me know. It'll give us both something to work towards.

Thanks. Might take you up on that. Need to get myself out of this negative funk first...

[Harry Lime]

Originally Posted by Sliver

What are your thoughts on getting a job stocking groceries or something right now? If for no other reason than to slide that into your cover letter. I'd think it would show you have no issue setting aside your ego to keep moving things forward. As an employer, you'd shoot straight to the top of my list with an attitude like that. I wouldn't be able to help but want to meet you. It'll bring in a few bucks, help Calgarians, and would be an ace up your sleeve in a cover letter and interview. Only a rad dude would do that.

Might also feel better than applying for a handful of jobs everyday knowing there is such a slim chance of something landing right now, although obviously keep applying. Sometimes a job search can almost be a full-time job, but this is not one of those periods. Too much free time with joblessness can weigh too heavy on a guy.

Easy to make my comment from the sidelines, though. I get that. Good luck.

This is tough. I thought about that, as the groceries are the only places really hiring, and I'd rather work anywhere than simply not work.

I have two at risk parents to Covid, and my girlfriend has a Dad just out of hospital for cancer. I also had a lot of respiratory problems as a kid, that I got over and haven't had issue with since I was about 17, but now that's sitting in the back of my mind.

I think that the grocery opportunities are a great place for high school kids, or university age at the moment. (As long as they are responsible!) As much as I would like to be a part of the solution and not the problem.

Can't really speak for others, but that's where I am.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Sliver

What are your thoughts on getting a job stocking groceries or something right now? If for no other reason than to slide that into your cover letter. I'd think it would show you have no issue setting aside your ego to keep moving things forward. As an employer, you'd shoot straight to the top of my list with an attitude like that. I wouldn't be able to help but want to meet you. It'll bring in a few bucks, help Calgarians, and would be an ace up your sleeve in a cover letter and interview. Only a rad dude would do that.

Might also feel better than applying for a handful of jobs everyday knowing there is such a slim chance of something landing right now, although obviously keep applying. Sometimes a job search can almost be a full-time job, but this is not one of those periods. Too much free time with joblessness can weigh too heavy on a guy.

Easy to make my comment from the sidelines, though. I get that. Good luck.

Its a thought and a fallback, I did apply at some other opportunities, just to get my name out there. I'm going to continue my normal search til the end of this month, just to keep focus on leveraging my skill set, and focus on the search. But its in the back of my mind.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by ah123

Thanks. Might take you up on that. Need to get myself out of this negative funk first...

Let me know, best of luck,

[jmac98]

I know the Drop In center is hiring for various positions, not all of which are front facing. Obviously this environment raises a few flags what with present times, however, that may also mean less competition. Something to consider if nothing else.

We were supposed to have a posting out in March here at 911 but it was put on hold for the time being. It will still come out again at some point though, and I’ll advise here when it does if people wish.

Take care everyone.

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by Sliver

What are your thoughts on getting a job stocking groceries or something right now? If for no other reason than to slide that into your cover letter. I'd think it would show you have no issue setting aside your ego to keep moving things forward. As an employer, you'd shoot straight to the top of my list with an attitude like that. I wouldn't be able to help but want to meet you. It'll bring in a few bucks, help Calgarians, and would be an ace up your sleeve in a cover letter and interview. Only a rad dude would do that.

My brother in law is desperate for any work here in Edmonton, and has had no luck with that.
He's said to me that he's been told by there stores that they're just trying to keep on all the staff the have, and don't need help.

I thought it odd as you'd figure these place would really need delivery drivers and whatnot. but I'm taking his word for it.