Dilemma do I put job search on holdI will be 52 in December and have over 20 years providing administrative support (secretary) in various industries and office environments. After my last full time job in 2005 (3 months at a company after a 18 month temp assignment - job turned out to be bad fit all around and I was let go before I resigned), I worked at starting a business of my own providing notary services. However since the primarily clientele for those services is tied to the real estate/loan market, business is not good. I considered marketing to alternate sources but so far the demand isn’t there – companies have their own notaries or resources. Finally in July of 2006 I registered with a temping agency to provide additional income to my husband’s salary. The agency knows I would prefer a full time job and that I am looking and sending out resumes. They were, at one point, even sending me on interviews for full-time or temp-to-hire jobs that came into their office that I was qualified for. I have been on several interviews, but always seem to fall short and end up getting the “thank you for your time and your qualifications are impressive but we have chosen to go with another candidate that better suits our needs” letter. I realize my age, skill level, and salary I am asking may be factors, but I always emphasize that salary is negotiable. My skill level also affects the assignments that I sent on, as the agency doesn't want to send me out on office assignments where I am overqualified (or the client won't meet my pay rate).
I have just started a long-term assignment covering a maternity leave that will have me working until the end of the year. The client is one where I have temped before. In fact, it was because of my past work here as well as my skills that they asked for me specifically for this assignment (and my last assignment, which could have been extended indefinitely "ended early" because of the agency's committment to this maternity leave). Here’s my dilemma: should I put my active job search on hold until that time closer to the end of the assignment? My mixed feelings come from a sense of loyalty to finish the assignment and not leave both the client and the agency in the lurch. But at the same time I feel like I may be missing out on that “perfect” job; one that could ultimately pay more, with benefits, and leave to honest long-term employment.
Oh, by the way, I’m in Michigan. So jobs are tight. Employers can afford to be choosy about who they hire and what they pay. Relocation is not a viable option as my husband is the main breadwinner and his job is based here in Michigan and there are no openings in his company at the present time. You'd be crazy to put a job search on hold because of a sense of loyalty to a temp assignment. I wouldn't take a different temp assignment while this one is running, but to pass up a full time permanent position would be nuts.
Tess Tmsmalley, Maybe "loyalty" isn't the best choice of words. It definitely isn't toward the temp agency. I know they are in the numbers game, and more than once I've had felt a knife starting to twist in my back. In fact, some days I wonder why I'm still working for them. But in Michigan, a job is a job and you're dang lucky to be working. Any issues I would have are with the client and the fact that they thought enough of my skills/abilities to specifically request me to come back to work in this department, this being my third assignment here. Why not work for the client directly and cut out the temp agency? First -- no openings. Secondly (and maybe the more important reason companies are relunctant to hire a temp away from an agency) what I call a finders fee and what the temp agency refers to as a commission. A fee due the temp agency from the client for up to six months after I completed my assignment at the client to compensate them for my services since I would longer be able to bring in revenue for the the agency; they claim that the client would never have "found" me had I not worked there as a temp. What's really funny in this instance is that this area of Michigan isn't that big. If you haven't heard of most of the clients that the temp agency has then you have been under a really big rock for a really long time. You can successfully combine temping and a job search, but it requires some creative scheduling. As you continue your job search, arrange interviews at a time that is minimally inconvenient for your temp employer. Because if you're away from the temp assignment too much pursuing a permanent position, you could lose the 3-month temp job, leaving you with no income at all. I think it's a mistake to view a temp assignment as dismissively as many do, especially in a location where the business community is small and everybody seems to know everybody. The challenge will be to appear to be giving your temp assignment your undivided attention, while doing a discreet job search. With all your experience, you're probably good at wearing several hats. You're being naive. You're not working directly for the company because they don't have any openings and they choose not to create any because they don't want to pay benefits and suffer through all the fuss that goes with having you (or anyone else in a similar position) as a "real" employee. They're not sure they can sustain enough work for you to do for the next however many years can be another reason. And one of the reasons I personally love is that FTE's come out of a different budget than temps. The temp budget has money in it, but the FTE doesn't. The finder's fee is small potatoes in this picture and not important if they really want you. I'm not saying you should go out of your way to screw over this client company you're working for, but if you find a good job during this stint, don't be an idiot, take it! You must continue to look. As you keep saying, finding a job in this area is tough, don't derail the process over some temp job (no matter how kindly they look upon you and you on them). Tess Let's look at the situation in this way: Your temp job will be over likely by January 1, 2008, so we'll use that as a "target" date. October 1st - Monday - Send out 5 resumes October 5th - Friday - Have not heard anything October 7th - Sunday - Nothing in paper. NO resume's to be sent out October 12th - Friday - Hear back from one employee asking you to contact them for interview. October 15th - Monday - Saw one advertisement in paper and sent resume - Called company from Friday back, left message October 16th - Tuesday - Still have not heard anything back from company, left another message October 17th - Wednesday - Received phone call back, set up interview for Monday, October 22nd October 22nd - Monday - Had interview, did not send out any other resume's since nothing more in paper October 25th - Thursday - Company interviewed with has not called back, will wait until tomorrow October 26th - Friday - Called company. Left message November 4th - Monday - Still no phone call back from company, send out two more resume's in morning November 7th - Wednesday - Received letter in mail saying company went with another candidate November 12 - Monday - Still nothing in yesterday's paper November 14th - Wednesday - Heard from company from October 15th resume November 15th - Thursday - Set date for Interview 7:00 p.m. November 15th November 16th - Friday - Had interview, figured that company desperate since after hours interview November 19th - Monday - sent nothing as nothing in paper again November 26th - Monday - e-mail from company of November 16th interview rejecting for another candidate December 3rd - Monday - Sent out 3 resumes from Sunday paper and two from Monster December 5th - Wednesday - One of Monster companies and one company from paper called to schedule interviews December 6th - Thursday - set up interview for Monster company 12:15 on Monday and cannot reach other company, left message December 10th - Monday - Went to Monster interview down the street from where you work, never heard back from other company even though you left two additional messages December 13th - Thursday - Asked for second interview from Monster company, set for December 17th December 17th - Monday - went to second interview December 20th - Thursday - Received call, can you start in two weeks, which is January 3rd, 2008 Tess -- your assessment may be on point in some regards (the budgeting of FTEs), but I think it is way off in others. However I do appreciate your feedback. Kelly -- all I can say is WOW. I never expected anyone to go to that length, providing a schedule and timeframe that is spot on. Thanks for a new perspective. Linda
There is also the possibility that the person who is on maternity leave won't return to work. Happens all the time. Anyway, good luck to you. | |
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