Crossdressers-Haven.com

Please pardon this post for it is quite long. But I have to get it out of my system.

I didn't want to post this because I did not feel like rehashing all of the difficulty I have had trying to find decent work. Unfortunately, the store where I work had to make cutbacks, and I am now down to 1 or 2 days a week.

Now, I knew of the impending cutback weeks in advance, so I had decided to take the initiative BACK THEN to find something full time that will pay more than lousy minimum-McSlave-wages I was getting at Macy's. I also told myself that the bright side of the cutback in hours would be that I could now find a Monday thru Friday gig & not have to quit my job at the store.

However all of my job search efforts continue to go unnoticed and without any results. I have filled out countless resumes, online job sites, (monster, career builder, hotjobs, you name it) answered numerous newspaper classified ads, and so on and so forth.

Of the hundreds (yes hundreds!!) of resumes & applications I have submitted over the past couple of months, I have not received ONE phone call, and have not been on ONE interview. Not ONE.

I have also been checking out the civil service announcements for my area, as well as for the city & state of New York. I have filled out numerous applications for civil service positions since late last year, and after all of that I have ONE civil service test coming up in April. Just ONE. Woopee. But I digress.

I have long since given up on temp agencies & headhunters there used to be a time whereas they wanted people to come in; they wanted recruits because it was good for them. Nowadays, they'll just look for any excuse to blow you off. One temp agency told me that a web-designer position was filled ONE DAY BEFORE I had called them! Ugh. Another agency told me that none of the programming positions were a fit for me because I didn't have enough on-the-job programming experience.

The last agency I spoke with was advertising SEVERAL various jobs available on their website, ranging from HelpDesk to general clerical/admin assistant work. So I followed the instructions & e-mailed my resume. I got the standard "Thanks for your application, someone will contact you, blah blah blah" but there was a name and a phone number attached. The recruiting agent's name was Sandi.

So I waited 2 days & then placed a follow-up call to Sandi. She was very dismissive on the phone & told me that they were "real busy right now" and someone would call me back later that afternoon.

Again, 2 days go by. No phone call.

Enough was enough. When I called back this afternoon I was polite but very firm, and did not hold back any tones of frustration in my voice. I told Sandi (verbatim) "Look, if you don't have any positions available, then just be honest. Don't lure people in with false hopes of a job only to blow them off. This way I don't have to waste my time, and I don't have to waste your time. Just be honest with me."

She then had the GALL to tell me how "seasoned" my resume was (as if that wasn't patronizing enough) she went on about how their agency only specialized in "entry-level" positions, that I had "too much" experience.

I can honestly say that I have never heard anything so absurd in my entire life. And I have to admit that when I got off the phone I felt like I was just punched in the face.

I give up. I always thought that having more experience was a GOOD thing in the eyes of potential employers. I always believed that the most experienced people were the first ones chosen for certain jobs. Was I overqualified? This is certainly a first for me.

I end this week feeling just a little more frustrated than I did when it began. I feel like I'm on some sort of a blacklist. Either I have too much experience, or I don't have enough.

ARRRRRRGGGGH!

Anyway, there's a Job Fair next week. More falls for me to set myself up for. I'll call it the "Upcoming Disappointment" fair. Because that's all that job hunting has brought me.

Ah Lorna I feel your pain. I lost my job in Aug. 2005 and have been looking for work from that time on. I finally gave up and reapplied to a Government agency I had worked for be for and did not really want to go back to. I start in March so that is good. I also went to a temp agency and never got a call. I did get some contract work that was suppossed to be for 6 months that ended up being a week and a half (joy). I also have a prospect of working for a local community college district soon which I would prefer as it is computer work. Oh well Se La Vie(such is life).

Lorna,

I am so sorry to hear you are having such a tough time. Didn't you see GWB say that unemployment is 4.9%? Of course he failed to say that everyone is working at McDonald's or Wal_Mart now, as all of the good jobs have been shipped overseas to people who will do skilled technical work for less than our minimum wage.

Having said that, I have never found a job from a newpaper or job service. Those jobs are always either jobs that are difficult to fill because they don't pay much or are hard or dangerous work, or because they are non-skilled so 5000 people apply for every opening.

What I have always done is got out the Yellow pages and just started calling people who were no looking for anyone, and told them that they needed me. Basically, "Cold Calling" perspective employers. Employers like the kind of people that have the courage to make such calls, and only a skilled person would make such a call. Anyway, I have gotten most of the jobs i have had in my llfe, in this manner.

Good luck to you, and I hope things pan out for you real soon.

Love always,
Elizabeth

Yeah, you know all those things they tell you in the career workshops about how to get interviews? It's all bullshit. Who gets called is based primarily on whose resume has the kind of font the HR likes best, or what they had for lunch and whether they get a gas pain while looking for yours. And Elizabeth is right, don't even bother looking at want ads. The good jobs never even get posted, they just go straight to the HR's buddy or whatever. It's all completely random. Chaos Rule! You just gotta roll the dice and hope for the best.

Update on today's Job Fair - what a complete waste of time. Back to square one.

There were only 5 or 6 companies there, various insurance companies looking for commission salespeople. That was pretty much it. NOT my cup of tea. Been there, done that.

The only thing at the job fair that I found even remotely interesting was the NYC Dept. of Corrections.

Oh well, at least I have two Civil service tests for jobs with the MTA - the tests are in April. The jobs would pay much more than the NYPD plus there would be much less involved in terms of the hiring process... wish me luck!!

Oh well, at least I have two Civil service tests for jobs with the MTA - the tests are in April. The jobs would pay much more than the NYPD plus there would be much less involved in terms of the hiring process... wish me luck!!

Lorna, dear, we're all cheering you on from the sidelines! You have what it takes to get those jobs - intelligence, common sense, and attitude!!

And to be on the safe side, I'll have my fingers and toes crossed!!

- SL

Good Luck Lorna,

I always hated looking for work. So much of everything is just a waste of time and it always made me feel so helpless and useless.

I never found anything except a couple of unskilled factory jobs in the want ads and never anything from the agencies. I think those places get so many resumes that they just throw most of them away.

Just about all the jobs worth having I got through word of mouth- a friend of a friend worked there, that sort of thing. I did get one, my first in my field, through the college I attended.

Good luck

Absaroka

Lorna,

Good luck on the Civil Service exams. You should do well on them, and after you pass, that's a good list to be on - that's the one they hire from.

Jadeanne

Good luck Lorna. We are all rooting for you. We know you will do well.

Hugs, Paige

Lorna, I agree with you completely. Back in October, I put my resume on Monster.completelyuseless. I immediately began getting spam from an insurance company in Texas wanting commissioned salespeople. Somehow, that doesn't seem in any way whatsoever related to "UNIX Systems Administrator" and "Software Developer". I got e-mail messages from two local businesses specializing in "career development". Can you believe these idiots wanted $4000 (USD) to help me develop my resume and polish my professional image while arranging job interviews?

Lorna, I wish you the absolute best of luck with your examinations and in your job search. Knock 'em dead, girl!!

Oh Lorna, you are definitely NOT ALONE! I had a pretty good run of 17 years in IT, but I have had to change careers again (fourth time). I've had every negative experience written about on this thread, plus a few more.

Like, for example, the company that first acknowleged my online application, then wrote to say that although I was qualified, another applicant had been selected, and THEN... wrote a third time to say that they had made a mistake and that I was NOT QUALIFIED, and apologized for any inconvenience! That's right, they wasted a stamp and the time it takes to write another letter, just to demonstrate how arrogant and hateful (not to mention incompetent) they really are.

Years ago, long unemployed, I traveled quite some distance for an interview, (my first in weeks), and waited the obligatory 15 minutes past my interview time to see the man. After introductions, he took one glance at my detailed resume (as though it was his first glance), and said "So, what's the matter? Can't hold a job?" I told him that was exactly the problem, and I left before I caved into the urge to do massive bodily harm to him.

Yes, I am overqualified also. Also "dated", "too specialized", "not the right specialty", etc. Nobody cares that I have an IQ in the 130s. They think I can't learn, so I never get the chance to learn.

I get about one interview per 50 applications. Often, when I get an interview, I discover that they interview EVERYONE. What a waste.

Don't you hate those horrible online applications that on page 11 (or later) insist that you divulge your social security number and bank account information? I just quit when I see that they won't take "000-00-0000" or "111-11-1111". Never give this out until you have an offer on the table.

So, now I am in commission sales door to door. It is horrible work. I rarely clear minimum wage. And the constant rejection reminds me of looking for work, only it gets more personal when it is in my face.

Lorna, doesn't Macy's have a very tolerant position on crossdressing? Would they let you crossdress at work? Would it be worth it to work there for next to nothing if you could dress as you please?

I wish I could win the lottery. I'd start my own company and hire everyone here on the forum! By golly, we'd have a "Dress Code" that was worthy of the name!

The only difference between losers and champions is that champions never give up. So hang in there, Lorna!

Hugs,

Bernice

Dorothy, eer Bernice,

I'm not in Kansas any more but I would cosider moving if I "had" to crossdress to work at your company. I'm also in IT so please let me know where to send my resume. (she says tongue in cheek)

Hugs, Paige