Wandering the Abyss

I just spent an hour or so on the internet just to figure out that no one is hiring for part-time jobs. That is, according to monster.ca they aren't.

The job hunting process has been much tougher than I had originally bargained for. 3 Fridays ago I sent out 9 resumes around the north Edmonton area in hopes of finding a part-time job close to home. So far, I've heard no calls back. NOPE!

These are really surprising results to be coming back from my applying. What surprises me most about it is that I was under the impression that Edmonton is still under a relatively big shortage of workers. You always hear about the booming economy and the people moving into the province for their share of the spoils (damn you Saskatchewan..) But right now it seems like there's nothing for nobody.

I realize that I'm making a pretty big judgement about Edmonton's job market based on my relatively small search for part-time work, but it's much more frustrating than I would have imagined. Here's a bunch of things that piss me off about the process:

1) I've had a long list of jobs in the past and I've never had any problems getting any callbacks whenever I was looking for a job.
2) I think I'm extremely qualified for the jobs that I put my hat into, and yet nothing comes up.
3) Even while looking on the internet, I don't see many job openings for part-time employees in the entry level field.

I have a few theories as to why my job search has been such a failure so far. These could have played a small or big reason why I have been sucking it down these last weeks:

- The Post-Holiday season: Given that Christmas (the busiest and most profitable time of the year) has just passed us, the demand for work is probably at a slump. With seasonal workers being let go at the beginning of January, I also have increased competition for the few jobs that need filling at the moment. Definitely not good.

- Flexibility: I decided to include in my resume that I am currently a 'Head Instructor' of Sakuu-Kai Karate. I figured that it would work in my favor because it would demonstrate my history with and contribution to the club. However thinking back, it makes me realize that it may have worked against me. Nowadays, the biggest factor that employers are looking for in a new hire is availability. Although I tried to make it clear that I was free for pretty much all daytime shifts throughout the week, I think the title of Head Instructor conveys a message that I'd be swamped with my previous obligations. That combined with my schooling definitely doesn't make me look very available for flexible shifts let alone a part-time job itself.

- Job Snobbiness: I think everyone does this. I just get that feeling in my head that I should be seeing a progressive climb in occupation quality and prestige. What does that mean? It means that I feel like I should be applying to better jobs than I have previously had in the past. In better I mean more respectable, higher paying, better benefits, etc. This has definitely stopped me from applying at a few places I know I could get a job at. Maybe I'm shooting too high? I don't know, I just get this dread whenever I think about working at a place I worked at a long time ago. It's like you're treading backwards, it doesn't feel right at all. Isn't that why we get different jobs to begin with? To gain experience and credibility so we can get better jobs?

- The Friend Connection: Okay this one is way out there, but hey it might be happening. In most cases, I handed my resumes to people who worked there instead of the managers. Although they assured me that they would give it to their managers and blah blah blah they'll call you in half a week, nothing seems to have happened. Maybe those workers are actually looking to get their friends the job before I do. In this way, they could effect my application in different ways like telling managers wrong information ('Oh, this guy said he's only available Sunday nights..'), pretending that their friends got their applications in before I did, or even getting rid of my application altogether.... Those rat bastards!

Anyhow, it's just a frustrating experience altogether. When you have expectations from previous experiences that tell you it's gonna be a walk in the park, you go into it optimistically. But being where I am, I have to start considering applying for different jobs I hadn't previously considered.

All I know is: right now, job = money, money = awesome.