Job Seekers Should Take Advantage Of All Help Available When Finding A Job Is Challenging

The latest unemployment figures for the UK released in October 2011 indicate that

Government cutbacks are beginning to take effect but the situation is not completely hopeless for job seekers.

The ONS (Office of National Statistics) showed that unemployment rose by 114,000 in the quarter to August 2011, to a total of 2.57 million, or a rate of 8.1%. The young aged 16-24 were particularly hard hit with those unemployed totalling 991,000 in the quarter, a jobless rate of 21.3%.

A closer look showed that the majority of jobs lost were part time workers, with a loss of 175,000, and also that a record 74,000 people aged 65-plus had lost their jobs.

However, private sector employers were still hiring, despite a reported reduction of confidence in the future and it is also possible that more jobs might be available to younger people by the shedding of people aged over 65.

It has also been pointed out that only 2000 full time jobs had gone during the quarter and that total full-time employment was up by 124,000 compared with the same time last year.

Martin Pennington, interim chief executive of the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, argued that while there is no denying that finding a job is challenging, particularly for young people, young graduates who were taking jobs for which they were over-qualified would find this was not a hopeless situation because they were generally getting new skills which would, in the longer term, give them some protection in terms of their wages and their unemployment levels and their current situation may turn out therefore to be relatively short term.

A REC (Recruitment and Employment Confederation) spokesperson was also upbeat, arguing that the UK jobs market is resilient and that employers will continue to seek workers with the skills and drive to help their businesses to compete. The spokesperson also pointed out that there was continuing high demand for temporary and contract staff despite the Agency Worker Regulations coming into force earlier this month.

The message is therefore that job seekers should not give up. To be as competitive as possible they should try to be as open minded as possible and ensure they are well prepared for any opportunities that are presented.

This means making sure that their CV is properly constructed, honest and with evidence to back up its content and ensuring that they have a suitable smart outfit in which to appear for interview.

Taking advantage of the services available from specialist recruitment agencies with established links to the employers who are their clients, especially for positions as executive PA or EA, is also important.

The expertise of their staff can often help candidates to polish their skills and presentation to help them make the best of interviews they are offered.

Copyright (c) 2011 Alison Withers

by: Alison Withers

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