Florida Salaries (Orlando: insurance, for sale, wages)

[pianogal]

Originally Posted by sunrico90

How difficult was to get a job in Orlando? Many have problems getting a good paying job....

I think as in many cases it is based on who you know and your 'network'.
For instance, we moved to Orlando when our son was 1. He is now in is 20's and is majoring in computer science at UCF. He has had a part time job with benefits (insurance and vacation, no retirement) as a network administrator for the past 2 years and does regular contract work for local companies where he makes as much or more than his regular job.

None of these jobs were advertised to the general public. He got them because people we knew worked in these companies and recommended him for the job. Living here longterm, being involved and developing relationships goes a long way towards building a network.

I don't know anyone that is unemployed. I have known some between jobs, but they haven't stayed unemployed for long with 1 or 2 exceptions and these were people with very specific skills that demanded a large salary and only a few places in the world employed. One was a PHD in electrical engineering with a highly specialized field of expertise. He was laid off from Lockheed Martin and ended up working in Boston and then China for a few years while his family stayed here. Another was an engineer who built commuter rail systems. His company sent him to Orlando when the commuter rail idea looked like it was going to happen. When it died, he had to move because he couldn't find work in his area here.

I'm sure there are many unemployed or even underemployed people here and I know it must be really hard for those without a network to help.

[blueoktober]

Originally Posted by sunrico90

How difficult was to get a job in Orlando? Many have problems getting a good paying job....

I actually just posted my resume on Dice, Monster and Careerbuilder. I went to one recruiting place and that's it. It took about 3 weeks and then suddenly I was getting calls left and right. I am in the IT industry and I am still getting calls weekly for jobs. It honestly isn't that bad. My s/o got the job the same way. It's MUCH tougher to get jobs in TN (where we just moved back to Orlando from 3 months ago) and the pay is a lot better.

I am Technical Support Specialist and he is a GIS Analyst.

[pianogal]

Originally Posted by blueoktober

I actually just posted my resume on Dice, Monster and Careerbuilder. I went to one recruiting place and that's it. It took about 3 weeks and then suddenly I was getting calls left and right. I am in the IT industry and I am still getting calls weekly for jobs. It honestly isn't that bad. My s/o got the job the same way. It's MUCH tougher to get jobs in TN (where we just moved back to Orlando from 3 months ago) and the pay is a lot better.

I am Technical Support Specialist and he is a GIS Analyst.

BlueOktober...that has been my son's experience also. In fact, all his fellow students at UCF already have good jobs in Programming, IT fields and they don't even have their degrees, yet. Most jobs want experience, this way they graduate with 2-4 years experience under their belts.

[blueoktober]

Pianogal that's the same here at work. As a matter of fact the guys here in programming will have a VERY nice career once they do graduate and have this experience under their belts.

I am really starting to believe some people (not all!) just don't want to put the effort into making sure they get called for an interview and then making sure they get the job when they do. There are a lot of IT jobs in Orlando right now.

[backtofla]

fla and the rest of the south is probably the lower paying states. you cant say that only fla pay is bad. there probably isnt a state in the south that you could say pays good. companies dont have to, i guess b/c ppl keep moving here. agree?

[Chromedome]

Originally Posted by backtofla

fla and the rest of the south is probably the lower paying states. you cant say that only fla pay is bad. there probably isnt a state in the south that you could say pays good. companies dont have to, i guess b/c ppl keep moving here. agree?

i suppose thats true. the problem thats florida specific is the combination of low wages and high pricing.

in georgia or south carolina (just generalizing).

one can survive on these low paying jobs because their cost of living is in tune with their salaries.

13 dollars an hour isnt all that bad when rent is 4/500 a month.

in florida people are basically being forced to live above their means.and thats just for the basics, forget about trying to have any quality of life

[sunrico90]

Great post and voting... 62% are making over $25K, but 26% of 58 voters are making over $100K.... The opportunity is out there to get a better job, is up to us....

Let us know your line of work:

Industry: Aerospace and Gov contracting

[Ladywithafan]

Originally Posted by sunrico90

We have discussed many times over the problem with achieving a job that pays better than $10.00 per hours. I do believe that good paying jobs are available in the state, but based on your trait you must move to another county/city to get a job if your current location lacks the employment opportunities. If you don't want to post that is OK, just vote for your category....

FYI...

You forgot Tampa Bay South to Naples...i.e. gulf coast....???? We are certainly not central florida on this side...help!!! LOL!!!

[Ladywithafan]

...I would certainly say that there's an income system of cash here....no 1040's needed!

This system of salary is used by many stores, restaurants, drug dealers, you name it....cash is and will always be king in FL....

You can go bankrupt here & lose your car but not your house.....I guess the thought is, if you have shelter, you don't need to go anywhere?

[VBmom]

The problem we are finding with wages in our area is that insurance, taxes and general cost of living is far outpacing the raises we get.
My husband has never recieved more than a 5% raise in the past 5 years but our insurance alone has doubled in the past 3 years. We are literally going backwards in the world. I don't know what to cut back on. You have to eat, you have to have power.

House is for sale, we are gettin out.