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Of course, applying to actual people and departments and submitting good cover letters have worked for me most of the time before. Applying through Taleo, Brassring, etc. NOPE>
Avoid Applicant Tracking Systems at any cost if you are not a top employee. Those are made with the only purpose of rejecting candidates. Personally, I skip companies that use Taleo as they are impersonal and you will receive no reply or generic rejection emails. Moreover, you have to invest a large amount of your valuable time to register your profile for every company that uses this system. In some of those systems you must fill several repetitive information. The most inefficient-time consuming hiring system ever designed.
Avoid Applicant Tracking Systems at any cost if you are not a top employee. Those are made with the only purpose of rejecting candidates. Personally, I skip companies that use Taleo as they are impersonal and you will receive no reply or generic rejection emails. Moreover, you have to invest a large amount of your valuable time to register your profile for every company that uses this system. In some of those systems you must fill several repetitive information. The most inefficient-time consuming hiring system ever designed.
Yea I know. I've never met a single human who had anything positive to say about ATS - outside of HR. ATS is HR's wet dream. They ARE designed to screen certain types of people out. Whether it's age, unemployment gaps, certain addresses in some zip codes, certain schools, etc. With ATS, all the HR can just play on their iPads and on Facebook all day, while picking their friends for the "plum" jobs - because ATS just throws your resume in a black hole.Sent on Friday afternoon, Saturday 6 am you already get an automated rejection. And yea, you followed all the job hunter advice by rigging and playing around with the "keywords" and "format" like a good little job seeker (sheeple). So done with ATS.
I don't have any cashier, retail, etc. type experience. Nor do I wish to acquire any as it would be a major kiss of death for my resume. I can't live on minimum wage as it's a single person household. I have a Bachelors of Science from a good private college, I'm a former real estate paralegal and executive assistant. I also had a real estate license for 2 years as a realtor. My total white collar experience is at least 15 yrs. - Cashier, retail, etc.? Just can't do that. Jobs that require long hours standing, lifting boxes, moving heavy stuff, also can't do. I have a herniated disc lower back left side.
Of course, applying to actual people and departments and submitting good cover letters have worked for me most of the time before. Applying through Taleo, Brassring, etc. NOPE>
As an employer, I would rather hire someone who at least tried to stay employed, even if it was something they considered too lowly for them to be doing, over someone who did nothing.
I haven't had a full time since 2012. I have a college education, computer skills, and years of work experience. My family has been hit by the 2007 Recession very hard. I have been taking care of a terminally ill parent, working odd jobs on the side, and renting out our 2 homes. I functioned kind of like a property manager/landlord for a while. I definitely haven't sat on my hands and tweedled my thumbs. Those friends of mine who went through the whole long term unemployed stigma adamantly told me to just either pay career excuse or any of the "buy a reference" companies. Others said to just save my money and create a fake employer myself. They said not to make up a fake company because there are state records and tax filings that can be accessed to verify if the company is real or not. I agree on that and I don't feel comfortable doing that. I was told to call myself a personal assistant to a fake person. Make up a fake person, do up a Facebook, do a fake blog, get an email and get google voice for a fake phone number. I asked what about an address? If I use a fake one, the prospective employer can just mail something and the mail will be returned with "wrong address" stamp or the other postal notifications that show no such person by that name is there. My buddy said to go and get a PO Box and use that as the "address" of this employer (person not company). How is that going to look on the resume? Hearing the sad stories of the long term people and their frustrations, I really don't want to go through that.
I have a gap of 5 months in my resume (This if you go back to 2006) of 5 months. Had one employer who asked why and I replied "Caring for my Alzheimer suffering Mother" Got hired that day....
Have you tried a temp service just to get something on your resume? If you do your research you can find who the hiring managers are and send them your resume and cover letter. The worst they can do it throw it out.
Temp agencies are just as bad. They will grill you over gaps, bother your references and likely toss your app after harvesting any supervisory references and information of job vacancies. Also, they tend to have the worst jobs out there for the worst companies to work for.
There's nothing wrong with something temporary until you get on your feet. I did retail during the holidays and was able to land a decent job with a non profit organization. The pay could be better but I'm happy that someone is taking me seriously as a candidate.
Even when putting down the truth, they don't believe you. I shattered my ankle in 2009. I was let go under the civil service law article 73 after a year for health reasons. I had to re-learn to walk. No one believed me. The place that I finally got that $10hr job at, told me after I go hired was they figured like all their employees I either was hiding a criminal record or out-right lying. That people like me didn't walk through their door. Well I needed to put a roof over our heads and food on the table-even if it was nothing but Ramen noodles with chicken or hot dogs-literally what I fed my family.
Even when putting down the truth, they don't believe you. I shattered my ankle in 2009. I was let go under the civil service law article 73 after a year for health reasons. I had to re-learn to walk. No one believed me. The place that I finally got that $10hr job at, told me after I go hired was they figured like all their employees I either was hiding a criminal record or out-right lying. That people like me didn't walk through their door. Well I needed to put a roof over our heads and food on the table-even if it was nothing but Ramen noodles with chicken or hot dogs-literally what I fed my family.
This isn't very helpful. I didn't come on here posting my thread to have people make me feel worse about my situation. I know some employers are real shytes; yes, some won't believe people no matter what. They've been burned. These are not the type of employers I would work for, even if they wanted me. But telling me about Ramen noodles and hot dogs to feed your family or anyone's family and shattered ankles - go start your own thread. So you took a $10 hour job that worked for you. That is not going to work for me. I know my own situation better than anybody.
I didn't come here asking for advice "what should I do?" Someone else chimed in about taking cashier, retail, etc. type jobs. That was not the question. I understand what I should do. I put a few people on ignore because they were arrogant and rude.
The question posed was "If I put a fake employer on my resume and pretend that I'm currently employed - will that employer's PO Box address ruin it for me? Does an employer with a PO Box address look funny to prospective employers who are interviewing people? THAT was the question.
I didn't come on here to be put on trial as to why I want to cover a long gap. Those who feel insulted and upset have been put on ignore. This is not a moral/ethics question.
This isn't very helpful. I didn't come on here posting my thread to have people make me feel worse about my situation. I know some employers are real shytes; yes, some won't believe people no matter what. They've been burned. These are not the type of employers I would work for, even if they wanted me. But telling me about Ramen noodles and hot dogs to feed your family or anyone's family and shattered ankles - go start your own thread. So you took a $10 hour job that worked for you. That is not going to work for me. I know my own situation better than anybody.
I didn't come here asking for advice "what should I do?" Someone else chimed in about taking cashier, retail, etc. type jobs. That was not the question. I understand what I should do. I put a few people on ignore because they were arrogant and rude.
The question posed was "If I put a fake employer on my resume and pretend that I'm currently employed - will that employer's PO Box address ruin it for me? Does an employer with a PO Box address look funny to prospective employers who are interviewing people? THAT was the question.
I didn't come on here to be put on trial as to why I want to cover a long gap. Those who feel insulted and upset have been put on ignore. This is not a moral/ethics question.
You're not going to get nice responses in that regard. You post a fake employer there and you won't get that job. I'm all for emphasizing skills on your resume but straight up faking an employer isn't going to earn brownie points.
And you were rude to that person as well. You want respect and yet you disrespected someone on your own thread.
You're not going to get nice responses in that regard. You post a fake employer there and you won't get that job. I'm all for emphasizing skills on your resume but straight up faking an employer isn't going to earn brownie points.
And you were rude to that person as well. You want respect and yet you disrespected someone on your own thread.
I'm not looking for "nice responses." I'm not 5. If you "hurt my feelings" or anyone else on here, that's ok - I'll go on an do what I need to do to survive. $10 jobs don't even pay my rent. Telling someone to get a $10/hr job you might as well give them the finger. How do you know I won't get that job? It's fake if they find out it's fake. Brownie points? What are you talking about...
People post fake yelp reviews for their own businesses to get client.
People pay others to sit and take college exams for them. To write college papers for them.
Arizona has a problem with masses of illegals who get fake IDs and have fake social sec. numbers. They all work. Nobody is throwing them out. - Donald, where are you ???
And I've got people stoning me on here because I have a 2 year unemployment gap? - "go take $10 hr job."
Sure, let me pitch up a tent under the bridge while I'm at it.
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I've never met a single human who had anything positive to say about ATS - outside of HR. ATS is HR's wet dream. They ARE designed to screen certain types of people out. Whether it's age, unemployment gaps, certain addresses in some zip codes, certain schools, etc. With ATS, all the HR can just play on their iPads and on Facebook all day, while picking their friends for the "plum" jobs - because ATS just throws your resume in a black hole.Sent on Friday afternoon, Saturday 6 am you already get an automated rejection. And yea, you followed all the job hunter advice by rigging and playing around with the "keywords" and "format" like a good little job seeker (sheeple). So done with ATS.
I can't live on minimum wage as it's a single person household. I have a Bachelors of Science from a good private college, I'm a former real estate paralegal and executive assistant. I also had a real estate license for 2 years as a realtor. My total white collar experience is at least 15 yrs. - Cashier, retail, etc.? Just can't do that. Jobs that require long hours standing, lifting boxes, moving heavy stuff, also can't do. I have a herniated disc lower back left side. 
Hearing the sad stories of the long term people and their frustrations, I really don't want to go through that.
