Why is it SO hard to find a job in ATL? (Atlanta: 2015, credit card)

[NorthAtlanta]

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

Unfortunately I have to agree with this.

Georgia like many southern states was a state that originally based its economy off of slave labor and although it has long graduated from that, some of the mindsets are still intact. They want to pay as little as possible while obtaining the absolute most they can get.

New York and other northern cities are union cities are are generally more protected in the workforce aspect.

I don't agree, you are taking it a bit too far. I think it's mostly tied to the COL. Our company has presence in the Bay area and NYC and the salaries for the same job are at least 30 to 40% higher in those areas but when you adjust the salaries to the COL it's a wash mostly..

[Atlwarrior]

Originally Posted by DreamerD

This is a good point. I do wonder if Atlanta is very unique in that you have to do a lot more networking and/or "know someone" in order to get a job versus other major cities. I speak to a lot of people and they seem to echo what you said. They say that they "knew someone." I don't want to make it seem as if it's a problem unique to Atlanta but I just find it interesting the OP didn't have a problem finding work in DC and NYC not having a solid network.

A great critique, I would solely attributed it to being in a right to work State, where the employer can make up any bogus excuse to lay off or fire someone. It seems that Northern cities are more concerned about competence/ skill level and not getting a friend who is not competent and lack the skills to perform the job. When I got out the Marine Corp, the San Diego job market was like a northern city job market, more concern about the skills to perform the job. It will be interesting to see how traditional Atlanta companies adjust, since they depended on hiring non competent friends to fill position, but lack the technical that are require.

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by NorthAtlanta

I don't agree, you are taking it a bit too far. I think it's mostly tied to the COL. Our company has presence in the Bay area and NYC and the salaries for the same job are at least 30 to 40% higher in those areas but when you adjust the salaries to the COL it's a wash mostly..

There was nothing there for you to agree or disagree upon, this was based plainly on my experience and a big reason as to why I left.

Also

Union states are known to have considerably higher salaries than southern states even with comparable CoL's. Its plainly a fact. Atlanta's CoL is tailing Chicago's CoL currently - while Chicago is still more expensive, the salaries there (if you're willing to deal with the harsh weather and relentless traffic) are extremely competitive for skilled employees. The same goes for D.C. and NYC. Most job offers I have received in the 6 figure mark come from one of 5 places

-- San Francisco
-- Chicago
-- D.C.
-- Houston
-- DFW

occasionally I'll also get some from Jersey, NYC and Boston -- none of which I have a desire to relocate to...but this is to state they do pay considerably more.

Have I received offers in Atlanta? of course...but not on a regular basis.

In my personal experience I took an increase over 50% and while the CoL is a bit higher than Atlanta, its not that much higher. At most about 20% when comparing similar areas.

Also - you may get a 40% increase in San Francisco but San Francisco costs over 3 times more than Atlanta - changing ROLES is the core, and there are higher paying roles in other locations, where as SF is known for STEM and startup tech organizations as well as typically the very core of new innovation... SF despite being the most expensive metro is also currently known as the wealthiest with the most disposable income, this is possible because you get salaries there in excess of $300 - $400k.

Also with the exception of property tax, Houston's CoL is very comparable to Atlanta's. DFW is slightly more expansive IMO.

[pit2atl]

Originally Posted by SKB007

I grew up in the Atlanta Metropolitan area. I did my schooling and did undergraduate there. My entire family lives there. After finishing my school a bit less than a decade ago, I tried to find an accounting/ finance job and failed miserably. Tons of places I applied to rejected my application or I didn't make the interview cut. They kept saying I wasn't a good fit for the position and it was so disheartening after all the rejections. Other places never even got back to me. I had no idea what the problem was, as I had all the qualifications. Maybe it was the economy? (tail end of housing bubble in 2012?) maybe racism? (foreign born) maybe poor interview skills? no idea. Soon, I decided to try my luck in another state. I left Georgia (and my family) to pursue a masters in a different state and get into the job market there. After I left Georgia, everything is history. My journey took me to Washington D.C. and now NYC, where I worked in top tier management consulting firms and now working in an amazing job in Manhattan. I did great in DC and NYC without any connections, but I couldn't "make it" in Atlanta. Is the job field so competitive in ATL? Did anyone else had major issues? Could it be that ATL's job market is over-hyped? Was I never meant for ATL?

Yes, Atlanta is definitely tough. When I graduated I got a really good job working in banking for PNC in Pennsylvania . After a year my wife and I decided to move to Atlanta. (why not ATL is great place right!) I tried for MONTHS to transfer with PNC the organization I currently worked for. I finally landed a transfer however they made me take a demotion from manager to banker. So, my thoughts well maybe they want to get to know my work ethic skill then 6months promote me. 2 years later still in the same exact job. Fortunately with my transfer I was making manager $$ as a banker so that was cool. However, after a while I got tired doing a job I was over qualified for.

I applied literally every bank in Atlanta "DECLINED" .

Then I decided to apply for jobs in Washington DC literally less than 30days I get a job interview and offer to work in DC as Branch Manager making 25k more. I don't know what the problem is in Atlanta but theres definitely one.

[Citykid3785]

Something also needs to be said for different cities specializing in different industries.

Atlanta is big in film, transportation, textiles, and paper for instance. If you are in those industries, it's great as there are many options.

The twin cities are big in med device, retail, and CPG industries for instance. Those types of jobs are more sparse down here. Charlotte is huge for banking and finance, Hartford for Insurance.

So I think one needs to be prudent when thinking about where to find employment, from an industry perspective all cities are not equal, nor are they claiming to be.

[Redlionjr]

Originally Posted by Citykid3785

Something also needs to be said for different cities specializing in different industries.

Atlanta is big in film, transportation, textiles, and paper for instance. If you are in those industries, it's great as there are many options.

The twin cities are big in med device, retail, and CPG industries for instance. Those types of jobs are more sparse down here. Charlotte is huge for banking and finance, Hartford for Insurance.

So I think one needs to be prudent when thinking about where to find employment, from an industry perspective all cities are not equal, nor are they claiming to be.

Exactly! Me and my Wife have had different experiences with our companies when we transferred from Houston to Atlanta. Made more in Atlanta and was able to move up with both of our jobs. Also it helped we were involved in the entertainment industry out there as well as our own business so we’re able to create a more effective business in Atlanta in comparison to Houston. Moved back to Houston to be closer to family and sort of regret it from a job perspective. Pay was reduced, experienced some discrimination(can happen anywhere) and eventually went back to the location of the company I started with cause of less work politics and better commute but no room to grow.

Now granted me and my Wife didn’t test the job market out in Atlanta to really know how it fared against Houston. We had jobs in 2 different industries and saw better pay than back in Houston. The same company I worked for in Atlanta just got a high position open up that I was about to get before we decided to move back to Houston. Really thinking about moving back if the pay is right. If not I guess I’ll find out how much “better” Houston’s job market is cause I can’t continue working for this bullsh*t company much longer.

[AnsleyPark]

This whole idea that you have to "know someone" to get a job is pretty funny. Folks are implying that there is something nefarious about it. So, look at it this way, pretend that you are interviewing two candidates with equal qualifications; however, one of the candidates "knows someone" that know you, the interviewer. If that "someone" can give the candidate a positive referal, I would think that would give that candidate a leg up. And, why shouldn't it?

[Stormhammer]

Originally Posted by Ant131531

I heard the same exact thing with the Tech industry here. GA Tech simply does not produce enough Tech talent locally.

*Atlanta simply does not retain enough GA Tech talent locally.

[waronxmas]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

This whole idea that you have to "know someone" to get a job is pretty funny. Folks are implying that there is something nefarious about it. So, look at it this way, pretend that you are interviewing two candidates with equal qualifications; however, one of the candidates "knows someone" that know you, the interviewer. If that "someone" can give the candidate a positive referal, I would think that would give that candidate a leg up. And, why shouldn't it?

It's also absolutely not true. I've probably hired about 50 people in the last 15 years (mix of full time and contract work) and in not a single instance did hire someone because i "knew them". In fact, a lot of companies have rules against nepotism since it ends up bringing in unqualified people.

I'm not saying it never happens everywhere, but to act as if it is in an endemic problem speaks to someone trying to find ways to explain away why they were inadequate for the job IMHO.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by Stormhammer

*Atlanta simply does not retain enough GA Tech talent locally.

This, they're probably leaving Atlanta because there are far better engineering and tech opportunities for them in other metro areas.