Unemployment: Received Letter to Report to PA Career Link

[HappyRider]

Originally Posted by fisheye

T We now have people working that don't really want to work.

I know a couple hundred million of them.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by HappyRider

I know a couple hundred million of them.

Perhaps I should rephrase that? Possibly we have more people working in jobs that they did not really want? - That still does not sound right!

I just think that, with this system, that people are taking jobs that they would normally not consider - they don't want to loose their unemployment benefits. If that is the case; they would have no job loyalty. Of course I guess you could argue that the employers are not loyal to their employees.

I always thought of work as my exercise program. I liked getting paid to exercise. So many people go to work today and don't do anything - then they pay to exercise after work.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by fisheye

If that is the case; they would have no job loyalty.

Few employees have job loyalty these days because employers aren't loyal to employees. They're not providing anything to inspire loyalty--like pensions, great vacation weeks, etc. Benefits are what make employees loyal. Seeing parents pushed into early retirement after 30 years with a company taught workers that loyalty is meaningless to employers.

My husband's company we acquired by a new company last November. The company didn't honor any vacation time. Instead, all employees were rehired so their vacation time has to start at the bottom again. Since it's not a desirable company, people are leaving for better companies. They would have stayed for their 3 or 4 weeks vacation. Since they have to start over with 1 week vacation, they might as well do it at a better company.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Few employees have job loyalty these days because employers aren't loyal to employees. They're not providing anything to inspire loyalty--like pensions, great vacation weeks, etc. Benefits are what make employees loyal. Seeing parents pushed into early retirement after 30 years with a company taught workers that loyalty is meaningless to employers.

My husband's company we acquired by a new company last November. The company didn't honor any vacation time. Instead, all employees were rehired so their vacation time has to start at the bottom again. Since it's not a desirable company, people are leaving for better companies. They would have stayed for their 3 or 4 weeks vacation. Since they have to start over with 1 week vacation, they might as well do it at a better company.

I was a 25 year Teamster when my company closed the doors on Labor Day of 2001! You don't have to tell me. I had five weeks vacation coming and then had to start all over again - fortunately I was immediately hired at another company. I was owed somewhere around $20K in benefits and the Warn Act - I probably received 1/20 of that over the years.

[HappyRider]

What is this loyalty you guys are talking about? It is a job, not a marriage. As long as there is work to be done they keep us. In the meantime, if we find a better place to work, we leave. It is a two way street. Both sides do it.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by HappyRider

What is this loyalty you guys are talking about? It is a job, not a marriage. As long as there is work to be done they keep us. In the meantime, if we find a better place to work, we leave. It is a two way street. Both sides do it.

Half a century ago employers and employees were loyal to each other. Yes; today it is just a job and neither side gives it a second thought to cut and run. Does that lead to better products? Why should any employee care if the company produces the best? Why should a company care, if the they have the best employee for the job, if they are only concerned about the bottom line? Much of this comes back to bite us in the bigger scheme of things - don't forget that this is a global economy today. It is very easy to drop American products in favor of better foreign products.

[SorryIMovedBack]

Originally Posted by HappyRider

Who is talking about engineering jobs? OP never said anything about it. Placement data for engineering graduates is near 100%. Now if you have to jump through hoops, and that includes CareerLink, to get an unemployment check that's a different story. The only reason CL is free for the rest of us is because employers pay for their ads. They must be hiring someone.

I was just giving my experience: Garbage in = Garbage out, in this locale. Drop in at any of the three closest CareerLink offices, and there are no clients there and the parking lots are empty unless they are holding a job fair. Go to their job fair, and it's $8-!0/hr jobs for factory labor, home health aides, people to work for group homes, call center shift workers. The job selection CareerLink offers depends upon where you are. Rural western PA job market is poor and probably far different from Philly area. Lawrence, Mercer, Crawford, Erie counties have lots of nurse aid and store clerk and $10/hr factory labor, and not much else. But the populace over here is not very well educated, either. Maybe 10%-18% of adults over 25 have baccalaureate college degrees per last US Census, and if you subtract out nurses and teachers and retirees, that number will be quite low in the workforce-age populace. The employers are also small companies, and there is practically nothing in the rural areas. And if all the jobs are labor type jobs for high school grads, the employers won't hire a college grad to work a $10/hr job, even if $10/hr jobs are all that the area has. Savvy? The nearest "big cities" to me are Youngstown and Warren, OH, and neither is worth a shizznit, they are turning into ghettos, and a woman doesn't belong in that rough crowd over there. I don't want to live in eastern PA, so I'm not looking for jobs over there. People talk about the growth in Pittsburgh, but the truth there is same as elsewhere in western PA: People get their first jobs there but have to move elsewhere for real career growth, biggest employers are ed and med. Western PA is small town America and it's full of old retired people and welfare families and minwage jobs.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by SorryIMovedBack

I was just giving my experience: Garbage in = Garbage out, in this locale. Drop in at any of the three closest CareerLink offices, and there are no clients there and the parking lots are empty unless they are holding a job fair. Go to their job fair, and it's $8-!0/hr jobs for factory labor, home health aides, people to work for group homes, call center shift workers. The job selection CareerLink offers depends upon where you are. Rural western PA job market is poor and probably far different from Philly area. Lawrence, Mercer, Crawford, Erie counties have lots of nurse aid and store clerk and $10/hr factory labor, and not much else. But the populace over here is not very well educated, either. Maybe 10%-18% of adults over 25 have baccalaureate college degrees per last US Census, and if you subtract out nurses and teachers and retirees, that number will be quite low in the workforce-age populace. The employers are also small companies, and there is practically nothing in the rural areas. And if all the jobs are labor type jobs for high school grads, the employers won't hire a college grad to work a $10/hr job, even if $10/hr jobs are all that the area has. Savvy? The nearest "big cities" to me are Youngstown and Warren, OH, and neither is worth a shizznit, they are turning into ghettos, and a woman doesn't belong in that rough crowd over there. I don't want to live in eastern PA, so I'm not looking for jobs over there. People talk about the growth in Pittsburgh, but the truth there is same as elsewhere in western PA: People get their first jobs there but have to move elsewhere for real career growth, biggest employers are ed and med. Western PA is small town America and it's full of old retired people and welfare families and minwage jobs.

I live in Monroe County and we are known for having the longest commute in the US. Our local, traditional, workforce is service work in the tourist industry and does pay minimum wage.

Last year I was laid off for a short period of time and I had to report to CareerLink. I did not find what you describe - they were very helpful and I quickly had three jobs lined up that paid over twice what you are complaining about. The jobs were not even in my field - since I am a retired Teamster that was making $75K per year (but no longer allowed to do competitive work in my union's territory). CareerLink also helped me with resume and interviews.

I am not saying that all areas of our State are the same or all offices are the same. I know that no system is perfect and that wages vary. What I am saying is that you have to keep an open mind and take advantage of any resources available.