Western North CarolinaThe Mountain Region including Asheville
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Is there anyone on here who is actually now looking for work in the Asheville area, or has recently looked for work? What has your experience been? Can someone in their twenties/early thirties with a strong back and willingness to take almost any opportunity find something? (not me, btw)
I looked for over two years in asheville, starting 2009. I'm a biologist and was applying to any job that I thought I could stand(receptionist, data pusher, even restaurant and retail jobs). I only had 2 interviews because of who I knew and knew I wasn't qualified for them (one was marketing!). I got a part time waitress gig the last year just try to stay a float and you know why I got that job? Because I knew the owner. No one else would even send me a thanks but no thanks email and several places have started making you sign something that says "you will not contact us to ask any questions, find out the job status, etc".
Yes even crap jobs have huge competition for them. My fiance hired in a bank and they got over 200 applications for a 10/hr teller job (including some phd's, masters, and tons of Bachelors).
I started applying around the country in January, got an interview in Greenville in Feb. and had the job in March. My fiance was in the same boat only in finance/commercial loans, once I ended up in Greenville, he applied too. He found a job in 2 months and had multiple interviews and offers. I should also point out that our combined income has literally doubled.
So. I think even though you seem to think Greenville is bad on paper, I'd say its not, especially compared to Asheville. You'd be better off staying in Greenville and making the trip on weekends. I have ended up there at least a few times a month and some of my favorite hikes aren't much further (in fact some closer!) than they were from my house in fairview.
^^^ thats because there are no really good jobs here except medical for people with degrees. The main industry here is tourism and only owners make good money in that field.
I looked for over two years in asheville, starting 2009. I'm a biologist and was applying to any job that I thought I could stand(receptionist, data pusher, even restaurant and retail jobs). I only had 2 interviews because of who I knew and knew I wasn't qualified for them (one was marketing!). I got a part time waitress gig the last year just try to stay a float and you know why I got that job? Because I knew the owner. No one else would even send me a thanks but no thanks email and several places have started making you sign something that says "you will not contact us to ask any questions, find out the job status, etc".
Yes even crap jobs have huge competition for them. My fiance hired in a bank and they got over 200 applications for a 10/hr teller job (including some phd's, masters, and tons of Bachelors).
I started applying around the country in January, got an interview in Greenville in Feb. and had the job in March. My fiance was in the same boat only in finance/commercial loans, once I ended up in Greenville, he applied too. He found a job in 2 months and had multiple interviews and offers. I should also point out that our combined income has literally doubled.
So. I think even though you seem to think Greenville is bad on paper, I'd say its not, especially compared to Asheville. You'd be better off staying in Greenville and making the trip on weekends. I have ended up there at least a few times a month and some of my favorite hikes aren't much further (in fact some closer!) than they were from my house in fairview.
Thanks! Those are the experiences I was hoping to hear about.
However, I am not asking about a job for me, or my wife. It's a complicated story, and theres no real need to go there. I have actually been offered a job in Asheville, albeit not all that great of an opportunity for my situation.
Also, it's not that I think Greenville is all that bad on paper. I think Greenville just isn't all that great in reality. It's fine. It's just not where my heart is, for multiple reasons.
Any good job I've had has been through people I know. Jobs I've attained through ads have always been temporary, or as a stepping stone. Good jobs are rarely, if ever, advertised.
Anybody else recently looked for work in the Asheville area???
I looked for over two years in asheville, starting 2009. I'm a biologist and was applying to any job that I thought I could stand(receptionist, data pusher, even restaurant and retail jobs). I only had 2 interviews because of who I knew and knew I wasn't qualified for them (one was marketing!). I got a part time waitress gig the last year just try to stay a float and you know why I got that job? Because I knew the owner. No one else would even send me a thanks but no thanks email and several places have started making you sign something that says "you will not contact us to ask any questions, find out the job status, etc".
Yes even crap jobs have huge competition for them. My fiance hired in a bank and they got over 200 applications for a 10/hr teller job (including some phd's, masters, and tons of Bachelors).
I started applying around the country in January, got an interview in Greenville in Feb. and had the job in March. My fiance was in the same boat only in finance/commercial loans, once I ended up in Greenville, he applied too. He found a job in 2 months and had multiple interviews and offers. I should also point out that our combined income has literally doubled.
So. I think even though you seem to think Greenville is bad on paper, I'd say its not, especially compared to Asheville. You'd be better off staying in Greenville and making the trip on weekends. I have ended up there at least a few times a month and some of my favorite hikes aren't much further (in fact some closer!) than they were from my house in fairview.
The sad part is your post re: SC and NC could say the same about NE Tennessee/Tri-Cities- unless you are medical or in school, retail and low pay service jobs are the norm.
JMO but we are in a black hole everywhere econmomically, unless u are in a coastal city with high COL but more job opportunity...I dont see it getting better in the next few years...
Also, it's not that I think Greenville is all that bad on paper. I think Greenville just isn't all that great in reality. It's fine. It's just not where my heart is, for multiple reasons.
Oh I meant job wise, the unemployment rate doesn't paint the full picture as I feel like it isn't as gloom and doom as asheville. I'm a WNC native and I really dislike greenville honestly. Its not the place for me either but I think the days of pick a place that you WANT to live in and then find a job is over and wont be back for a long time unless you can work from home.
BUT! If you have a job offer there you are 10000 steps above most who post on here! Good luck.
Oh I meant job wise, the unemployment rate doesn't paint the full picture as I feel like it isn't as gloom and doom as asheville. I'm a WNC native and I really dislike greenville honestly. Its not the place for me either but I think the days of pick a place that you WANT to live in and then find a job is over and wont be back for a long time unless you can work from home.
BUT! If you have a job offer there you are 10000 steps above most who post on here! Good luck.
I gotcha. Thanks for clarifying. Yes, there aren't many towns you can just show up to and expect to find work (at least good work).
For the record, the job offer was closer to Hendersonville, and not all that great of a job. Actually, it was potentially a pretty lousy job, which is why I couldn't take it. It certainly wasn't anything to commute to, or move for.
I looked for over two years in asheville, starting 2009. I'm a biologist and was applying to any job that I thought I could stand(receptionist, data pusher, even restaurant and retail jobs). I only had 2 interviews because of who I knew and knew I wasn't qualified for them (one was marketing!). I got a part time waitress gig the last year just try to stay a float and you know why I got that job? Because I knew the owner. No one else would even send me a thanks but no thanks email and several places have started making you sign something that says "you will not contact us to ask any questions, find out the job status, etc".
Yes even crap jobs have huge competition for them. My fiance hired in a bank and they got over 200 applications for a 10/hr teller job (including some phd's, masters, and tons of Bachelors).
I started applying around the country in January, got an interview in Greenville in Feb. and had the job in March. My fiance was in the same boat only in finance/commercial loans, once I ended up in Greenville, he applied too. He found a job in 2 months and had multiple interviews and offers. I should also point out that our combined income has literally doubled.
So. I think even though you seem to think Greenville is bad on paper, I'd say its not, especially compared to Asheville. You'd be better off staying in Greenville and making the trip on weekends. I have ended up there at least a few times a month and some of my favorite hikes aren't much further (in fact some closer!) than they were from my house in fairview.
I can echo the above. I lived and worked in Asheville until 2007, when I found a job at a Fortune 500 company in Spartanburg. My job in Asheville was starting to look shaky, so I looked elsewhere and found a great job. The job search took less than a month. I commuted back and forth for a year, until we moved down to the GSP area, where my wife quickly found a job, making more money than she did in Asheville. I make much more money down here as well and we bought a much nicer home than we would have been able to afford in Asheville, yet we're still only an hour or so away. I don't love it down here, but it's definitely a livable area with its own set of amenities.
Like all unemployment numbers the government(s) publish, it also does not include underemployed (particularly those who accepted part-time employment because they could not find full-time employment) and those who have given up. Nationally, I have seen numbers that more than double the published unemployment rate when those things are factored in. Statistically, it is probably similar here.
Taking government numbers on unemployment, inflation, consumer price index, etc. as gospel is risky, at best. The list of things that get parsed out and why is "impressive."
Unfortunately very accurate statement. The real "non-sugar coated" unemployment numbers are quite close to, if not even with, the great depression. It will continue to get worse as more companies out-source their operations overseas. Wall Street greed and national labor unions have destroyed our country and for the first time in generations, our children will be far worse off then their parents.
Government is not the solution, they are the main contributor to the destruction of our nation. A crying shame.
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