Sorry for the levity, not being insensitive. I am on line because I just got pulled out of a restful sleep on a Saturday AM to handle an emergency at work. Hey its part of the job, and I knew it when I accepted the offer.
We hire a lot of folks through various contracting agencies who shall remain nameless. I just conducted an extended, and finally successful, search for a qualified candidate for addition to my team. I scanned many resumes mailed via email by reps from these agencies and conducted many screening interviews of potential candidates via telephone. Lots of these folks were obviously ducking into the john or into the parking lot (or scheduling interviews during their lunch)to make this call. This required no missed work on the interviewee's part, and a minimum of effort. The fact that a candidate had the potential of being such a good match for the job that we brought him in for a second, face to face, interview would have been a good clue to him that it was worth taking some time off from work, whatever the means, to attend the interview. The fellow we hired is doing a great job, has the realistic expectation of a long term contract and the potential for full time employment with my company in the future.
My point is that contracting agencies are great way to find long term and potentially permanent positions, a great way for someone new to the industry to broaden their experience and make contacts, and in this situation to find a more suitable job. Contracting agencies are used to dealing with situations like the gentleman who posted this entry finds himself in. I worked as a contractor three or four times in my career, so far, when laid off, continuing my education, or after relocating. It has been a generally positive experience, though a couple of these agencies treated me like their bitch, they served their purpose. There was no fee to pay and the agency did the legwork for me. I have been with my current employer for 8 years, after working for them as a contractor for 1 1/2 years. The downside is that there is always a little discomfort with the insecurity of contracting, but that is an incentive to save money, and, by the way, the contractor doesn't get paid unless you are working so they are motivated to find you your next job. For a young, single person that can be part of the adventure.
Slashdot Mirror
Sorry for the levity, not being insensitive. I am on line because I just got pulled out of a restful sleep on a Saturday AM to handle an emergency at work. Hey its part of the job, and I knew it when I accepted the offer. We hire a lot of folks through various contracting agencies who shall remain nameless. I just conducted an extended, and finally successful, search for a qualified candidate for addition to my team. I scanned many resumes mailed via email by reps from these agencies and conducted many screening interviews of potential candidates via telephone. Lots of these folks were obviously ducking into the john or into the parking lot (or scheduling interviews during their lunch)to make this call. This required no missed work on the interviewee's part, and a minimum of effort. The fact that a candidate had the potential of being such a good match for the job that we brought him in for a second, face to face, interview would have been a good clue to him that it was worth taking some time off from work, whatever the means, to attend the interview. The fellow we hired is doing a great job, has the realistic expectation of a long term contract and the potential for full time employment with my company in the future. My point is that contracting agencies are great way to find long term and potentially permanent positions, a great way for someone new to the industry to broaden their experience and make contacts, and in this situation to find a more suitable job. Contracting agencies are used to dealing with situations like the gentleman who posted this entry finds himself in. I worked as a contractor three or four times in my career, so far, when laid off, continuing my education, or after relocating. It has been a generally positive experience, though a couple of these agencies treated me like their bitch, they served their purpose. There was no fee to pay and the agency did the legwork for me. I have been with my current employer for 8 years, after working for them as a contractor for 1 1/2 years. The downside is that there is always a little discomfort with the insecurity of contracting, but that is an incentive to save money, and, by the way, the contractor doesn't get paid unless you are working so they are motivated to find you your next job. For a young, single person that can be part of the adventure.