Wanted: Lousy job, low pay -even less desirable job postings solicit thousands of responses.

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://money.cnn.com/2009/02/18/news/economy/lousy_job/index.htm?postversion=2009022016

Wanted: Lousy job, low pay
In a tight labor market, even less desirable job postings solicit thousands of responses.

By Jessica Dickler, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: February 20, 2009: 4:04 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Desperate for a job and willing to take almost anything with a paycheck? Take a number.

Between the increase in overall job seekers and the reduction in the number of jobs available, competition for even the least desirable jobs has become much steeper.

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Those doing the hiring are having a tougher time weeding through all the resumes to find qualified applicants.

For example, when IT Manager Mark Callahan was looking to fill an entry level position at his company, he received over 100 resumes overnight - 90% of which were unqualified for the job.

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Emily Smith, 31, could have been one of those applicants. She is really an administrator by trade, but out of work and desperate, Smith says she has applied to hundreds of positions across various industries, including a housekeeping supervisor, nursing assistant, gas station attendant and "so many babysitting jobs it's not funny," she said.

Still no bites. "I have asked several potential employers how many resumes they have received and the answers range from 200 to over 3,000," she said. "How do I stand out in a list of over three thousand people when the job market is impersonal and the field is flooded with applicants?" she asked.

[csziggy]

1. Send them to John McCain for his $50 per hour ditch digging jobs he promised.

You know, those jobs no American would be willing to do? Guess what - bet those jobs are getting too many applicants these days.

[pnorman]

3. ". Send them to John McCain for his $50 per hour ditch digging jobs he promised."

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

I just donated my last remaining HEART to you, for that cheery thought! I'm almost tempted to buy another block of them, so that I could give a few more! Perhaps some of you others with spare HEARTS could follow my example, if that suggestion also tickled you!

pnorman

[csziggy]

6. Thank you for the heart!

:hi:

I wish I could donate and give out some. But I am broke right now and will be for the foreseeable future.

[Omnibus]

4. I thought those were lettuce picking jobs.

Whether digging ditches, picking lettuce, or house-sitting for the McCains, a lot of us would jump at those $50/hr jobs.

Heck, many of us would be glad to work 20 hours a week at that rate--more free time, and double the number of jobs!

[csziggy]

5. Whatever jobs they are, I'd do it for $50 per hour!

Around here anything over $10 an hour is considered good money, $15 for those with an advanced degree and years of experience.

[Redneck Socialist]

2. I saw this in person last month.

I'm one of the people that does the hiring at my place. We advertised for one position, one, for less than a week. I received over a hundred applications. It's heartbreaking going through them. People completely unqualified for the position, people obviously desperate, applying for anything and everything they can.

I use to like the interviewing part of my job, now it just depresses me.

[Omnibus]

7. I can vouch for this personally.

I work in IT. I was laid off 4 months ago--the job market was poor then, but I managed to find another job fairly quickly. Unfortunately, my new company is cutting budgets by 15%, so I'm getting "downsized" again in a week.

This time, the job market looks a lot worse. WAY fewer jobs out there, and the competition's fiercer too. It's drastically worse for such a short time difference. It's as if I'm in the upstairs shower, and someone started the washer in the laundry room downstairs. Heck, I think I hear a toilet flushing down there too.