All things come to an end.

Obviously the end of this blog. Well it has obviously been an extremely long time since a new post has been made in this blog. I have since found a full time position that I have worked at happily for almost a year now and I have completed my Associates degree and am working on my Bachelors. My next project will be my personal health. If you would like to follow that blog it will be quite a journey. To anyone who may be struggling through the unemployment system right now I leave you with these words of advice. Don't give up. It may seem bleak, and there may be harder times to come, but keep going no matter what. If you apply yourself you will gain employment. I found employment again by going to an employment agency. I worked with 2 different agencies and both worked hard to get me a job. Do make sure to look into the agency and ensure that it is valid and upstanding. If the agency requires money up front than it is probably not worth your time and energy. For now good bye and good luck. Hopefully I will never pick this blog back up again.

Day 74: Finally getting unemployment

So we come upon day 74 with some happy news for a change. It's been some time since I posted but that is basically because there was little change in the job search. Still searching but had some of the stress lifted off my shoulders.
Finally got my Unemployment Insurance Benefits worked out. It was actually fairly simple and I feel a little dumb for it taking me this long to figure it out. So here is a word of advice to anyone that may find this blog in their search for information on unemployment benefits. If you have been filing for multiple weeks and have not received a card, it may be because you got one within 3 years and don't still have it. Yes this was the case with me and while it should have been something I thought of a while ago, I just didn't. Apparently the cards are valid for 3 years, and I had filed 2.5 years ago and received a card then. At the time I had a severance package from my previous employer and would not receive benefits till that was used. Then I got a job before any money was put on the card. So I just cut it up and threw it away. Well apparently for the last 3-4 weeks they have been paying out benefits to my account, I just didn't know and had no way to access it.
If you are applying for unemployment benefits and are not sure if your receiving payment I suggest a few things to help get it worked out. First check to make sure you don't have any unresolved issues with unemployment, you can check this on the www.azui.com website just like when filing online. If there are no issues than try calling the place that handles the cards in your state, here in Az it is chase and the number is 1-866-802-7011, a tip the person at unemployment gave me was that when they ask for your social press #, do this 3 times and you will be sent to a live person who can reissue a card to you after a few questions to verify identity.
I'm providing this advice because I spent a week calling the unemployment office, 20-30 times per day, every day. I almost gave up, but decided to persevere. Monday-Thursday was the same thing, I would call, make my selection to get to someone about questions, and would be told that due to high call volumes call back at another time. Finally on Friday I got through and was allowed to wait on hold for 16 minutes. I was just relieved to get on hold. However, the person I spoke to at unemployment was very nice and extremely helpful, as well as the person I spoke to at Chase(the company that issues the card). So if your finding yourself in the sad predicament that I was in then hang in there and keep trying.

Just as a side note. Annoying situation with trying to find a job, had a phone interview with a company(which will remain nameless) for a security guard position. I was waiting for the call, somewhat excitedly, then when the call came it was them telling me that the position was already filled and the issue is that it could take a couple of days to remove the position from the website. Great but in the meantime why did they schedule a phone interview? Why didn't they send an email to me or something to let me know? In my opinion the way they handled it was a little crappy and unprofessional, and will cause me not to shop at their store.

Well thats all for the moment. I will be back with more developments soon. And if anyone reading this is unemployed and looking for a job just hang in there, and I hope you enjoy my Unsolicited Advice =)

Day 57: Unsolicited Advice

Day 57, still no word on a job, or my unemployment insurance benefits. Emailed the DES office asking what's going on and who I should contact but it's the government. If I get a response I think it will send me into a coma.

Also, Have you ever noticed that when your unemployed or struggling with something everyone takes the chance to give you advice that you didn't ask for? And it's usually the same thing everyone says. "Hang in there" "Everything happens for a reason" "It will all work out". Well yeah I will hang in there cause I have no other choice, And yes everything happens for a reason it's called the law of cause and effect. I'm sure I will find work, the only question is will I find work before I get evicted from my apartment?

I get that they are trying to make me feel better, or being nice, or whatever. But if I wanted to hear the same old cliche sayings over and over again I would just make a recording and replay it.

Other than all that, nothing new going on. Still applying at ton's of places and getting no responses, still fighting with the government trying to get some Unemployment Insurance Benefits. And still "keeping my chin up" and "my spirits high".

Day 50: The Career Fair

So today I went to a "Career Fair" hosted by the Unemployment office. I was told that I needed to come dressed like I'm going to an interview as the places will typically interview and hire on the spot. Awesome right?

Well I show up there in a nice dress shirt, tie, dress pants, dress shoes, looking like a prime employee. Let me tell you I was probably the only one there "dressed for success". Walked around for 20 minutes stopping at every employer's table and got the same response from every table. "Go to our website and you can see all the available position. Just apply online." Well that's great. I could've figured that out by myself. What was the point in dressing up and going for this information.

Needless to say I am a little disappointed. So back to applying online. Also checking with some friends and family for jobs available and references. Networking is everything right? Well not a whole lot going on other than that on the job front. Like I said in a previous post it was crazy to see how many people were at the job fair. Sad to see how many people are effected and looking for jobs desperately now.

Day 47: "Reemployment Orientation"

So just got back from my Reemployment Orientation. Must say it was better than I expected.

So it began with sitting in a room with 15-20 other individuals that are all in the same boat. Meaning we are all unemployed and have been for at least 4 weeks. It was a little surprising to see so many people in just todays orientation. Makes you realize just how hard it is to find a job in these troubled times. What will pull us out of this?
Anyways, after watching a powerpoint presentation about all the services they offer, we were then taken to a room with computers and signed up for their online site. Which actually seems like it may be a beneficial tool as it pulls job postings from Monster.com, Careerbuilder.com, Craigslist, and Private sites from any employer in Arizona. Furthermore, There are multiple employers that have agreements to post their available jobs on this site first. Amazing to have resources given to you.
Then to add to it you meet with a person who is trained in reviewing resumes. The person I met with was very helpful and gave me a great amount of advice on how to improve my resume.
Anyone looking for a job I would suggest checking out their website, they help unemployed people, but also help people with jobs that are looking for a new career. www.Arizonavirtualonestop.com

This might be the break I was needing. Hopefully this blog will be short lived and I can move on to a "starting a new job" blog.

Backstory

Ok so here is my backstory for my first blog post.
I was let go from my last job on 07/31/2010 and have since been looking for employment. I have sent out so many applications I have lost track. And have received responses from very few so far. Most of those responses have been standard "We have decided to go in a different direction..." sort of things. Quite depressing.
In addition to this. I have been stuck trying desperately to get Unemployment Benefits to survive. This has been like banging my head against a brick wall over and over again. First you fill out a form, then they send you paper forms, then you send those back, then you don't hear anything. Still don't know if I will be receiving benefits or not. A few days ago I received a notice that I need to go to a "Reemployment Services Orientation" I have not idea what to expect but have a feeling it's going to be dreadful. Notice says to expect to spend "one to three hours". One to Three HOURS!! just to look at my Work Search logs and Resume? Well that happens in about an hour. So if nothing else it will give me something new to blog about.

I miss the days when looking for a job involved walking into a company, shaking the hand of a manager, and making that all important first impression. Now a days you just sit around in front of your computer and put data into text boxes. How does someone know the applicants communication skills? Maybe I am just Old School with this. I don't know.