Find a new job while temping

[Lion_Roar]

I have been out of a job for a little bit now. I've had a couple interviews in a career field I am interested in but always comes down to not having enough experience.The the money in the bank account from my previous job is all but dried up from the bills and student loans. I'm at the point where I NEED to start making money again so I applied for a job with a staffing/temp agency.

They found me a job designing presentation content. I have previous experience in this area but isn't what I truly want to do. The company provides information to people of a certain faith about what foods are up to their religion's standards. I would not want to permanently work for a company that is faith based, but a couple months seems OK. Plus the pay isn't very good at all, but it is something. The position is a temporary contract position that is just borderline on being temp-to-hire (or so the agency says). I need the money, it sounds like something I can do, but I am still absolutely looking for a full time job.

I have multiple professional contacts, submitted resumes and submitted applications, out and about in the world, and you never know when you are going to get a nibble on one of them. Let's say I get an interview with one of them in a week or two. How do I handle this situation because I will be at the temp job during normal working hours? Do I tell them? Call in sick (that looks awful)?

I don't want to be an ass and leave right after or while they are training me at this new job, but I have to look out for #1 (me). The way I look at it is by hiring me as a temp, I don't owe them any source of loyalty. If they wanted that, they should have straight out hired me. And I'm positive they would have no problem just dumping me if they needed to, so I have the same feeling. I just want to maintain a professional attitude while I go about this all. Has anyone else been in the same situation, or have managed/hired employees in this situation?

 

[BertrandRussell]

Speaking as an employer ( for 20+ years ), I suggest that you do not try to decive anyone.

When you arrange an inteview with a prospective employer, tell them that you are working temp, and that you would like to do the interview on your lunch hour, or in the evening, or on a weekend.

The interviewer will observe that
1) You are employed. This means that someone else already thinks that you are a good employee. It serves as a reference.
2) You don't try to shortchange your current employer. If he perceives that you are loyal to your current employer, he will presume that you will be a loyal employee to him.

 

[Lord Pmann]

I wouldn't suggest calling in sick. I would suggest telling the prospective employer that your work schedule doesn't accommodate an interview just any time and ask if it's possible to arrange for a more convenient time. That may not work. The place where I work is weird about interviews. They do them all on one day and if you cannot make it the day they interview for that job, too bad. So, if you must take time off for the interview, just tell your current employer you have an appointment. No need for details.

And give your two weeks notice, for certain.

 

[subwannabe]

I'm also an employer. Have been for decades. I have always been understanding of trying to schedule interviews for a time that is convenient to both parties, whenever possible. Of course I won't get too carried away with that. Somehow or other they are going to have to make it in during my working hours. I do realize that I will be interviewing some people who are already working. Usually they are better candidates than the unemployed but not always.

 

[Lion_Roar]

As an employer, I can let you know if you can't attend an interview when we need you to attend that will tell us you don't want the job. It is no skin off our nose, there are 150 more that will make it to the interview. If you want the job you should do whatever it takes to get to the interview.

There are worse things you can do than call in sick. If you have to, do it.

Exactly my thoughts! It is hard enough to find great opportunities where a company is willing to invest time and hard work in training and hiring me. This is especially true for younger and less experienced people my age. If I can get an interview at something I want, I need to find a way there. I just feel like an ass lying sometimes, haha.

I'm also an employer. Have been for decades. I have always been understanding of trying to schedule interviews for a time that is convenient to both parties, whenever possible. Of course I won't get too carried away with that. Somehow or other they are going to have to make it in during my working hours. I do realize that I will be interviewing some people who are already working. Usually they are better candidates than the unemployed but not always.

I'm always appreciative of situations like that. Unfortunately some HR departments have many stringent requirements that don't always allow for this, or I have to meet with more than one or two people for the interview.

 

[njlauren]

It depends on the employer and their attitude, also depends on the job. When companies are trying to hire for a high skill position (and I have been a hiring manager for a lot of years now) we do try to make accommodations, because people are working. For more entry level positions or lower skill positions, there probably are 150 resumes sitting there, and it also could be the hiring manager or HR has the attitude like "don't want to fit my schedule? Fuck them, plenty of other fish out there", it all depends (it is like bosses in bad times who think it is carte blanche to abuse employees, have them work ridiculous hours, all while giving them bad raises and otherwise making life miserable, figuring they have no choice..what the scumballs don't notice, of course, is that they get a bad reputation then when better times go, all they get is refuse, not good workers, and they end up getting canned). In my line of work, with the kind of skills we require, we know how hard it is to find good people, and we might get 150 resumes and not find one good candidate for what we need, and that guy who looks good could be the lucky one *shrug*.

It is good you are temping, while that isn't exactly the top end of the rung in terms of employment, it is getting you experience, plus you are showing you are willing to work, want to work, and aren't being picky (like one guy I interviewed once for an entry level job, who came out of an Ivy league school, this was about 6 months out of graduation, and told me he might think of taking out job, since 'nothing else was out there' .......this was on a first interview, you can bet he didn't see anyone else). The nice part about temp jobs, besides the low pay, no benefits and so forth, of course, is that you often do a lot of things. When a job you really think you may want comes along, you can use the temp jobs to show a skillset that is wide ranging, and then spend time picking out from that the kind of things it taught that might be relevant in the job you are interviewing for. For example, if you are doing presentations, those skills come in handy in marketing jobs or in sales jobs or even in internal pitches (like, helping a team put together a presentation to pitch an idea). You can potentially also show that you were given a general idea of what they wanted, and then you took it to the end, got feedback, etc.

For relatively inexperienced positions (which you seem to be in the market for, apologize if i misread) work experience is critical. The kid coming out of college, even with an impressive GPA, who hasn't done much in the real world, is going to be a lot less unattractive then the kid who seems to have done things, working or otherwise. When I applied for my first job when I was graduating, I got it in part because I had worked, in variety of areas, had worked construction for a relative's firms during the summers (they were impressed I wasn't working in an office, showed them the scars and such from such exotic things as pouring a hot tar roof in 95 degree weather *lol*), that I had several certifications in auto repair, and also was head of a student group with a budget of 100k handling student activities like bringing in speakers, music groups, etc.......). Without that I would have been another kid with a degree from a good school looking for a job, with that experience I came in as someone who had proven myself to actually know how to work (didn't hurt that the head of operations I interviewed was having trouble with his car, and I knew exactly what the problem was, and was able to save him about 300 bucks off what some mechanic was bs'ing him with).

If you get interviews with full time employers, if they are willing to schedule interviews around you, fine, if they won't, then see how much latitude you can get from the temp job. I know from the temps I have talked to that some places they work at understand the nature of the temp employment, and may be willing to let them take a long lunch hour if they make up the time, or come in later, others won't. If the job looks promising, calling in sick may not be bad, if you can do that...but by all means, getting an interview is always the first step to a job, and treat it as such.

 

[silverwhisper]

lion roar, we've discussed your job search before.

my credentials:
1) i volunteer with a local job search & support group.
2) i have been the leader of another such group and am still involved with this other group as well.
3) i've hired & fired temps in my day.
4) i am a recruiter by trade now.

temping can be a very good way of networking and maintaining an employment history. believe me, employers hate non-employed time on your resume and they absolutely will calculate how long you've been out of work. i did this with several candidates i phone screened just today, and that's an every day occurrence for me.

lion roar quoth:
how do i handle this situation because i will be at the temp job during normal working hours? do i tell them? call in sick (that looks awful)?

you're a temp. they don't take it very seriously. the odds are very good that you take it more seriously than they do. there are always people to fill your desk. don't sweat it. sensible people both at the agency and the employer understand that if you have a brain in your head and are a worthwhile prospective employee, you're going to be interviewing. however, in order to facilitate interviewing, either go in late or leave early to schedule interviews, whether a phone screen or face to face.

while at the temp gig: be smart and don't discuss your job search or otherwise tip your hand to full-time employees. if you're cornered, tell the truth, but most people don't want to look too closely, so don't make them. it's that simple.

lion roar quoth:
i don't want to be an ass and leave right after or while they are training me at this new job, but i have to look out for #1 (me). the way i look at it is by hiring me as a temp, i don't owe them any source of loyalty. if they wanted that, they should have straight out hired me. and i'm positive they would have no problem just dumping me if they needed to, so i have the same feeling. i just want to maintain a professional attitude while I go about this all.

always always always be a professional. you are viewing this in precisely the right way: never burn bridges. when you land, give them 2 weeks notice if at all possible or at least be as considerate as circumstances will allow.

be sure that you have something in writing or at least deep personal connection with the person in question before giving your 2 weeks notice at the temp gig. very few people do this with temp agencies and they'll remember this. promise. you might need these guys again some day. obviously you hope not, but being in transition = keeping as many options open as at all possible. this cannot be emphasized enough.

lion roar quoth:
has anyone else been in the same situation, or have managed/hired employees in this situation?

been there and handled it myself, yes on both counts. when you manage temps you know that you're going to be treated like shit as the employer. but nobody likes it: i mean, would you?

i was temping until mid-december as a call center monkey and believe me, it sucked ass. esp working in a call center you can't check your voicemail or email so you're going to have problems. when you get a nibble, explain to the person who called you that you're employed on a temporary basis and whatever your communication restrictions may be.

now, odds are good you won't be contacted by the hiring manager him/her self. that's actually good in this instance because i don't know of any recruiter who works a strict 9-5 schedule. explain to him/her (via voicemail if necessary) precisely your restrictions and direct them to email, since you can respond to that at your leisure outside of business hours.

don't rule out the possibility of being converted to a permanent, w2 full-time employee from your temp gig. remember: training someone for a position is a massive pain in the ass for the company's full-time employees. they don't wanna do it any more than you would. nobody wants to train someone only to have to go through the process with another temp whose name they likely won't remember a week after they're gone.

when you do leave, get contact info & stay in touch with those folks. again: you never know when these folks might be helpful networking contacts for you in the future: they may move on. and especially if these folks at the temp assignment like you--which you should be working on while you're there--they may be helpful references to you. most full-time employees will forget about the temps after a week or 3. don't let that be you.

ed

 

[tmmmbrrr]

Hi LR,
I've been in your situation and felt lucky to get a temp assignment when I really needed something. The pay was low, but it was enough to keep me from loosing all my savings. My recommendation is to do something positive and go for the opportunity. Who knows what doors it will open and at least you'll be in the position of looking for your next regular job while you're still working.
Good Luck,
tmmm

 

[Lion_Roar]

lion roar, we've discussed your job search before.

my credentials:
1) i volunteer with a local job search & support group.
2) i have been the leader of another such group and am still involved with this other group as well.
3) i've hired & fired temps in my day.
4) i am a recruiter by trade now.

temping can be a very good way of networking and maintaining an employment history. believe me, employers hate non-employed time on your resume and they absolutely will calculate how long you've been out of work. i did this with several candidates i phone screened just today, and that's an every day occurrence for me.


you're a temp. they don't take it very seriously. the odds are very good that you take it more seriously than they do. there are always people to fill your desk. don't sweat it. sensible people both at the agency and the employer understand that if you have a brain in your head and are a worthwhile prospective employee, you're going to be interviewing. however, in order to facilitate interviewing, either go in late or leave early to schedule interviews, whether a phone screen or face to face.

while at the temp gig: be smart and don't discuss your job search or otherwise tip your hand to full-time employees. if you're cornered, tell the truth, but most people don't want to look too closely, so don't make them. it's that simple.


always always always be a professional. you are viewing this in precisely the right way: never burn bridges. when you land, give them 2 weeks notice if at all possible or at least be as considerate as circumstances will allow.

be sure that you have something in writing or at least deep personal connection with the person in question before giving your 2 weeks notice at the temp gig. very few people do this with temp agencies and they'll remember this. promise. you might need these guys again some day. obviously you hope not, but being in transition = keeping as many options open as at all possible. this cannot be emphasized enough.


been there and handled it myself, yes on both counts. when you manage temps you know that you're going to be treated like shit as the employer. but nobody likes it: i mean, would you?

i was temping until mid-december as a call center monkey and believe me, it sucked ass. esp working in a call center you can't check your voicemail or email so you're going to have problems. when you get a nibble, explain to the person who called you that you're employed on a temporary basis and whatever your communication restrictions may be.

now, odds are good you won't be contacted by the hiring manager him/her self. that's actually good in this instance because i don't know of any recruiter who works a strict 9-5 schedule. explain to him/her (via voicemail if necessary) precisely your restrictions and direct them to email, since you can respond to that at your leisure outside of business hours.

don't rule out the possibility of being converted to a permanent, w2 full-time employee from your temp gig. remember: training someone for a position is a massive pain in the ass for the company's full-time employees. they don't wanna do it any more than you would. nobody wants to train someone only to have to go through the process with another temp whose name they likely won't remember a week after they're gone.

when you do leave, get contact info & stay in touch with those folks. again: you never know when these folks might be helpful networking contacts for you in the future: they may move on. and especially if these folks at the temp assignment like you--which you should be working on while you're there--they may be helpful references to you. most full-time employees will forget about the temps after a week or 3. don't let that be you.

ed

Thank you for your great response. You helped shed some light on this situation for me. I strive to conduct myself professionally, but being fresh on the scene, I don't always know how. I accepted the position and start Monday.