Publisher's Note

Publisher’s Note
HAPPY NEW YEAR! HAPPY THREE KINGS! As we are now in 2019, new year, new beginnings, new challenges and new opportunities. Everyone is entitled to make their new year’s resolution for as long as they keep it in mind and make sure that they do it to the best of their ability. When I was young [...]
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The Other Side

by Steve Tarzwell

Life, as we know it, continues on here in Calgary. The economy has slowed its decline and although not getting better, it has stopped its freefall. Those who have lost their jobs may have to change careers and the best way to survive in Alberta over the long term is to have multiple skills. In the past most people would go through life having only 4 or 5 jobs, like my Dad who toiled for 37 years with the same company. Now you will probably have a setback every 5 – 10 years and NO JOB is safe! If you’ve recently been laid off, it may also be that many companies, even ones not suffering due to low oil prices, take this opportunity to “trim the fat” as we call it. If you have attendance issues, and miss more than 1 or 2 days a year due to illness they may look to replace you with someone more reliable. Another concern for companies to make a profit is that your wages may not match the skill or effort that the position requires. In other words, you are overpaid and someone more desperate may be able to do your job for significantly lower wages. You may be let go now, and when things look more promising for the company your replacement will be hired for less. Rarely are laid off staff recalled by the same company.

Although comforting to have, Employment Insurance Benefits are considered temporary relief for jobless Canadians. It is usually only about half of what you were earning while working and will help for a few months – but should not be abused as easy money. Loafing around until your Benefit period runs out will only make things worse. Timing is very important since it is only a few months from now that thousands of students, both high school and post secondary, will flood the job market. These workers tend to work for less and are generally happy employees and get along better – since they are only concerned about a few pay cheques and returning to school. Our Bible is clear on “idle hands” guidelines and your job search will take more effort and your goals and ambitions may take new directions. If your future is a lifetime of flipping burgers, making coffee or raising someone else’s kids, your job is more secure but you may not be satisfied with minimum wages, poor working conditions or a work schedule that forces you to work while the rest of us play. Weekends are for fun and entertainment and Sunday should be set aside for Worship Services.

Although I am not an expert on careers or employment advice, I do have about 50 years experience in the Alberta job market, having survived 3 previous economic downturns since the 1970’s. 81 previous employers, most whom did not provide large pay cheques or benefits, did at least give me a wide range of skills and job experience. It gives a person more options when seeking employment. A crash in Alberta’s economy may be the shake up your life needs – and a career in a field that may be more rewarding than you expect!

Again, from past experience I can tell you that since we work an average of 40 hours per week, your job search related efforts should still be a minimum of 40 hours per week. I found that many times the search took more work that actually doing the job. Considering that the majority of jobs have been found through networking, you can still be seeking employment on weekends, at social events, parties or Church. Someone may be helpful with leads they have heard or know about.

Your time off can also be used for gaining knowledge or education on a wide variety of topics and it is also a good opportunity to improve your language and communication skills. Since most non-English speaking people have barely made it to a level of basic social use of English ie: chatting, gossiping etc., you may be at a disadvantage since most employers desire staff that can read and write clearly in English, our official language. Resumes, applications, employment tests etc. will expose the lack of business and technical communication skills and you may not even get to the interview stage. All Filipinos I know are great conversationalists but you need to get to the interview first. Your Resume should be plain and simple, listing only the things you need to “sell” yourself to a prospective employer. Marital status, kids, religion, hobbies and other outside factors, while useful, are not what employers are looking for.

Here’s hoping that an economic downturn does not cause you to abandon your dreams and hopes, but only puts them on the back burner for a while. We have 168 hours per week at our disposal but 40 hours of those are needed for work, meaning a pay cheque every couple of weeks. If God has decided to close one door, He will open another. We need not question why!

The Other Side

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