NYSID and GoodTemps strive to enhance the lives of people with imparing medical conditions and disabilities, turning benefit recipients into paid and tax contributing members of their communities through the power of work.
Mainstreet.com has a useful article giving a few tips on topics to avoid bringing up during your interview. Number one on their list is railing about previous employers; even if you leave an employer on less than amicable terms, turning the other cheek and focusing on the positives is the way to go. Criticizing can give the interviewer the impression that you'll be feeling the same way about them a year down the line.
Other topics the article suggests you avoid bringing up include childcare, financial woes, and your age.
Read the full article at http://www.mainstreet.com/slideshow/career/employment/5-touchy-topics-avoid-job-interview
All of us have thought, "I don't have enough time," or, "If only there were more hours in the day," at one time or another. Unnecessary tasks waste our time everyday, and we usually waste even more time trying to make lists and organize everything we have to do. It's frustrating and exhausting. Here a few tips for simplifying your "to do" list and getting things done.
In observance of Martin Luther King Day, GoodTemps will be closed on Monday, January 16th.
Employer supervisors have until Noon Tuesday, January 17th to approve any pending temp employee timesheets.
I received an email today asking about resources for learning and practicing alphabetical filing skills -- knowing which files go in which order so that you can store them and find them again easily. It was a great question that I think a lot of people can benefit from asking. Alphabetical filing is one of those skills that most people think they've mastered, or they are afraid to ask for help because they assume everyone else already knows how, but in reality, fewer people than you realize really know how to file. Fortunately, there are set rules you can learn that will tell you what to do in any given situation. With a little practice, you'll master all the finer points of alphabetical filing.
None of the resources I'm about to link you to are my own, and I cannot take credit for them. They're just the best pages I've found covering this topic on the internet. You can learn practically anything for free on the internet.
Employee W2 forms will be postmarked and mailed by January 31st to every individual who worked an assignment with GoodTemps during 2011 . Please allow 2-3 days from that date for delivery. The W2 will be mailed to the home address GoodTemps has on file for you - if you have moved, ensure we have your current address so that you will receive your W2 in a timely fashion!
Just a reminder that the Goodwill Suits Vets event begins this Friday and runs until Sunday. US Veterans of any war - past or present - who have a military ID card can come to any of the 39 Goodwill stores throughout the area and get a free business suit or items of business clothing.
Read the full release at Goodwill NYNJ's website for more information: http://www.goodwillny.org/about_openhouse.aspx?neid=172
Indeed Military: Job Search Resources For Veterans & Employers
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On Veterans Day, Indeed.com launched a new portal, Indeed Military, the aim of which is to help veterans find jobs that match their military background and experience. In partnership with Joining Forces, the service is free to job seekers and easy to use; simply enter your military occupation code and your location, and Indeed will return matching job opportunities from employers.
Indeed Military is currently free to employers, and allows them to search by occupation and location to identify veteran job seekers in their area.
Visit Indeed Military.
Goodwill Industries will be featured in a number of radio spots over the next two weeks to raise awareness of our collective mission and to promote the Goodwill Suits Vets drive. If you're a radio listener, keep your ears peeled on the following stations:
WFUV New York's Rock & Roots 90.7FM
Monday to Friday at 6.40am, 7.40am, 10.45am, 12.45pm, 2.45pm, 3,15pm, 5.45pm and 6.45pm.
WWFS Fresh 102.7FM
Monday and Tuesday at 11.13am, 1.43pm, 3.43pm; and 5.51pm on Tuesday.
If you've been reading my posts for the last few weeks -- or applying for jobs -- you already know that full-time hiring grinds to a halt during the holiday season. If it was hard to get responses to résumés in September, it's nearly impossible in December. The good news is that business picks up again with the start of the new year. Take a break from job hunting this month and, while you're enjoying the holidays, set yourself a few new goals for 2012. Whether you're looking to advance your career or just looking for a job, here are a few new year's resolutions that will help you get there.
New Law Brings Tax Credits To Employers Who Hire Veterans
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In November, the Veterans Opportunity to Work to Hire Heros Act was passed into law (VOW). This law allows for increases in training, education, job placement and transition assistance to veterans, as well as assistance for veterans with disabilities.
If you're an employer looking to hire, this new law will be of particular interest to you, as it provides a significant tax credit to your business if your new hire is an armed services veteran. For a veteran who has been out of work for more than than six months, the tax credit can be up to $5,600; and for a veteran who has been out of work for between 4 weeks and six months, the credit is up to $2,400.
A substantial tax credit of up to $9,600 is possible for hiring a disabled veteran who has been out of work for six months or more.
GoodTemps works with people with disabilities from all backgrounds, including veterans. Make your next permanent hire a GoodTemp and reap the double benefit of tax savings, and being proud in the knowledge that your hire helps a brave servicemember integrate back into society.
Read more about the act here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/11/21/president-obama-hire-veteran
Goodwill Suits Vets - Free Professional Outfit For Veterans
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Armed Service veterans returning from active duty are faced with many challenges; adjusting to civilian life, integrating back into society, coping with trauma or a disability, or even just finding work. In some areas of the country, veteran unemployment is over 30% and typically trends much higher than the local average.
This month, thousands of service men and women will return home and into the workforce. In appreciation for their service to our country, Goodwill Industries of Greater New York and Northern New Jersey will provide a free professional outfit to all Veterans - past or present - who go to any of its 39 area stores, show their military ID, and mention "Goodwill Suits Vets" from Friday through Sunday, January 6-8, 2012.
The new year is almost (almost!) upon us, which means a new year of resolutions which may or may not be kept. Ensure your career resolutions for the new year are kept by following these helpful tips:
This holiday season, from Thanksgiving to New Years, we're taking a look at one thing you can do each week to lead you to a new career move in the new year. Last week we discussed quick and easy resume fixes. This week we'll tackle networking.
In preparation for job hunting success in the new year, take a few minutes this week to revamp your resume. It doesn't have to take long or require professional help. Here are five quick resume fixes you can tackle today in just minutes.
The Good, Bad And The Ugly Of The Latest Jobs Report
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The latest jobs report released by the Federal government heralded a hurrah - the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in over two years, but it came with a hidden surprise, kind of like finding a bug in your sandwich. The surprise was that the numbers alone weren't telling the full story. According to the report, the unemployment rate fell due to people finding work; and also to people who stopped looking for work or retired.
That last part is important - if the country had the same ratio of workers (# of jobs to people looking for work) as we did in early 2009, the unemployment rate would be closer to 11% instead of 8.6%. Fewer people looking for work makes for a lower unemployment rate.
The worry is the sustainability of this drop in unemployment. The growth in hiring comes on the back of private businesses gearing up for the holiday season and only time will tell if those hires are only seasonal, or will turn into something more perpetual. Either way, recovery is still a long, painful road for the country with a huge 13 million people still out of work.
Jobs report at CNN.com
Earlier this month, Google launched a new service aimed at veterans of the armed services, and their families. The service was developed in part by veterans working at Google, and provides a number of great features utilizing some of Google's key services:
- Record your story
Allows veterans to make a narrative of their service by uploading photos, memories, documents, and mapping where in the world service has taken them.
- After service
After service in the forces has ended, Google provides help with an online résumé builder, and for entrepreneurs, an online presence for their business.
- Connect
With Vet Connect, you can chat with former service buddies and other veterans.
Check out these and other great features at GoogleForVeterans.com.
As I've said before, networking is just a fancy word for meeting people and keeping in touch. The holiday season may not be the best time for landing your dream job, but it's the perfect time for networking, whether you're looking to further your career or start a new one. Here are a few tips for how to start:
The entire team here at GoodTemps would like to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. We hope that those who are travelling reach their destinations safe, and that the day is filled with great food, love, warmth, laughter, and great company from friends and family.
GoodTemps will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, and Friday the 25th - the day after. We will reopen for business on Monday, November 28th.
Back in October, GoodTemps participated in the NYC Disability Mentoring Day, sponsored by the Mayor's office for People with Disabilities. For the day, seven disabled jobseekers of all ages and walks of life came to our office and shadowed our staff as they went about their day to day activities. The purpose of Disability Mentoring Day is to give disadvantaged jobseekers a first hand look at the inner workings of a company, in order to better prepare them for working life.
The day was a great experience for all - mentors and mentees alike - and one mentee was placed into a job with one of our clients the following day.
Taj, a videographer from Goodwill NY & NJ was also on hand to capture the events.
Job hunting is the hardest job you will ever have.
Take a break from it and relax this holiday season. As workers start to take time off for Thanksgiving, permanent hiring tends to stop until the new year. Any résumés you send out to companies between now and then have a higher than usual chance of getting lost in a pile or simply discarded. Instead of spending the season stressing over job hunting, take a vacation from job applications. Spend time with your friends and family, and know that you're using your time wisely.
Who Wants To Be An Astronaut? Nasa Is Hiring!
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For those of us who carried fervent dreams of soaring through space as a child, there's a glimmer of hope: NASA is hiring. As in hiring astronauts for the ISS, seriously. Caveat! Before you get your hopes up and start polishing up your résumé, make sure you have the requisites:
- The ability to travel for up to six months (To infinity & beyond!)
- Comfort with (extreme) heights
- Possess a top-notch academic degree
- Perfect vision and health
- Command pilot flight time under your belt
All good? Then go apply at USA Jobs.gov and make the stars your next career destination!
Today is Veterans Day, 11/11/11.
In Britain, where I was born and raised, it is called Armistice Day in rememberance of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, when the guns of World War One fell silent and peace was declared in Europe. 15,000,000 military personnell and civilians died in the conflict. It was sworn that such human tragedy would never be allowed to happen again. Twenty six years later, World War II came to a dramatic conclusion. Over 60,000,000 people perished.
The worst way I've ever heard a phone answered was at an optometrist's office in New Jersey where the receptionist simply said, "Offices." It was less personal than saying "hello," and yet callers had no idea what sort of "offices" they'd actually reached or if they'd just dialed the wrong number. Here are a few tips for the best way to answer a phone and sound professional doing it:
Interviewing: Keep Your Weaknesses Irrelevant
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Most job interviews feature the question "What weaknesses do you have?". It's a cliched question, but one that you can easily skirt around with some strategy, while at the same time avoiding becoming cliched yourself by choosing an answer that isn't really a weakness at all, like "I work too hard and am a perfectionist."
Instead, choose a real weakness you have that has nothing to do with the job you're interviewing for. For example, if you're interviewing for a data entry job, talk about your weakness in sales and telemarketing, then divert the conversation to why you applied for the job that you did (because it plays to your strengths.)
I have a bad habit. I have this tendency to think of things that I have to do, things I need to get, or, even worse, great ideas for projects of mine. And then I tell myself 'I'll make a note of it later', before getting up and doing something else. Only I can't, because by then, it has completely escaped my mind. It's infuriating, but apparently it is grounded in science and not just my addled mind. That makes feel not so bad!
Researchers discovered that doorways - yes, doorways - can act as event boundaries in forming new memories, which has the effect of impeding recall of prior short-term memories. Ever thought of something you need to pick up from the supermarket on the walk there, forgot about it as soon as you walk through the door? Blame the door next time.
The Oil Jobs Boom In The Middle-of-nowhere
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Rural areas of North Dakota have seen a boom in recent years, as oil and gas companies flock to the small farm areas to extract oil from the recently discovered Bakken formation. The boom has had its pains, though - small towns that once had populations in the teens now struggle to house thousands, as waves of people eager to work long hours for big wages flock from across the nation.
We can all stand to be more productive. Some days it seems like there is so much to do that we'll never catch up. When you've got work that needs to get done and you aren't sure how you can possibly finish on time, here are a few tips for being instantly more productive. Read on...
Election Night Clerical Assistants - Republicans Needed
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We had previously advertised for clerical assistants to work with the Board of Elections on election night, November 8th, in Queens. By law, the Board of Elections requires an equal representation of workers registered to vote as either Republican or Democrat. We have referred a sufficient number of registered Democrats, but need additional Republicans to meet their needs.
The assignment is for one night, election night, November 8th, and includes a paid training session. For full details of the job and to apply, click here: http://www.goodtemps.org/people/oppdetail.aspx?id=822
New York is a city where you can find anything. But one of the hardest things to find is good customer service. If you work in a customer-facing job, whether in retail or dining or as an office receptionist, the best way to make yourself stand out as a great employee and prove you can handle being a manager is to give good customer service. Here are a few rules for standing out in all the right ways:
Recent articles
NYSID Jobs Well Done
What Not to Say... In an Interview
4 Ways to Be More Productive
GoodTemps Closed On MLK Day
Alphabetical Filing
Employee W2 Tax Forms
Goodwill Suits Vets Event Starts Friday
Indeed Military: Job Search Resources For Veterans & Employers
Goodwill On The Radio
5 New Year's Resolutions For Job Hunters