Unable to find job

masterboy123

I am unable to find job for my wife. She has done Masters in Tourism.
We have been looking for a job for few months now. We tried to search on various Jobs websites and sent her CV but no response from any company so far.
Maybe the problem is that we are not in Ireland at the moment. Could it be the case? What are the chances of getting her a job if we are in Ireland?

Anyone can please guide us? She is a EU national with 2 years of Office administrative work experience.

P.S. We applied for jobs in Hotels, offices, & as secretary.

Polar Ice

Has she talked to the careers service where she graduated from for advice?

masterboy123

Polar Ice wrote: »

Has she talked to the careers service where she graduated from for advice?

No, actually we do not live in Ireland. We want to move there to Ireland after securing her a job.
We live in Budapest right now and she studied here.

Mrs OBumble

masterboy123 wrote: »

Maybe the problem is that we are not in Ireland at the moment. Could it be the case? What are the chances of getting her a job if we are in Ireland?

Anyone can please guide us? She is a EU national with 2 years of Office administrative work experience.

Yes, not being in the country will be a problem: there are plenty of unemployed admin people here already,who can easily come to an interview - and who don't have the disadvantage of having a Masters degree in somemething, so therefore likely to leave as soon as they find a better job.

However what languages does she speak well enough to work with? One area where there are plenty of jobs is in multi-lingual call centre work.

Also, I'm finding it kinda weird that you are looking for the job for your wife. Why is she not looking herself,a dn posting here for advice herself?

tatli_lokma

First off, and sorry if this seems rude, but the line "I am unable to find job for my wife" is odd. I understand you want to assist her, as I did my non-Irish husband when he first arrived, but it's not you applying, it's her. So she needs to find her own job, with your support rather than you finding a job for her.

Secondly, yes it is harder to get a job whilst out of the country. Many admin/office jobs are looking to be filled in a relatively short timeframe. Seeing that you are out of the country and she will need extra notice to a) attend for interview and b) start work would put a lot of employers off. How do employers know you are out of the country? Perhaps it would be worth taking all address details etc off her CV and get an Irish SIM card. It will be pricey to accept calls while abroad, but at least with an Irish contact number, if you still get no responses you will know that it is not because they know she is living abroad.

Thirdly, if she has never worked in Ireland this will also be a disadvantage. The situation with the jobs market here means that competition, particularly for office/admin roles, is fierce. So if it comes down to Mary or Magda, already in Ireland with previous work experience and your wife, currently abroad with no Irish experience and no Irish references then Mary or Magda will get the interview and your wife won't. I actually think this will be her biggest hurdle to overcome - I know it was for my husband. Getting that first Irish job and getting an Irish referee made all the difference.

Fourthly, 2 years admin experience puts her in line for junior office/admin roles, entry level. There are people applying for these jobs with 5+ years experience, so again she is up against stiff competition. She will find it tough to get work with only 2 years experience - tough but not impossible.

My advice is when you do get to Ireland you get her to sign up with temp agencies. She needs to contact them herself so that she can show that she is well able to speak in English on the phone and then hopefully they will meet with her and sign her onto their books. With a few months temp experience in Ireland this will make her chances of getting a job much improved. But she needs to be realistic and accept that probably for the first few years at least she will be lucky if she gets entry level "office gofer" type roles. But this will give her the experience she needs to move up when the opportunity arises.

I'm sorry to be a pessimist, but I really don't think it is very likely she will secure a job prior to moving. If she had very specific skills or was trained in a specialised area perhaps, but not for general admin.

ABajaninCork

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Yes, not being in the country will be a problem: there are plenty of unemployed admin people here already,who can easily come to an interview - and who don't have the disadvantage of having a Masters degree in somemething, so therefore likely to leave as soon as they find a better job.

However what languages does she speak well enough to work with? One area where there are plenty of jobs is in multi-lingual call centre work.

Also, I'm finding it kinda weird that you are looking for the job for your wife. Why is she not looking herself,a dn posting here for advice herself?

Is it possible the wife does not have an account? I often post Q's on behalf of my husband who does not have an account. Not strange at all...

Mr. Loverman

Even when the economy was good it was difficult for someone outside the country to get an admin job.

You really need to be here to increase your chances.

Budapest is nice though.

masterboy123

Thanks everyone for the information and the precious advice.

I am posting here because my wife doesnt have an account on BOARDS.ie
Also, she is busy with her current office work and since I am on my holidays, I have been looking for job vacancies for her. It's just about caring my wife and helping ourselves together in bad times. Those are the only reasons why I posted here, instead of her. I am sorry if it looked awkward But yea she is also looking for jobs on other websites.

tatli_lokma: She doesn't have any Irish experience. But her present employer is willing to give a good character and reference certificate. She has passed IELTS (a English language exam) with an overall band score of 7.0 . I think that's more than enough to show her language skills.
Can you please guide me in getting in touch with an agency? Website or their email address?

At the end of September, we will be in Ireland for sure. We are just trying our luck at the moment, maybe we will get lucky and get to save up a job for her.

Mr. Loverman: I am happy to hear that you know Budapest

tatli_lokma

masterboy123 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the information and the precious advice.

I am posting here because my wife doesnt have an account on BOARDS.ie
Also, she is busy with her current office work and since I am on my holidays, I have been looking for job vacancies for her. It's just about caring my wife and helping ourselves together in bad times. Those are the only reasons why I posted here, instead of her. I am sorry if it looked awkward But yea she is also looking for jobs on other websites.

Fair enough, and that makes sense but it was your opening line of 'I am trying to find a job for my wife that made it sound like bit odd. Can't blame you for helping out, that's different than doing the whole thing for her!

masterboy123 wrote:

tatli_lokma: She doesn't have any Irish experience. But her present employer is willing to give a good character and reference certificate. She has passed IELTS (a English language exam) with an overall band score of 7.0 . I think that's more than enough to show her language skills.
Can you please guide me in getting in touch with an agency? Website or their email address?

Sorry but my experience has been that regardless of how good luck reference is from a foreign employer, it is rarely considered as highly as one from an Irish employer. And a written reference only holds so much weight, most employers will want to speak with someone and unless there is something exceptional about your wife they won't bother phoning a reference abroad.

Her language skills might be of a high standard, but for a lot of employers the qualifications you mentioned will mean very little. Unless they actually get to speak with her and hear her speak for herself they won't say much heed to her language qualifications.

There are literally thousands of recruitment agencies. If you look on jobs.ie or irishjobs.ie most of the roles are with recruiters. But there is no point signing up with any of them until you get here because they simply won't be interested

I think he's best bet would be to gain experience in a multi lingual like paypal, ebay, Google etc.

ABajaninCork

Multi-nationals are crying out for people with language skills.

masterboy123

Thanks. I can see some vacancies now in multi-linguals job...

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Multi-nationals are crying out for people with language skills.

Mrs OBumble

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Multi-nationals are crying out for people with language skills.

Just to be clear ... in languages other than English and Irish.

masterboy123

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Just to be clear ... in languages other than English and Irish.

Thanks for the clarification.
Yes, my wife knows Hungarian, German and English. But not Irish language..

Mrs OBumble

Is she knows German and English, then she's hot property. Shoudl be no problem finding a multi-lingual job for her.

ABajaninCork

masterboy123 wrote: »

Thanks for the clarification.
Yes, my wife knows Hungarian, German and English. But not Irish language..

I wouldn't worry about that. Not many Irish people speak it either!

Your wife's set like a jelly. She'll walk into a role, just you see!

masterboy123

Thanks. But I am not sure where do we have to apply for multi-lingual jobs?

ABajaninCork

OK.

Where do you plan to settle? If it's Dublin, then there's

Microsoft
Paypal
Google (for example). Plenty of others too.

If Cork, there's:
Apple
EMC
VMware
VEC
Pfizer
Merck
McAfee

Loads of websites too like Jobs.ie, RecruitIreland, Irish Jobs, FindAJob.

There also good old Google.

masterboy123

Many thanks. But she doesnt have experience in any of these multi-national companies.
I am going to check these website for requirements from candidates.

ABajaninCork wrote: »

OK.

Where do you plan to settle? If it's Dublin, then there's

Microsoft
Paypal
Google (for example). Plenty of others too.

If Cork, there's:
Apple
EMC
VMware
VEC
Pfizer
Merck
McAfee

Loads of websites too like Jobs.ie, RecruitIreland, Irish Jobs, FindAJob.

There also good old Google.

tatli_lokma

masterboy123 wrote: »

Many thanks. But she doesnt have experience in any of these multi-national companies.
I am going to check these website for requirements from candidates.

She will probably actually find it easier to get a job in the likes or paypal/ebay/Accenture/etc with 2 years admin than she will in a single-lingual workplace. PayPal for example would be looking for computer literacy, customer service ability, solid language skills (English and at least one other language).

My husband started in paypal from a property background -the above transferable skills are what they were looking for. He now works for a multi national in a totally different field and it was his language skills and transferable skills which again got him the job.

I do understand why you want to help, but again I feel the need to point out that your posts don't come across as helping so much as they come across as doing it for her. When I get an application from a non-Irish person where the style/language/tone is very 'Irish', unless the applicant has lived in Ireland nor a while I do wonder who actually wrote the CV/application. You might be actually doing her a disservice despite your good intentions.

A Primal Nut

masterboy123 wrote: »

Thanks for the clarification.
Yes, my wife knows Hungarian, German and English. But not Irish language..

My girlfriend was looking at multi-lingual jobs but she doesn't speak German so it was difficult; German seems to be the language companies are looking for most; so make sure to emphasise that.

As other people said, it will be a lot easier with an Irish sim card and Irish address.

tatli_lokma

A Primal Nut wrote: »

My girlfriend was looking at multi-lingual jobs but she doesn't speak German so it was difficult; German seems to be the language companies are looking for most; so make sure to emphasise that.

As other people said, it will be a lot easier with an Irish sim card and Irish address.

It really does depend on the language and company. PayPal employ staff with Arabic, Korean, Turkish, Hungarian, Nordic languages etc etc. So while German is a very useful language not having it, or only having a certain level of it isn't a huge problem if you have one of the other languages. Of course, the more uncommon language jobs don't have the same turnover of staff. For example, you speak Arabic. So most likely if you live here you are not just passing through, given the difficulty of obtaining a visa and work permit in the first place. So if you are lucky to get a job in your native language you are not likely to be moving on from that company without good reason. However, if you are an EU citizen who speaks German, you would move from job to job easier as you have no need for work permits, you might be in Ireland only for a few months while travelling etc. So in a way you are right, German is a useful language to have as there is more turnover of staff in German roles, meaning more opportunities in the short term, but languages like Hungarian will have less competition for the roles as there are less native speakers of that language in Ireland so that increases your chances. It's all swings and roundabouts and a lot will come down to the interview on the day.

masterboy123

Thanks tatli_lokma.

None of us have ever lived in Ireland. So the CV is just in normal average English.
My wife is Hungarian (EU national) and given that her mother tongue is Hungarian. As far as I know I don't think she needs a visa to come to Ireland. I am going to check PayPal now for Hungarian language associated jobs.

Thanks everyone for sharing precious advice and information.

tatli_lokma

As an EU citizen she doesn't need a visa. Good luck!

neoblazzer

Hello,
sorry for hijacking this thread but I‘m on the same boat as OP.

I‘m not in Ireland yet but I‘d be willing to relocate to Dublin ASAP. I‘m native Slovak with almost fluent Czech. Although there are not a lot of jobs that require these languages, I‘d still like to apply for them.

The question is - what are my chances of getting the job (e.g. at Google) without degree or any kind of experience directly relevant to position?

There is an interesting Slovak/Czech sales job at Google but I don‘t have experience in that area. Although I‘ve Irish experience from the past, it‘s from retail industry. I guess it won‘t help me much.

Btw. does it worth applying for job at Google from abroad? I read about guy who went through 2 phone interviews with them and then they paid for his return flight to Dublin so he can attend interview(s) at HQ in Dublin. Is that their common practice or is it just situation from pre-recession times?

Thanks in advance.

tatli_lokma

I think them (google) paying expenses would only happen where the role was either quite senior, or if a more junior position, only if they were struggling to find applicants. I am not sure how many Slovakian/Czech speakers there are in Ireland, so not sure what the competition is like for positions.

My opnion is that if you are going to apply from abroad companies like Google etc are the companies that are more likely to be ok with you not being here, smaller companies will be less likely to consider you if you are not here to attend interview immediately. And I also think it is worth you stating in your cover letter that you are more than happy to travel to Ireland to attend interview. It might even be worth contacting some recruitment agencies and lining up meetings with them and setting aside a few days to come to Ireland. During that time network and meet with as many places as possible. Mention what dates you will be in Ireland in your cover letter. A good time to come might be around the 14th September as the Career Zoo is taking place

http://www.careerzoo.ie/exhibitor_list.html

I know this is short notice, but fairs like this give you a chance to actually meet with prospective employers and get a feel for how in demand your skills are. You also get to make a personal impression, rather than just relying on your CV. So even if you can't make it for the Career Zoo keep an eye out for other career and jobs fairs taking place and make plans to visit Ireland during that time.

neoblazzer

And what about my question regarding not having degree?
Is that a big disadvantage or are foreign language skills, interpersonal skills, PC skills, etc. more important from their point of view?

tatli_lokma

It really depends on the job you are applying for. In my experience if you speak a language which doesn't have much competition they are more likely to look for transferrable skills. A degree is usually an advantage but not a must - but of course a lot depends on the role you are applying for. If it is a general CS role then I would say you can manage without a degree once your CV is strong and you have good solid experience with transferrable skills.

V.W.L 11

is anyone finding it impossible to find work due to "no previous experience" i have truck/bus licences,cpc's,ADR (hazchem) and still i cant get work

cheers
V.W.L 11

Faith+1

V.W.L 11 wrote: »

is anyone finding it impossible to find work due to "no previous experience" i have truck/bus licences,cpc's,ADR (hazchem) and still i cant get work

cheers
V.W.L 11

Unfortunately the industry is over supplied with drivers especially with experience. Not to mention the money they offer is complete sh*te, 10e an hour to drive an Artic? You'd earn the same packing shelves in Tesco without the hassle that comes with truck driving.

If you have your heart set on it I'd suggest ringing a few companies and ask them if they have any vacancies? You'd never know your luck.

V.W.L 11

Faith+1 wrote: »

Unfortunately the industry is over supplied with drivers especially with experience. Not to mention the money they offer is complete sh*te, 10e an hour to drive an Artic? You'd earn the same packing shelves in Tesco without the hassle that comes with truck driving.

If you have your heart set on it I'd suggest ringing a few companies and ask them if they have any vacancies? You'd never know your luck.

i've done more or less everything i can do,even offered my services for free to get the experience but no luck,i know the eddie stobart drivers are on €11.50 P/H and working 45 hours P/W which isnt too bad after tax but good driving jobs are few and far between i've noticed,even bus eireann appears slack

Faith+1

V.W.L 11 wrote: »

i've done more or less everything i can do,even offered my services for free to get the experience but no luck,i know the eddie stobart drivers are on €11.50 P/H and working 45 hours P/W which isnt too bad after tax but good driving jobs are few and far between i've noticed,even bus eireann appears slack

Yeah It's a right pain to invest so much money in yourself and then finding it hard to get a shot to prove yourself. Always take pride in the fact that you have these categories on your licence, your Hazcham, CPC etc... They will prove handy someday, the only question is when though....

Personally I'd stay away from Eddie Stobart, never heard good things about him. Have you tried England? My friend is in London and was telling me they are crying out for Bus Drivers (If you have the licence of course!)

V.W.L 11

Faith+1 wrote: »

Yeah It's a right pain to invest so much money in yourself and then finding it hard to get a shot to prove yourself. Always take pride in the fact that you have these categories on your licence, your Hazcham, CPC etc... They will prove handy someday, the only question is when though....

Personally I'd stay away from Eddie Stobart, never heard good things about him. Have you tried England? My friend is in London and was telling me they are crying out for Bus Drivers (If you have the licence of course!)

thanks for that,yeah i invested an absolute fortune,will look at england as i have the bus licence,was doing periodic cpc training recently and the course direvtor said that due to all the new regulations (5 year licence,new medical regulations) thre'll be an extreme shortage of truck and bus drivers in years to come

Laneyh

There are a lot of customer service call centre type jobs for people with languages.

Possibility not the best job or rates of pay but ok as a starting point.

A lot of my non-Irish friends seemed to start off out in HP when they moved to Ireland first.

There is an agency called CPL that specialise in language jobs.

Have a search through the main job sites jobs.ie, monster etc. and you should see a pattern emerging
If you do an advanced search with German language
Also have a look at adverts.ie here and LinkedIn
you can set up alerts for when new jobs are posted looking for people with language skills

I would definitely heed the advice of the person who told you to get an Irish sim

Faith+1

V.W.L 11 wrote: »

thanks for that,yeah i invested an absolute fortune,will look at england as i have the bus licence,was doing periodic cpc training recently and the course direvtor said that due to all the new regulations (5 year licence,new medical regulations) thre'll be an extreme shortage of truck and bus drivers in years to come

Yeah I heard the same when I did my CPC earlier this year. Gives new guys abit of hope!

V.W.L 11

Faith+1 wrote: »

Yeah I heard the same when I did my CPC earlier this year. Gives new guys abit of hope!

it offers some hope,just need to keep myself in the shop window