Re: Job hunting and temp agencies

[Guest guest]

I've been lucky. I was hired out of college by a pet-sitting agency to

be the office manager. Granted it wasn't glamorous, the owner ran it

out of the back of her home, but it WAS a job. After about a year, she

closed the business and I enlisted with a temp agency. It was great! I

recommend it to my college kids to do as summer work because you can get

exposed to so many areas. I really enjoyed my temp experiences. I got

to try on many hats, I always got perfect performance reviews, and it

led to a permanent job which I held for 13 years before moving to my

current permanent position.

-marty

>>> " Dybala " <jdybala1974@...> 04/13/04 09:34PM >>>

> Would you explain your

> current view of talent agents? Do you have one? Have you ever

gotten

> work as a result of a talent agents effort's? Would you turn down

work

> if it came from an agent? Are you able to find productive work

without a

> talent agent?

I thought this might be an interesting opening for a thread about

looking

for work in general ...

I've held ... let's see ... nine jobs over the past four years. All but

two

of them, I got through temp agencies. (That's why the number is so high

....

several of the jobs were just that, temporary. Plus I've worked two

jobs at

a time for most of those four years.)

I imagine most people on here have had an experience similar to mine

.... I

know that my height was factored into a hiring decision, I just can't

prove

it. The times I've gone through temp agencies, it's been a mixed bag.

On the

one hand, I haven't felt the pressure of having to work twice as hard

to

prove myself in an interview situation - I can just go in and work and

prove

myself on my own merits. On the other hand, I had at least one

" temp-to-hire " job where my supervisor worked very, very hard to make

me

want to quit because she didn't want to accommodate me. The

accommodations I

requested were a shoulder rest for the phone, which I ultimately

purchased

myself, and a footstool.

What types of experiences have you had looking for work through a temp

agency, versus looking on your own?

[Guest guest]

A good question to ask a temp agency is who their client list includes.

I worked for a temp agency who had the contract with the State of Oregon. It

opened a lot of doors. At the time I wasn't interested due to other priorities

in my life at the time. But working for the agency was a blast. If you are

good they call you back. If not, well....you'll get the message.

Karin Redston

[Guest guest]

Karin,

Like with anything some are good, some aren't. Sometimes the jobs aren't out

there.

Helen

In a message dated 4/14/04 12:18:21 PM Eastern Daylight Time,

KRedston@... writes:

> If you are good they call you back. If not, well....you'll get the message.

>

> Karin Redston

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi and group,

I happen to work for an employment/temp agency, yay so I can somewhat share.

I temped all throughout college, and when I graduated I started temping while

I was interviewing. The company ended up placing me as a temp in one of

their own offices and hired me after three months. I have worked there now for

almost four years, it has had its ups and downs as any job does, but one thing I

take pride in of my company, is that they strictly adhere to ADA policies,

train us annually on accommodating and respecting different disabilities, and

continue to have an open mind about every single person that walks into our

office.

On the other hand, while temping in college, one of the places I was placed

at made me feel very uncomfortable the entire time, and afterwards told the

temping company I showed up to work in cut off jean shorts and a halter top!!!

Which was a complete lie! So there are jerks out there, but I think I can

speak for most employment agencies look to put the best person in the job

regardless of what they look like or where they come from. If I can help you in

any

way in terms of searching for a job, please feel free to email me, and I will

do the best I can! I am not a recruiter, but I can certainly pass a resume

along, to our offices. Hope that helps!