It's your job to hang in there

Flexibility and tenacity are key to survival in the current work crisis, writes Bina Brown.

IF YOU'VE recently been asked by your employer to take unpaid leave, work less or consider going part-time, you're not alone.  Part-time employment has surged over the past year at the expense of full-time work, highlighting the need for a flexible workforce.

According to the chief economist at CommSec, Craig James, it also indicates that businesses are cautious, believing the downturn will prove temporary. 

Last financial year the number of part-time jobs increased by 99,000 while full-time jobs fell by 114,700.  Advertised vacancies are continuing to fall, having already dropped by about half in the past 10 months.

The chief executive and managing director of Employment Services Holdings, Prins Ralston, says the trend towards temporary or part-time positions is not unusual in a turning economy and not altogether a bad thing.

"Rather than commit to employing people full-time, businesses will put on temporaries or employ people part-time to test if the economy has turned," he says.  "Generally it is a good sign."

The chief executive of CFS Career Management and HRSolutions, Bruce Gregory, says the employment scene will eventually turn around. Flexibility and tenacity are key to survival.  "Any job is better than no job," he says.

"Where someone might be looking for full-time work in the current climate, they may need to be more flexible and take a part-time job with the possibility that it may turn into a full-job," Ralston says.

Depending on the job someone currently has, now may not be the best time to be thinking of moving.

"I suggest people wait until jobs in their area are advertised in greater frequency before they jump," Ralston says.

Where someone has the time, he or she should engage in some professional development and "consolidate skills and refresh knowledge", either by attending courses or seminars.

"As the marketplace starts to pick up, employers will have the choice as to who they will employ and will pick the people with the freshest skills and the most up-to-date knowledge in the areas," he says.

A person's attitude also remains key to getting a job. "Remain positive and upbeat with a glass half-full attitude," Ralston says.  "As employers have choice, they would rather a happy and vibrant disposition in their office than the other way around."

Gregory says finding and keeping employment is a marketing exercise.  "If someone is presenting themselves better than you they will probably get the job," he says.  "It is not always the best qualifications that gets the job but the one who presents themselves in the best way.

August 23, 2009 THE SUN-HERALD