I'm having a rough go of it on the job search.

[Tobin S.]

There are jobs out there, but they are mostly entry level deals making 30k a year. I'm 42 and I have bills. I can't make it on that.

I might have an interview for a truck driving position. It pays in the 50s the first year and the low 70s the second year. I also am looking at a different company that's paying 80k for truckers on a dedicated account. The draw back to both jobs is that you have to unload the truck. That's why they pay so well. Most drivers don't want to unload trucks and won't take those kinds of jobs even if they pay better.

Yeah, it's the ol' supply and demand deal. I have a bachelor's degree now, but the job market is basically flooded with people like me who went back to school when the market tanked. So even though I have the degree I can't find anything in my field that pays well. There are probably truckers out there who didn't even graduate from high school who are making 70k-80k a year, just because they are in demand. I think truckers are worth that, but a good education should count for something, too.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. I am sorry to hear this, my dear Tobin...

I'm pleased (and not surprised!) that you see the situation so clearly. Deluding yourself sure doesn't help, does it?

Didn't you say there might be a change at the top in your current company? Perhaps you could hold on to see if that materializes? This is just my thought right now, and I may be way off base!

Good luck, no matter what road you decide to take.

[Tobin S.]

2. I've heard a rumor that a dispatcher is going to be quitting this summer

where I currently work, but I don't think I would even be in consideration for the job. I'm also not sure I would want it, and I don't think it would pay much better than what I'm making there now.

I'm basically type-cast at my current employer. That's the price you have to pay sometimes for being very good at doing a hard job. The good news is that I'll always have a job there. The bad news is that I can't move out of my current position and up the ladder.

I could stay with what I'm doing now and be okay. I've written about that before and it is tempting. However, I will never really be able to get ahead financially there, or it will be several more years before I am able to. That's why I'm looking at other driving jobs right now.

[noamnety]

3. Can you arrange to subcontract the unloading?

Seems like you could get a team of people through CL in the locations you'd go to, who would be willing to unload for a decent price and be on text alert, and you'd still come out ahead.

[Tobin S.]

7. There would be liability issues and I doubt my customers would allow it.

Besides, I need the exercise.

[cwydro]

4. I earned a degree right after high school Tobin.

Now I'm in my 50's. It ain't easy street anymore just because you have a degree.

I know many, many young people just out of college. Some are bilingual; all are attractive and intelligent with good communication skills.

They're all working in call centers.

[magical thyme]

5. sorry to read that, but not surprised

As you wrote, a lot of people went back to school with the recession. The jobs numbers are better, but the quality of the jobs has declined. There's just not a lot of "good" jobs out there.

If you have to stay in your current job, or current field, maybe it's time for you to consider that a message from the universe that instead of starting a new career, it's a good time to focus on finishing and publishing your book. That could lead you in an entirely different -- and potentially more satisfying -- direction.

Seriously, if I could get enough focus to write a book...that's where I'd be at!

[Tobin S.]

8. Getting published is very difficult

A lot of writers who are much better than me don't have book deals. In my case, I will probably have to self-publish it if I want the book to see the light of day.

I might get lucky, but I doubt it.

[progressoid]

6. Yep

My wife is 53 and has been looking for a year. Sadly, 30K would like like the lottery at this point.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. sending you good jobhunting vibes. dont give up

[riderinthestorm]

10. You will never regret that you went back for that degree, no matter the job search

or where you finally end up working.

That education in and of itself is valuable on so many levels big and small.

Hang in there!

[applegrove]

11. Look in the yellow pages for places that sound like you might want to work there. Send them a resume

and a cover letter. I ended up at an organizations I totally misunderstood and didn't belong being interviewed with because my views were so opposed to theirs. But the interview was a good experience. I politely declined when I got the job. So take a chance. Get a whole ton of names, call them to find out what they do and what their head of personnel's name is, their address and do a huge mail merge. That way your resume is on file for maybe 6 months. And you hit the hidden job market that way. And you can keep the addresses on your computer and do another mail merge in 8 months. So you stay in their files as having expressed a keen interest in them.

[NJCher]

12. give it more time

I've read (and this was pre-recession) that it takes six months to land a job over 60k.

Also, a thought might be executive management in the field you're in. You know how it works, and now you have the degree, so why wouldn't they hire you (provided there's an opening).

One other thought: put in resumes at the places where you would like to be. There's still a turnover factor. Even in a recession, I think that might be something like 12 per cent a year. With these, you have to stay on top of your submission and track the company, although oftentimes they will call you when there's an opening.



Cher

and p.s. if you think there are a lot of B.A.s out there, you should see what the graduation rate is. There are way, way more people who never finish, so take some satisfaction in that.

[mnhtnbb]

13. Tobin, I would suggest you consider other states.

Areas that are growing--particularly cities in the south--may offer some opportunities
that don't exist where you are. The Triangle area of North Carolina fits that profile.
Charlotte and Greensboro and Winston Salem would probably be areas to take a look, too.


http://www.indeed.com/q-Transportation-Manager-l-North-Carolina-jobs.html

[cwydro]

16. North Dakota is booming right now.

I've heard they have lots of transportation jobs.

[mnhtnbb]

17. If you like living out of your truck.

Seriously, there is not enough housing and rents are sky high.
Crime is crazy, too.

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/03/06/3630643/fbi-comes-to-the-oil-fields/

[cwydro]

23. Yeah.

I have heard that there's not enough housing.

[mnhtnbb]

18. Here's a link to one of those "best" lists

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2014/07/23/raleigh-leads-the-best-places-for-business-and-careers-2014/

And besides, we need more Democrats!!!!

[Tuesday Afternoon]

14. Take the better paying job and keep looking for something in business. Just my .o2 ...

Use any and all connections you may have.

The old saying: It is not WHAT you know but, WHO you know. was never any truer than it is today.

Good luck, Tobin and know that you are NOT alone. This is a TOUGH MARKET right now for any one no matter the education/experience.

[Tobin S.]

22. That sounds like the way to do it

I was thinking of doing it until I get some bills paid off, and then looking elsewhere. If I do this right, my wife can basically retire in the near future.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

15. If it's possible for you to relocate,

come to Minneapolis. The unemployment rate here is the lowest of any large city in the country, http://www.bls.gov/web/metro/laulrgma.htm , and according to a state agency that collects that information, job prospects for people with degrees in engineering, computer science and business management are particularly good. Most recent grads with those degrees have been able to find decent full-time jobs in their field.

[Throd]

19. What does unloading the truck entail?

I have unloaded a lot of trucks back in the day. Sometimes it was really easy as everything was on shrink-wrapped pallets and I had a decent forklift. Other times it was random crap tossed willy-nilly into the trailer and unloading was a pain in the ass and sometimes dangerous.

I'm 47 and would still be OK with the first scenario, but I think I'm getting too old for the second one.

[Tobin S.]

21. There are two scenarios.

One is grocery warehouse kind of stuff. That's the harder of the two. You basically break down palletized freight and re-palletize it the way the warehouse wants it. It usually takes a few hours.

The other option involves mostly moving stuff off the truck in cages on rollers with some stuff on the floor. While still physically demanding, it's not as tough as the first deal.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

25. Being a 'lumper'

which is a word for people who unload semi freight, is a young (under 40) man's job like roofing and carpet installation..............

[PasadenaTrudy]

20. It can take years

not months, to find a decent job. I have friends here in the L.A. area that had to hunt for a couple years. Even with grad degrees.

[KittyWampus]

24. Good Luck. If you haven't thought outside the box yet… give it a whirl.

I asked an internet friend who was fired if she was good with dogs and she was very good with dogs so I suggested dog walking and she actually got a few jobs doing that! It helped keep her going until she got the office job.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

26. There is this idea

which says you decide on what company you want to work for, find out who has the power to hire you and start there.......
http://www.jobhuntersbible.com/