Agencies that do nothing?

falko89

May be its just me in that I am not qualified enough or whatever but since signing up 9 weeks ago with the 2 local agencies not 1 has ever contacted me, I see jobs that I could do like say a warehouse operative, despatch clerk, junior I.T Technician but when you phone about them they've already gone. Do agencies actually do anything?

LadyMissA

falko89 wrote: »

May be its just me in that I am not qualified enough or whatever but since signing up 9 weeks ago with the 2 local agencies not 1 has ever contacted me, I see jobs that I could do like say a warehouse operative, despatch clerk, junior I.T Technician but when you phone about them they've already gone. Do agencies actually do anything?

No, not been put forward for one job via any of the ones I am with in 15 months. I email them once a week as they are never there to take my calls and I can't afford to call them non stop and never hear back. They are a waste of time and some have told me when I hit 1 year that they couldn't help me anymore which was a joke as they hadn't helped me at all from week 1 to week 52. They care not one jot for the unemployed and have been told someone with 1 years exp in work has more chance getting an interview than me with 20 years!!!:mad:

falko89

LadyMissA wrote: »

No, not been put forward for one job via any of the ones I am with in 15 months. I email them once a week as they are never there to take my calls and I can't afford to call them non stop and never hear back. They are a waste of time and some have told me when I hit 1 year that they couldn't help me anymore which was a joke as they hadn't helped me at all from week 1 to week 52. They care not one jot for the unemployed and have been told someone with 1 years exp in work has more chance getting an interview than me with 20 years!!!:mad:

How do they make money then? I am curious as to how they work, Who actually gets these jobs they advertise? Do they even exist? From what I can see they target areas where there aren't many jobs going, around here for example you will never see them advertise a job for a nurse or care worker as the place is coming down with them but they'll advertise say cleaners and probably get inundated as there are no cleaner jobs going.

LadyMissA

falko89 wrote: »

How do they make money then? I am curious as to how they work, Who actually gets these jobs they advertise? Do they even exist? From what I can see they target areas where there aren't many jobs going, around here for example you will never see them advertise a job for a nurse or care worker as the place is coming down with them but they'll advertise say cleaners and probably get inundated as there are no cleaner jobs going.

they make money on people already in work! They will not say to the employer you have to interview my lady as shes got 20 years exp if they have told her they wont interview anyone unemployed so if they tried to push it they would lose their custom so they do as they are told to keep the business.

InsideInsurance

They make money by placing candidates.

Some jobs do exist and the agent is on the PSL to recruit for it. Some jobs do exist but the agents aren't on the PSL but hope if they have the right candidate they can negotiate. Some jobs are speculative but not actually signed off by the client and the agent is or isnt on the PSL. Some jobs dont exist and the agents are just trying to increase their book of active CVs.

Obviously things vary by both agents and clients but for example when I recruit we would ask the 6 approved companies to send their top 2, at an absolute most 3, candidates based on our selection criteria. So in the first instance the agents are going to be only sending a small fraction of their total list of potential candidates.

Secondly, depending on if it is perm or temp, the agents money is dependent on how long the candidate stays etc (perm it tends to be fairly binary, temps its 99,9% linked) and so agents are always keen on putting forward candidates that they have already placed successfully before because they know they can get and keep jobs.

At the moment with supply out stripping demand it will be difficult to shine bright enough for an agent to take a punt on you rather than someone else that they've been placing for years unless you have a particular rare skill/ experience that the client happens to be looking for.

Svenena

You need to keep on top of them. They're probably putting forward the people who are hassling them the most. Keep calling them, drop in every now and then, make sure they know who you are as an individual - they'll have loads of people on their books, and they can't contact everyone about every job. They're most likely to get in touch with the ones who seem keen. I think calling them twice a week should do the job, to ask whether they've had anything in which is relevant to what you're looking for. You could also pop in to ask things about what the employers on their books are looking for and how you can make yourself more employable, etc.

Remember, they are paid by employers for the service they provide. They're not there to provide a service to you as an individual (otherwise they'd be charging you!). As with any way of searching for jobs, you need to be proactive.

Good luck with the job hunt!

LadyMissA

InsideInsurance wrote: »

At the moment with supply out stripping demand it will be difficult to shine bright enough for an agent to take a punt on you rather than someone else that they've been placing for years unless you have a particular rare skill/ experience that the client happens to be looking for.

I am with the agency who placed me in my last job where I was for 5 years and they have not put me forward for anything in a year. I even have a reference from the MD there as he was in constant contact with the Financial Controller at my last job so often spoke of me so they know what I cna do, yet still nothing.

marybelle01

falko89 wrote: »

May be its just me in that I am not qualified enough or whatever but since signing up 9 weeks ago with the 2 local agencies not 1 has ever contacted me, I see jobs that I could do like say a warehouse operative, despatch clerk, junior I.T Technician but when you phone about them they've already gone. Do agencies actually do anything?

When I am between jobs - my normal work is usually contract based - I get work though agencies. I have never had any difficulty getting work when I want it - at most a week before they find me something suitable.

Perhaps the problem is that you tell the agencies what you have said here: you can't work with people or do any job involving speaking to or meeting people because you have a social phobia; you can't work anything other than the hours you want to work because there's no transport and you appear to be unable to drive or ride a bike, so unless the job fits in with your one bus a day, you can't do it; you can't do part time hours because it isn't worth it... What on earth do you expect? Your shopping list of what you will or won't do / can or can't do is so restricted that nobody could possibly ever find a job that meets your expectations. If you are really serious about working, then you need to amend your expectations and find a way of dealing with your circumstances. There are plenty of unemployed people who don't have such an exhaustive list of reasons they can't do things...

Slinky

There's being keen, and there's hassling. If you hassle you're likely to be seen as a pain in the a r s e and rejected.

LadyMissA

marybelle01 wrote: »

Perhaps the problem is that you tell the agencies what you have said here: you can't work with people or do any job involving speaking to or meeting people because you have a social phobia; you can't work anything other than the hours you want to work because there's no transport and you appear to be unable to drive or ride a bike, so unless the job fits in with your one bus a day, you can't do it; you can't do part time hours because it isn't worth it... What on earth do you expect? Your shopping list of what you will or won't do / can or can't do is so restricted that nobody could possibly ever find a job that meets your expectations. If you are really serious about working, then you need to amend your expectations and find a way of dealing with your circumstances. There are plenty of unemployed people who don't have such an exhaustive list of reasons they can't do things...

I have told agencies when they say they do not have anything I would do an accounts job at NMW and some have asked me if I was joking!

InsideInsurance

LadyMissA wrote: »

I am with the agency who placed me in my last job where I was for 5 years and they have not put me forward for anything in a year.

That doesnt however clarify the whole host of other considerations....

How many people does the agency have for your role type? I know my agent has over 300 PMs on their book but I am fortunate that PMs can be highly segmented based on industry, experience etc.

What is your rate -v- the market and more importantly -v- other candidates? For some roles the best candidate is important, for others the cheapest.

What have you done in the last year? Its unfortunate but if you've been unemployed for more than a couple of months some employers may be put off and so other candidates may be put forward instead.

If you are employed, whats your notice? Rarely are roles advertised far enough in advance and so any notice period can be a detriment -v- the person that can start exactly when the client wants.


Agents are there to make money. Ultimately they are not there to help you get a job or develop your career etc. If they think you are the best prospect they have for getting profit they'll put you forward. If they think someone else has a 0.0001% better chance than you, that person will be put forward instead.