Temporary Christmas Work

sharp82

Hi all,

Not sure if this should be posted here, or in the Employment section. Feel free to move if so.

I live in the Midlands, and the City is a distribution centre for quite a few large companies. This means over Christmas there is lots of temporary work available in warehouses etc.

I currently work full time, and would be interested in working a couple of evenings per week, and maybe over the weekend too.

I've looked on a couple of the companies websites, and the application process starts with sending a CV. This is my problem as such. I have a very good CV, but its geared around my current employment - an IT Project Manager. None of these skills would be very useful in a warehouse environment!

I am sure I would be able to do the job, just not sure how to go about either editing my CV or going into detail in a covering letter.

Has anyone done anything similar (application wise) or have any hints/tips/advice?

Thanks in advance

skintsocks

Hi

I'd be tempted just to be yourself, and not make a completely new c.v for this short-term work.

Send your current c.v. to them, but tailor the covering letter, so that you explain why you're applying for something different over the seasonal period, and how much time you can give to it per week.
If you do have any relevant hands-on experience (at home, in voluntary positions, or at paid work) then add that to the letter.

The reason I say this, is that they'll interview you, and it'll be obvious that it's not your usual line of work, and they'll probably ask to see your "usual" c.v., in which case, you'll have wasted your time making the new one.

One of the first things I used to do when recruiting was to ask candidates to explain why they wanted something different, and that just clears it up very quickly.

You do need to put the effort into the letter though, as they will call you then, rather than simply deem you as being over-qualified/unsuitable. Don't know if it's the same up with you, but in Wales, the main christmas work seems to be at M&S, Boots, and the Royal Mail, so worth a look.

sharp82

Many thanks for the reply. I'll take some time on a covering letter and take it from there

Toys r us are the biggest seasonal employer here, so i'll start with them

sarahj1986

Boots were advertising in my local store. Try there?

littlepinkstars44

I had an interview today for a Christmas temp position in Boots. To be honest I'm not sure if I will be able to fit it in if I do get offered a job

DigForVictory

Figure out the fitting in when there's money riding on it. It isn't the post for life after all, so see how it goes first?!
All the best