Need to find a job and move

Old Sep 11th, 2002, 09:51 PM
  #1  
CK
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Need to find a job and move

I am looking for a software/database development position and am willing to relocate to get back on track. I am single in my 40's in Chicago and having a very tough time finding a job!! Right now on my list are: Jacksonville, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, Atlanta, certain Ohio cities, St. Louis but am open to others.

Does anyone have any ideas on cities hiring IT people or any good recruiting firms in any of these cities?

Thanks in advance.
 
Old Sep 11th, 2002, 10:03 PM
  #2  
roy
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go anywhere but jacksonville or atlanta.There is already to many non-natives here now. good luck
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 04:29 AM
  #3  
Anita
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Aw, come on! New people are always interesting.
I can only speak about Jax & Atlanta on your list. Jax has a wide variety of businesses there & the Navy which might mean outside contractor jobs. For a single person it is an ok place.
I had read an article a while back about Atlanta being the new technology center of the South. You might check it out. I know there is an Atlanta magazine that might have info for you.
Sorry but I have no recruiting firm info yet but a friend's daughter works for a recruiter in Boston. They specialize in placing computer people. I will find out the name of the firm & post it here along with her suggestions of cities to check out.
Have you thought of New Orleans? They have built a huge Technology center in the eastern part of the city & the Navy is outsourcing alot of their computer stuff, I believe. Plus the new mayor is heavy into technology. He used to head Cox Cable & has really brought technology to the city government.
Good luck!
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 05:21 AM
  #4  
philly
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Though it's not on your list, you might consider the Philadelphia area, the western suburbs in particular.

The unemployment rate in those western suburbs is well below the national average. Plus, Philly is a fun place that has quick access to the beach, NY, and Wash.

Of course, if you're sold on a Sun Belt location, good luck.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 05:28 AM
  #5  
us citizen
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Sorry, CK. Even though US citizens are looking for work, the government continues to allow hundreds of thousands of H1-B visa holders to take US jobs. You're first move should be to write your congressman.

http://www.hireamericancitizens.org/
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 05:53 AM
  #6  
xxx
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Interesting observation, US citizen, because the UK has canceled its similar program, at least as it concerns IT workers. There are plenty of Americans to fill the nearly nonexistent IT job opportunities in the U.S. these days.

Good luck CK. We--and many friends and former coworkers--are in a similar boat and can tell you the IT/software/databse job market stinks in 1) California 2) Pacific NW 3) Texas 4) the Southeast 5) New York metro area. Don't go looking in those places. And now you've added Chicago to our list of places with a lousy job market. We had thought it was holding up well.

Your best bet is to start looking at pharmaceutical companies, biotech companies, medical device manufacturers. Some of them are doing very well and are hiring, but they don't advertise in the usual IT circles. You're better off looking at individual company web sites.

This economy is very weird. If you still have a decent job, then you can do pretty well, but if you're unemployed it's a black hole because it's EXTREMELY difficult to find decent paying jobs. Hardly anyone is hiring. New grads have my sympathy.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 07:08 AM
  #7  
Christie
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I love Texas, but it's probably not in your best interests to move here to find an IT job. Dallas has thousands of IT and Software Engineering people who are unemployed thanks to the telecom bust. Austin has even more since it had lots of dot.coms and Dell keeps laying off.

If you can stand the heat, humidity and smog, Houston seems to have bounced back from the recession more quickly than any other city in Texas.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 07:19 AM
  #8  
sue
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For xxx, you mention in your post it is extemely difficult to find a job if you are unemployed all ready it is a black hole? Can you please explain why this exists? My daughter, a recent grad, had a job, she quit because she didn't like it, now is having a very hard time finding another one. I urged her to never do this, like it or not, stay till you find one. We live in the Ne.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 07:37 AM
  #9  
Jim
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Anita,
What are some of the growing industries in Jax? A "friend" of mine is considering relocating there. I have some family there and was wondering who some of the bigger employers are or what types of industries are growing. I read somewhere there are some financial services companies and Southern banks setting up shop there.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 08:04 AM
  #10  
Lance
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As someone who has hired people through the H1-B program, let me tell you that's it's a difficult and expensive process to go through, and I wouldn't have done it if I was able to find qualified Americans. I've read that some people say companies hire H1-B people because they're cheaper. They're definitely not. We have to pay them the same as our other employees in the same position, with regards to experience and qualifications, and we have to post the salary we're going to pay before we even bring in the person in, so everyone in the company knows that what we are paying this person is fair.

Finally, the visas are initially good for 3 years, and you can apply to extend it another 3 years. So most of the H1-Bs that were hired during the IT boom will soon be going home anyway.

Trust me, if I could hire more Americans, I would in a heartbeat. But in the past 5 years or so, it's been really hard to find qualified people who stick around. I don't have any H1-B people in entry-level jobs, by the way. It's too damn expensive.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 08:21 AM
  #11  
madge
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To Lance: As someone who doesn't know that much about the H1-BI situation, I appreciated hearing about it from the hiring viewpoint. I did have a few questions based on your post.

Why do you say it is an expensive process? Are you talking about the salary you have to pay the employees, or is there something about the application process itself that is expensive. Next, when you say it's hard to find qualified people who will stick around, wouldn't you be more concerned about H1-B employees sticking around since their initial visa is only 3 years? And finally, do you really think that those with expired visas are going to go home? Isn't it usually the case that they stick around since the INS really has no way of tracking them?
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 08:30 AM
  #12  
ledbetter
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Everest Technologies in Nashville (TN) just posted a position on Monster.com for a software developer. It is a 6 month contract position that pays 25-50/hour. The contact info is: [email protected]
Everest Technologies LLC
401 Church Street Ste 2220
Nashville TN 37219
Fax: 615/352-3744

The company is based in Louisville (KY) and they have several listings you might be interested in on their site <http://www.everesttechnologies.com/jobs.asp>, but the closest one is "application development manager" or something similar.

Good luck.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 08:57 AM
  #13  
ck
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Thank you to all of you who have responded for your help and constructive comments!

Yes, Chicago, at least the western suburbs where I live, is suffering from the telecom troubles with all of the Lucent layoffs and others and just applying online is getting me nowhere. I have exhausted all of my networking contacts which for me has been the only way to get my foot in the door for an interview. So, any help with specific companies is helpful.

I checked out the Everest Tech jobs and do not have the background in DB2 or VB. This is another problem that you have to have all of the skills and years that are required or don't hear back. Very competitive and there are so many systes/languages out there in the computer industry that you have to have a little but of everything (2 - 3 years +).

I would love to branch over to other industries but again it is hard to get your foot in the door. I'm not focused on any one city. I am open to almost any location and industry.

Interesting comments about U.S. Citizens and visas. I have been getting several emails from Canada immigration to get people to apply to come over for employment saying that it may not be that easy in the future due to stricter regulations.

Thank you again and please keep the ideas coming. I think many people can benefit from this discussion.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 09:02 AM
  #14  
Taylor
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I believe Colorado (Boulder or Denver maybe??) has some good tech jobs...I recall reading this several months ago. Good Luck to you.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 09:08 AM
  #15  
xxx
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Lance, a former employer of my husband brought over several people with the H1-B program for routine IT jobs in Portland, OR. I challenge you to name a single type of routine IT job (network administrator, data security, etc.) that couldn't be filled by any of the thousands of unemployed IT workers in the Pacific NW. And yeah, he did pay less than he paid the Americans who held the jobs before (he made their lives so miserable they quit, they have since filed complaints with the state and lawsuits are pending, but that doesn't put food on the table now). There are many abuses of the H1-B visa program, fewer now because IT workers are keeping each other informed and screaming bloody murder about employers bringing over foreigners to do jobs Americans could handle just as easily.
Sue, all I can say is that nobody is hiring. Employers know the job market is tough, so they are more demanding of their employees. And many fear their companies are just barely making it through these turbulent times, the last thing they want to do is bring in more employees. Sorry about your daughter. She'll probably have to take a stop-gap job (working in retail, waitressing, etc.) until another decent position turns up. Who know when that will be.
Actually, I suggest she take a job like waitressing, save every penny, then do something interesting--volunteer work, special interest travel--that will make her stand out from the norm. HR people get sick of interviewing cookie cutter candidates and like to talk to someone whose special interests stand out (in a good way). During a similar tough period for new grads, I went off and studied in Paris for a while. When I got back, I interviewed for a job that I probably wasn't the best candidate for, but the HR director had just spent his honeymoon in Paris and we talked about the City of Light for over an hour. The interview left him beaming with good memories, he gave me a very high rating, and I ended up getting hired for a job that was very competitive.
OTOH, I also interviewed for a job that was obviously pre-given to some kid of one of the company president's cronies. Although I was highly qualified and the interview went very well, I came home to a kiss off note (thank you, you were an excellent candidate, blah blah blah) that had been mailed the day BEFORE the interview.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 09:32 AM
  #16  
ck
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Good comments about taking a job any job until something else can be found. I think it is excellent advice for recent grads but I am torn on this subject. Since I have been in the work force 18 years in IT, I am not sure what to do . I have heard from job boards and other people that if you are out of the industry for too long that employers are very hesitant to hire you. They ask why and also remind you that you have lost the edge in emerging technology. Of course I am out of money and will have to take something and keep looking at the same time!
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 10:02 AM
  #17  
lisa
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CK- I agree, out of the workforce too long and you may lose the edge on what's happening out there. If you are already doing what's on the cutting edge, perhaps if you cannot find an IT job right away, you can take a class on an emerging technology, etc.

I'm in Austin. My husband was laid off of his sys admin job in Aug. 2001. Sent out resumes daily. Had one interview. He searched for a job until March 2002. Then started his own business, totally different than IT. I've talked to others with friends, spouses in the IT field. Some have been looking here for over a year.

I'm sure you've checked Monster.com, and other such sites. You may want to check state agencies. I think there are some out there, hiring IT people. The pay may not be as great, but the benefits are, and job security is better than in the private sector. You can try each states official state website. There is usually a "job bank" or something like that. Such jobs don't usually show up at monster, etc.

Good luck.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 10:13 AM
  #18  
CK
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Thanks! I am on like 30 job sites like Monster, dice, flipdog, hotjobs, nerdswanted, net-temps, etc. but have only gotten a couple of nibbles. I have also called numerous recruiters but they, of course, are filling their open positions. That's why I am looking for a better way to find a job quickly. I will certainly try the ideas listed including state agency jobs.
 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 10:50 AM
  #19  
lisa
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Meant to add that a state's website can be found at www.state.__.us The "_" is filled in with that states' abbreviation.

The direct link to the Texas state job opportunities:

http://www.twc.state.tx.us/customers/jsemp/jsempsub1.html

 
Old Sep 12th, 2002, 11:16 AM
  #20  
Anita
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HAve you thought about schools? Now I know the pay is crummy but there are more & more high schools here that are expanding their computer classes into "academies" & offering A+ certification training & such. It could be a temporary solution & would still be computer related on the resume.
I am still checking on the recruiting firm where my friend's daughter works.
 

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