The Internet has produced many wonderfully efficient caches of production. For example, paying bills online is probably putting the US Mail out of business. Shopping is another great contribution. I hate Christmas shopping-amongst hordes of runny nosed, flu contaminated fellow citizens who would call in sick but never, even consider not going into public with the same disease..(that's another rant).
Without the stress of the masses, shopping for presents is delightful.
This isn't about the wonderfully creative and positive developments.
Have you noticed most businesses and companies now require you to apply on-line? Many require you take a personality test as well. They ask you for full job histories and pretty much tell you if you don't provide it you are lying and will not be considered. They ask for all the from-to dates for degrees and certificates.
Before you ever get your foot in the door.
They don't have to respond to you after they have taken all your information. They don't even have to e-mail you to tell you they received your application.
They can pretend they never received it if they want to ignore it.
The process allows for major discrimination. Age discrimination is probably the greatest abuse in the professional world at present.
With the thousands of Baby Boomers returning to work or out of work looking for jobs because of the economy, business can just ignore the application and fail to respond.
Two years ago states couldn't get enough teachers. They were publicly wooing older adults to consider a career change to education. The merits of personal satisfaction and altruistic motive were touted and appealed to many professionals.
Teach For America appealed to new graduates with no degree in education, asking them to sacrifice a few years in the nations toughest school districts.
I heard that message. At age 46, with a graduate degree in social work, I returned to graduate school to earn the 36 credits needed to become a highly qualified teacher. My daughter was in second grade. I took out school loans to pay for my degree, with the promise that help was available for tuition because teachers were needed so badly.
After seven years teaching in one school district, with excellent job reviews, a professional five year certificate, a highly qualified rating and experience with at risk students successfully passing standardized testing, when I apply for a job (which are ironically scarce right now-what happened in just two years??) often I don't hear back at all. Not a peep.
Do you think it has to do with the fact I am 56??
I can't even get my foot in the door for a face to face. If one employer in this area would just meet with me, I might, just might, be able to communicate my level of knowledge, my passion and my commitment to children and education.
Or is the competition all about age?
What do you think?
