Best Practice Self-Assessments for Job Search & Reemployment Planning

As jobless days drag on, the unemployed often feel desperate and hopeless. Here are three quick suggestions to help them get back on track, from editors at Career Action Resources, LLC:

1. Suggest a job search schedule and encourage job search planning. Is the job search your unemployed clients' top priority? Do they use their time wisely to reach out to employers, keep skills up to date, and find ways to stay motivated?
2. Encourage the unemployed to pinpoint their top skills--and then contact employers who need those skills. What are their best skills? How can their skills help employers? Suggest that workers contact growing companies to describe how they can benefit the business: "Mr./Ms. Employer, Here's what I can do for you."
3. Remind job seekers and the unemployed about available services and support. Are they attending job search workshops or participating in a job club? Are they using the resource center and library for research? Should they consider career coaching or job training? Be sure your clients are aware of your job seeker resources and how helpful they are.

When a job hunt stalls, the unemployed can find their way with guidance and encouragement. Sometimes taking the first step is all it takes to break out of a funk and move forward to employment.

Image courtesy of stockimages / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
 

A move is underway to make a permanent program out of the U.S. Department of Labor Reemployment and Eligibility Assessment (REA) Initiative. According to an IMPAQ International study for the USDOL, the REA initiative helps unemployment insurance claimants find jobs faster and saves money for the UI system.

The same IMPAQ study cites Nevada's REA program as the most effective in the nation. A "best practice" in Nevada's REA program is a career assessment that identifies barriers to employment.

To assess REA participants, Nevada uses the Layoff-to-Employment Action Planner (LEAP), published by Career Action Resources, LLC.

According the IMPAQ study, "The LEAP has been noted by REA staff to be very useful not only in gauging the emotional and financial status of individuals, but also for referring them to much needed services." The report calls the LEAP "innovative" and states that it is handed out by every local Nevada office providing REAs.

The LEAP "assesses individuals in 8 areas: finances; emotional issues; social, family, and health issues; use of time; next career; education & training; job search; and use of services and resources," states the IMPAQ study. "Claimants total their scores in each section and then look to the back of the LEAP for suggestions on how best to alleviate their concerns.

"Use of the LEAP differs by local office, with some requiring claimants to fill it out during or before the REA interview and others providing it at the end of the interview for claimants to use at home.

"At the Reno JobConnect, for example, the REA interviewer required each claimant to fill out the LEAP before the REA interview, and then reviews the claimant's scores, to alleviate some of the issues that had been raised while also referring him/her to available services," states the IMPAQ study.

More About the LEAP

Layoff-to-Employment Action Planner (LEAP) combines self-assessment, guidance, and planning into a 6-panel foldout format. In less than 30 minutes, LEAP helps the unemployed create a reemployment plan tailored to their needs. See more LEAP testimonials from workforce development professionals.

Workforce and Career Services: Request Complimentary LEAP Sample

If you are a workforce or career services professional who helps dislocated workers and the unemployed, please request your complimentary LEAP sample now. The sample will be sent to you immediately via first class mail.


 

Wouldn't it be great to inoculate job seekers to resist the ills of job searching? Imagine: With one vaccination, job hunters would be able to

• Fight off disappointment.
• Recover quickly from rejection.
• Be immune to setbacks that are part of an employment search.

Of course a job search immunization doesn't exist. But with the following tips, you can give your job seekers, including the long-term unemployed, the shot in the arm they need to keep going strong in their work search:

• TIP 1--Manage expectations. Let your job hunters know that job searching takes time and proactive effort.
• TIP 2--Repel rejection. Explain to job seekers that rejection and lack of employer response are part of the job search process.
• TIP 3--Resist demoralization. Encourage job hunters to keep their eyes focused on getting hired.
• TIP 4--Strengthen your attitude. Encourage job seekers to stay positive and to persist in the job search no matter what.
• TIP 5--Arm yourself with a job search strategy. Explain how job search planning will help them target the right jobs and find the right employers.

Need more help to build your job seekers' immunity? Consider Your Employment Search (YES), a self-guiding job search pre-assessment published by Career Action Resources, LLC. If you are a workforce or career services professional who assists job seekers and the unemployed, please request your complimentary YES sample today.

 Image courtesy of Jeroen van Oostrom / FreeDigitalPhotos.net