As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the number of people claiming unemployment benefits rose to 2.7 million between March and July according to the BBC.
The job sectors that are largely carried out by women have been the hardest hit during the pandemic, such as, the travel business, hospitality, retail, tourism and beauty. As a result of these industries suffering more than others, a disproportionate number of women have either lost their jobs or have been left in extremely difficult financial situations. This could mean women within these sectors, in particular, could have a much more difficult time finding employment due to an increase in the number of applications for the little job vaccinees available. We have written a separate blog about the gap between female and male experiences of the pandemic, here.
So, what can employees do to try and look for work in these difficult times?
Tips for finding work in tough times
- Be active when searching for a role
It is important that you have an active online presence as this will allow you to show off your achievements and to network with people within the field(s) you are interested in. You can read our blog on the importance of networking.
Here are a couple of ways you can be active on platforms such as LinkedIn:
- Liking and sharing posts
- Engaging with other people’s posts in a positive way
- Creating your own posts
- Adding a message when connecting with someone introducing yourself
- Aim to grow your connections in areas of interest to you
- Make sure you have a professional profile picture
- Keeping a positive attitude when you get knock backs
When searching for a new job it is likely you will receive rejections or hear nothing back at all which may set you back. When this happens it is important to keep a positive attitude and keep applying for more roles as often it is not that you weren’t good enough for the role, it is just that someone else is a better fit for the role or the company. Therefore, it is important you keep trying through applications and networking because only by applying will you find the perfect fit for you.
- Make sure you are aware of all the available schemes which may help you when looking for employment
When applying for roles it is important you keep up to date with schemes or events which may help you, especially during the pandemic as the UK government are looking for ways to help raise employment. For example, the government has introduced the kickstart scheme and the furlough bonus scheme.
Mollie, one of our placement students, has written a blog on the kickstart scheme and how to be productive when searching for employment. The kickstart scheme, in particular, may help younger women get a head start.
- Keep your CV up to date
It is important when looking for employment that you keep your CV up to date with your latest achievements to show potential employers why they should hire you.
Your CV should be no shorter than one side of A4 and no longer than two sides of A4. This is because you want to make sure there is enough information on there to make you stand out but you want to ensure all the information on it is relevant to the job your applying for. This is because some of your achievements may be relevant to one role but not for another so it is key that you update your CV and tailor it to each particular role rather than sending the same one each time.
It is important that, should you require any adjustments to allow you equal access to the workplace, you make this clear in any applications. If you think you are refused a role or an interview due to any protected characteristics or with any discriminatory intent, please do get in touch at www.thrivelaw.co.uk or email our team at enquires@thrivelaw.co.uk
