CAREERS NOW 09-30-09

Over-50 Job Seeker Atwitter About Twitter

DEAR JOYCE: I'll never see 50 again but I have to keep working. Updating my job-chase process, I understand that people are starting to use Twitter in addition to, or instead of, job boards. Most interesting! I've read that employers like Twitter because it's cheaper than job boards and targets candidates who have social-media skills.

Even if a company is really fishing to hire a 20-something employee, Twitter seems to me to be one of the best ways a 50-something person with a young attitude can crash through the Gray Wall. If you agree, what tips can you offer? -- D.E.

Here's a new tool: Although you can uncover openings on microblogging service Twitter's (twitter.com) own search engine, go shopping on the cutting-edge TwitterJobSearch (twitterjobsearch.com) site. It pulls up tweets that are only job-related and links to the underlying job posting. A product developed in the United Kingdom, TwitterJobSearch ranks by both relevance and by how recently they've been posted.

To compare, search for such jobs as "administrative assistant San Diego" or "software engineer Dallas."

Some employers use Twitter because the response is just enough - but not overwhelming. But as word gets around, Twitter may join job boards in saturation levels.

In the meantime, stand out by showing you're cool with new technology. In addition to locating job openings, you can tweet your interest and hopefully receive an invitation to a job interview. Your next step might be using the company's tweets to find out what's happening inside (company picnic or holiday party, for instance) and use that information as an interviewing icebreaker.

For more information, browse for an article, "A New Job Just a Tweet Away," by Sarah E. Needleman.

DEAR JOYCE: I'm a high school guidance counselor and still trying to get a handle on green jobs. Help? - R.A.

This is a two-book answer. The first book is "200 Best Jobs for Renewing America," by Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D. (Jist.com). Here's Shatkin's list of the 10 best jobs in green technologies and what they pay annually on average: construction managers, $76,230; industrial engineers, $71, 430; construction/extraction first-line supervisors, $55,950; environmental scientists/specialists, $58,380; construction instructors, $48,330; environmental engineers, 72,350; plumbers/pipefitters/steamfitters, $44,090; geoscientists (except hydrologists and geographers), $75,800; carpenters, $37,660; electricians, $44,780.

The second book is "Green Careers For Dummies," by Carol McClelland, Ph.D., available January/February, 2010. Also see her Web site, Green Career Central (greencareercentral.com).

DEAR JOYCE: News reports say that well-educated women who dropped out of the labor market years ago to become full-time moms are now trying their best to get back into the workplace. It's the economy. They need the money. I'm in that same boat but the cost of child care makes it a wash for the starting salaries I'm finding. What are other would-be working moms doing about their kids when they can even get a job? - M.B.

Re-entry women are trying low-cost child-care solutions ranging from family and neighbors, to after-school programs and working short hours away from home. The magazine Working Mother says that despite more working women becoming their families' primary breadwinners, the country at large is shifting away from family-friendly benefits.

But there are star companies that have demonstrated their unwavering dedication to family-friendly benefits - including pre-tax FSAs (flexible spending accounts) for childcare, flextime, telecommuting, and job-sharing programs.

Working Mother's 100 Best Companies 2009 awards are listed in the October issue of the magazine and at workingmother.com/best companies.

DEAR JOYCE: I am a junior in high school, adore sports and want a career where athletics is important. What? -J.M.

Look at Adidas's new careers site. This one's different in that it features professional athletes who guide visitors to the various jobs at the company. Find it at this long-winded Web address: http://www.adidas-group.com/en/careers/new_site/adidasgroup. The site is slow loading but sports buffs will love it once it gets moving.

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