As professional
challenges go, workforce re-entry is a big one.
Hurling yourself back into the job market after a
multi-year hiatus is at once empowering and intimidating.
The prospect alone raises a host of issues, from the loss
of employable skills and networking contacts to general
uncertainty over the position level at which your career
will resume.
Not surprisingly, it's a dilemma that plagues women the
most. In dual-income families, women are the ones who tend
to put their careers on hold to care for young children
and sick parents.
Workforce re-entry, of course, also becomes a factor when
displaced homemakers are forced into the job market after
losing a spouse or getting a divorce.
When you're away for a few years you may feel you don't
have much to offer or you may feel less confident. The
biggest challenge has to do with how much you separate
yourself from the workplace when you decide to stay home
for a few years. You may stop interacting with your
professional network and you may not stay up-to-date on
the changes that occur in your field.
Steps to take in going back:
- Calculate the cost of
going back
- Begin Networking
- Brush up on interview
skills
- Take catch up courses
- Ease back in through
temporary agencies
Such scenarios are a particular handicap in today's
tightening employment landscape, where corporate layoffs
hit the headlines almost daily.
According to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an
outplacement services firm in New York, some 572,000 pink
slips have been handed out so far this year. That's nearly
three times higher than the 179,000 layoffs announced
during the same period last year.
The sectors hardest hit have been technology,
manufacturing (including automotive) and retail. Retailers
are a major employer of working women.
John Challenger, chief executive of Challenger Gray &
Christmas, however, said he's witnessed a sea change in
the perception of working mothers who take time off to
raise kids.
"For most of the 20th century, if you were educated
and left the workplace to have kids, you were confined to
administrative roles when you came back five or 10 years
later," he said. "But that's been disappearing
over the last few years as companies start to recognize
that they can find highly talented people who made the
decision to spend the first years of their children's
lives being at home."
Playing the game ... again
According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, nearly 40 percent of all women in the
workforce are mothers with children under 18 years of age.
For those who quit with the intention of rejoining their
colleagues in a few years, the good news is there are ways
to ease the transition. It starts with being prepared.
"You might have to manage your expectations.
You can't expect to be up to speed right away. You might
have to ease back in and take some classes or even enter
at a lower level than you thought. You should be braced
for that.
Same goes when it comes to calculating the cost of
returning to work. Oddly enough, it costs money to work.
Those costs include transportation, a professional
wardrobe, dry cleaning, child care services and any
additional help you'll need to hire to clean the house and
care for your lawn.
Don't forget, too, to factor in a larger budget for meals
since lunches at the office usually cost more than
sandwiches made at home. You're much more likely to spend
more on convenience foods and ready-made dinners at the
grocery store since you'll have more money than time.
And that doesn't include the cost of any training courses
or catch-up classes you'll need to take to plug the holes
in your technological expertise. A lot's changed if you've
been out of the loop for 10 or 20 year or more.
Anyone working (in a dual-income family) should do this
anyway. Sit down and figure that out because if you
don't love your work if may not be worth it to go back.
That's less of an issue for people who like their jobs and
less of an issue for people who don't have kids at home
anymore or who are in High School. Money is a nice
part of it, but it's not the major issue. There has to be
a desire.
Steps to success
For starters, employment specialists say you need not
agonize over the time gap on your resume.
Most employers understand the importance of family and the
choices parents make. Those that don't aren't likely to be
flexible enough to accommodate your needs anyway. After
all, you'll still need to take an occasional day off to
attend a doctor's appointment or take a day trip with your
spouse. Don't over-explain this. It doesn't
need to be apologized for and most people understand the
concept. The vast majority of them will respect you
for making the decisions and sacrifices that you did!
A simple "I was at home with my children" will
suffice during the interview process, she said. And the
references you'll have from your most recent employer
should provide any extra ammunition you'll need.
You do, however, want to take the opportunity to advocate
your skills. Chances are if you've been a stay-at-home mom
for many years, you've acquired new talents that are
valuable to your resume and can help you land a job.
Women who are home full-time are not home full-time doing
house work. They are usually contributing a lot to
the community. So anyone who has been home for a period of
time should be looking at what kind of work contributions
they've been making to their synagogue or church, the
junior league or a charitable organization. Maybe they did
a little financial management or fundraising. Employers
are looking for demonstrable skills.
Back in gear
If you've been out of the loop for 10 years or more, you
might want to consider training course that will get you
back up to speed.
You'll need to know your way around a computer, for
starters, including e-mail and Internet technology, not to
mention a basic proficiency with the latest office
software such as Microsoft Word and Excel.
This does not mean you'll need to head back for another
degree. Most colleges and universities, especially
community colleges, offer continuing education courses
geared specifically for adults who need to brush up on old
skills or learn a new trade. Many also offer
distance-learning courses nowadays that allow you to
complete course work at home and on your own schedule.
Such classes typically require only a few hours per week
and cost as little as $200. A good way to get started is
to call up your local community colleges and universities
and ask for a catalog of course options.
If you're in a rapidly evolving line of work, including
science and computer technology, or even the legal and
medical professions, you'll likely need to go a step
further. Finding work in those fields as a sales
representative can even be tough, since the products will
have changed.
After a certain number of years, teachers also require new
state certifications.
More intensive college credit courses that can cost
several thousand dollars per semester are generally
required if you've been out of the field for many years,
and in some cases a new degree might be necessary.
The workplace is continually evolving and people may
wonder whether you have the technical skills needed to
work in today's office environment and if you understand
the latest regulations. You want to be very upfront
about any courses you have taken."
Brush up on interviewing skills
You'll also need to start preparing for the standard
interview questions that seem to spring eternal from human
resources departments. A few that should get you started:
What are your best qualities? Why do you want to work for
this company? Why should we hire you?
But also come armed with a positive attitude and a
readiness to communicate that you're the one they should
hire. Practice selling yourself before you go.
Remember, landing a job is only half about your experience
level and education. A good personality that fits well
with the corporate culture is equally important.
Networking power
Networking is especially important for women who have let
their workplace contacts slip while they've been away. A
good place to get started is to contact any old work
buddies you may have to let them know you're ready for
action.
Next, move on to friends and family.
Sit down and make a running list of people you know in
your personal life, especially people in your field or the
industry you're interested in. You don't necessarily
have to ask them for a job, but meet with them. Ask for
their recommendations and ask if they know of anybody you
should talk to. World of mouth surfaces a great deal of
information.
Easing in
No one says you have to make a splash in your first month
back. Any time that there is a major shift in your
life, there will be things that you will have to deal
with. Being a stay at home mother can be quite a
challenge but there are also many advantages too like
greater flexibility in scheduling. You will have to
learn how to compensate for these changes and this can
take a bit more time.
It sometimes helps to ease back into the office
environment through part-time work and freelance gigs.
This can help to rebuild your confidence and, perhaps more
importantly, it'll give you a good idea of what it'll be
like to be away from home again during the workweek.
You'll get a sense of how well you'll be able to juggle
your work-life responsibilities without a long-term
commitment.
According to the American Staffing Association, some 79
percent of temporary employees work full-time.
Thirty-three percent placed by staffing agencies said they
prefer the alternative arrangement over traditional
employment and 43 percent said they needed the flexibility
to continue caring for their family.
For a mother who has been out of the workforce raising her
children an excellent first place to stop is a staffing
firm who will help her do a skills inventory checklist.
She may have skills that even she can't identify that are
in demand or she may need help picking up the skills she
lacks.
The average assigned employee earns more than $10 per hour
and some earn more than their permanent counterparts. Most
staffing companies also offer health insurance and
retirement plans as well as vacation and holiday pay.
At the same time, the industry provides free training.
Some 4.8 million assigned employees, in fact, received
skills training worth $720 million in 1997, the most
recent year for which data are available.
Staffing firms act as both an advocate and counselor for
employees and helps to market them to the business
community. Most full-time temp workers go on to secure
full-time employment, but not all want to.
"You may wish to not work on a full-time basis to
begin with but to make the transition a little more
gradually.
A good resume
You'll have the most luck re-entering the workforce, of
course, if your reputation precedes you. Solid references
from employers past go a long way toward helping you get
your foot back in the door.
With a little networking effort and training to boot,
chances are good you'll be back in rush hour traffic
before you know it.
