Jobs Available - But No One With Skills!

There are a lot of jobs listed on Craigslist, but most require job skills that most recent college graduates don't have.   There are plenty of con-jobs and come-ons aimed at people with no skills.   It is sad.

I was looking at Craigslist the other day, as I was trying to sell some wheels.   On a whim, I looked at the job posting section, and it was interesting.  There are plenty of job postings out there, but most require extensive experience in some skill or trade.

For example, if you are an electrician, welder, auto/truck/boat mechanic, there are jobs galore listed on Craigslist.   But most want someone with extensive experience.   If you have a clean Commercial Driver's License, there is no shortage of work, either.  And if you are an Owner/Op (of a tractor trailer) people are vying to have you work for them.   The pay ain't great, but you will never be unemployed.

And then there are very esoteric jobs, like "Railroad Ballast Technician" which strikes me as something that most people don't set out to do in life.   I wonder where one goes to learn such a skill.

The local Navy base has a number of high-paying openings for Construction Engineers, but they have to have experience in managing major construction projects, complying with OSHA requirements, and other fairly esoteric things.   The requirements list went on for three pages.

The key is, you have to have experience in some field, and people are not willing to hire someone with no real job skills.  In fact, one way to spot the con-job listings is the phrase "no experience necessary!"  Just search on that phrase and you can just power-flag them all - they are all con-job door-to-door sales gigs, or deals where they want YOU to send THEM money for some reason or another.

There were few jobs for inexperienced people with degrees in Sociology, Anthropology, Communications, English Lit, Art, Music, or Religion.   In fact, there are few job listings for such graduates anywhere.   But people graduate in such fields, every year, and end up unemployed, after squandering tens of thousands of dollars on an "education" - which today might represent borrowed money.

Teachers will tell you to get an education - just as a new car dealer tells you to buy a new car - after all, it is what they are selling.   But often, what kind of education is far more important than mere studying, and that is where our system is falling down today - by encouraging education in gross form, without really explaining how a college degree can lead to a job - while many don't.

And for those folks, there is more heartache ahead, as they apply for the various con-job positions advertised on Craigslist (I flagged all I saw).   They are the "too good to be true" jobs offering staggeringly high pay with "no experience necessary" and a company car provided to boot!   But of course, they don't specify exactly what it is that you will be selling, door to door - or how much you have to pay for the "starter kit".   They are always looking for "motivated people who want to SUCCEED!!!!" - the ads are not hard to spot.

As I noted before, my brother got roped into some of these gigs, after graduating with a useless $40,000 degree in "Communications" for the S.I. Newhouse School.   It is sad that people prey upon the unemployed.  But if you don't acquire marketable skills in life, whose fault is that? 

I think folks with no job skills would have better luck at this job:

^^^^Tired of being a dancer/server? ^^^^^ (jax)

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Date: 2012-05-08, 1:35PM EDT
Reply to: zcjcq-xxxxxxxxx@job.craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

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We are looking for a couple of drug free, $$ motivated young ladies! Our Body-rub techs average 180per day! Easy CASH...Work in a safe, secure environment, You must have reliable transportation! No flakes, Serious Inq. Send a simple pic, & a phone ###-#34#.

• Location: jax
• Compensation: 90.00 hr
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
• Please, no phone calls about this job!
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

PostingID: 3003519812

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Body-rub technician!   Now that's a job I have some experience with!   Unfortunately, I am too old and of the wrong gender to qualify.   The pay ain't bad, though.  Could be a little messy, I suppose.


I nominated this one for "Best of Craigslist":

Tree Identification (Waycross)

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Date: 2012-05-09, 11:41AM EDT
Reply to: fngtg-3005324144@job.craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

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I've cut an array of neat looking walking sticks!
I don't know what kind of trees they are all from. Some I do.
There's no foliage left because I burned it.
If you're skilled enough to Identify them from the layers of bark and wood on them,
I'm willing to pay a certain amount in dollars per stick.
If your good, shouldn't take you long.
About 55 sticks total.
Some of them I've already cut into but still have a bit of bark on them.
Most of them I haven't cut because I plan on identifying them myself if cannot find an expert.

Please text 1(912)281-7169

• Location: Waycross
• Compensation: may pay 1 dollar to 3 dollars a stick. maybe more if neccesary
• OK to highlight this job opening for persons with disabilities
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
• Please, no phone calls about this job!
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

PostingID: 3005324144