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As a rule I’m pretty happy in my job but some days are just exceed expectation and last Friday (the 13th of all the lucky days) was one of those. We (Harvest) had the privilege of scoring the best gig in town, working with a cross section of driven migrants and refugees at the Multi-Cultural Connect Jobs Fair which was hosted and organised by Diversitat
I, alongside 5 of my wonderful Harvest colleagues, were run, very happily, ragged assisting Geelongs CALD community members to develop resumes suitable for the local job market. There was no-doubt as to the talent and work ethic of those who dropped by our stand. They provided interesting international and local experience, qualifications, and a spectrum of sought after skills to work with. Lucky us, they made writing Resumes fun. Yes really, resume and fun, not words I am often inclined to use in a sentence together but this time it’s true.
WHAT DID I GAIN FROM FRIDAY?
I learned that we have an incredible under-utilised CALD workforce with a significant amount to to offer. Leaving their countries of birth, sometimes by choice and sometimes for survival, has taught them the highest levels of resilience, adaptability, motivation, flexibility, work ethic and given them a hunger for learning.
Some employers may be inclined to assume communication could be an employability issue, well I can honestly say that across the board the conversational English was impressive. There were a few new arrivals who were challenged but their motivation to practice and learn was inspirational.
WHAT DID THE EVENT ATTENDEES LEARN FROM US?
Hopefully they walked away from us feeling more confident, because they absolutely do have the right attributes and transferrable skills to successfully gain satisfying work. Much like many of our careers clients it sometimes takes a little perseverance to find the best and most suitable job opportunity. They also learned that tailoring a resume is vital, that the most relevant qualifications and skills they have appropriate to the roles they apply for should be showcased on the front page. That spelling, grammar, length of a resume and formatting do matter!
Thankyou Diversitat great work, we loved every minute of the event and thanks also to all the wonderful migrants who help to enrich the local community and work places!
Article written by Tanya Derrett. Tanya is Harvest’s Careers Lead and can offer constructive advice to Mature Job Seekers on strategies to re-enter the workforce.
