Dear Employment Specialist,
I have been at the same job for seven years and have received a wage increase only once. Is it mandated or am I entitled to have an annual wage increase to match inflation rates for permanent positions?
Please help me to understand my rights as an employee.
Signed: Wage Increase Rights (WIR)
Dear Joanna,
This is a true story. I applied for a job posting on Craigslist for the position of customer service representative. I immediately received an email from the owner of the company with an employment contract attached for me to complete, sign and return by email. The form requested all of my personal details, including my social insurance number. I admit that I was excited to be offered a job, after a year of rejection and frustration with my hundreds of job applications. However, I am concerned about providing my personal details to a total stranger without an interview at least.
Please let me know your thoughts.
Signed: Fraud Alert (FA)
Dear FA,
I’m so glad you contacted me with this question. Do not email anyone your Social Insurance Number or personal details if you have no real evidence that the organization and person are for real. The question of how to determine if you are experiencing a job posting scam or a real job is important. Steffen Allen, Senior Recruiter at Brainhunter, provides some important warning signs and techniques to determine if the employment opportunity is legitimate or not:
This is the first step when you are applying for jobs online, or even in person. There is no shortage of identity-theft, scams, rip-offs and illegitimate companies and job postings in the city and on the internet. It’s impossible to police so many people and places. I would always check out your concerns or the actual job posting with your mentor, job developer and/or employment counsellor before you apply, so you can prevent anything bad happening. You can learn about a standard job application process through our agency.
Allen warns never to NEVER EVER provide a social insurance number until a job offer is given, accepted and the company is verified. Companies will never send a job offer before an interview or phone conversation at the very minimal.
Is there a website for the company advertising their position? Can you Google the company and owner? If not, then it might be a scam. I only apply for jobs with legitimate and comprehensive websites with full disclosure of their company name, location, telephone, emails, and contact people lists. I would also Google the address to make sure it’s real. Look for any reports of negative news and reputations.
Again, it’s important that the job description be transparent, clear and informative, with an idea of the compensation package. An actual amount might not be listed, but you should have an idea of the payment structure. For example, does the posting indicate a base and commission with the customer service role, or is it an hourly wage?
The website Scam Warmers presents the following red flags that confirm that the job and company are frauds. DO NOT PAY A PENNY TO ANY EMPLOYER before getting the job. Avoid jobs that ask you to use your personal bank account, to open a new bank account, to use your credit card, mail, cash a check or money.
You have every right to ask the company or employer for references. Request a list of other employees or customers. Then, contact the references to ask about the company. If the company refuses to provide references, then stay away from this opportunity.
Any job that promises getting rich fast or guarantees tons of money is one that you should stay away from. Nothing happens by magic or quickly, whether it’s a job offer or losing weight. This all takes time and is a process.
I really hope that I have saved you from this scammer. You deserve to work for a legitimate and transparent company with fair compensation and a healthy workplace.
Dear Joanna,
I have been a stay-at-home mom for around 20 years. My five children are finally out of the house, and I would like to go back to work. I’m in my mid-40s and ambitious. Throughout these years of raising my family, I have been active in the community, in my children’s school, and volunteered on several boards and committees.
The question I ask myself is what kind of work do I want to do? What career path should I take? I’m bored, confused and unhappy. Please guide me in the right direction.
Signed: Battling Back to Work (BTW)
Dear Joanna,
I am looking for another job. I have mentioned this in my social media profiles, especially LinkedIn. I feel like I have reached a glass ceiling in my current position and am looking for better and bigger opportunities to make more money and continue to grow in my career.
Should I tell my boss that I am trying to get another job?
Signed: Share The Search (STS)
Dear Joanna,
I am highly stressed and anxious at work lately at a social service agency. We have suffered severe cutbacks in our budget, yet have increased caseloads that we must handle with less staff. Needless to say, our motivation level is low, as is our energy and efficiency. I’m worried about our mental health and burning out with this increasing pressure and anxiety. Do you have any suggestions as to how we might handle this situation?
Signed: Drowning in Stress (DIS)
Dear DIS
I spoke with one of our JVS Employment Counsellors who just finished a session at work on mindfulness. The program boosted their satisfaction, improved their health and helped them take better care at work and in life in general. Many employers have started to offer a mindfulness training program that uses techniques to help its employees be empowered, calm and reduce stress, anxiety and depression on the job.
According to Laura Mandell, founder of Corp Calm and renowned teacher of mindfulness meditation in the workplace, there are proven benefits of this type of meditation in action. Many studies from leading research centres have cited business benefits of mindfulness within organizations, including: (a) Decreased staff absenteeism and turnover, (b) Improved concentration, memory and learning, (c) Improved productivity, and (d) Improved professional relationships
Mandell presents the following four ways in which mindfulness can be effective in reducing stress at work and positively impacting the work environment:
1) Becoming better observers.
Mindfulness teaches us to purposefully pay attention to what is happening in the here and now – without judgment. In a stressful work situation it’s often not the actual moment that is stressful, but the ideas, fears or expectations we associate to a moment. When we can objectively observe a situation we can also see the “bigger picture” with greater ease, and this can improve our ability to contribute to our workplace in a meaningful way.
2) Becoming effective listeners.
This is one of the key skills and competencies of any employee. Mindfulness teaches the skills to be more present and focused, and therefore to be able to listen more fully and effectively. The result is the ability to take in more complete information and with that, cultivate better working memory and become more responsive to the needs of colleagues, employees or clients.
3) Learning to focus.
In our fast-paced wired world of multi-tasking, it’s very easy to become distracted while juggling many responsibilities. Before we know it we are feeling overwhelmed and being unproductive. Mindfulness teaches us to focus and to notice not only when we are being pulled away or distracted, but to calmly and gently guide ourselves back to focus.
4) Cultivating mind/body awareness.
Through the practice of mindfulness, we gain an understanding of the direct connection between what we think and how we feel, which helps us better manage the day-to-day interactions of our minds and bodies when it comes to stressful situations. Not only does this help us to restore and maintain a sense of personal balance and well-being, it facilitates the development of skills necessary to do our best work and keep from getting emotionally and mentally drained.
Whether you are a frustrated job seeker battling the challenging of the job search or an employee like you dealing with possible burn-out, learning to be calm, resilient, healthy and relaxed in the face of stress triggers are valuable skills for you personally as they are to your employer.
JVS Toronto is accredited under Imagine Canada’s national Standards Program dedicated to operational excellence.