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Labour market

We already know what a labour market is and how it functions. We also know, that work is an important part of human life. Let’s consider now, what can be done to find a job.

The position on a labour market of a person looking for a job depends on a number of factors – his/her:

• age,

• education,

• gender,

• previous work experience,

• place of residence and/or place where he/she would like to work.

Looking for a job can often be very stressful and difficult, so it is worth being well prepared.

The contemporary labour market, as well as the whole economy, is a very unstable system. The changes resulting from globalization, the importance of competitivenesscompetitivenesscompetitiveness and the rapid development of technology (including information technology), as well as the changes in lifestyle and the ageing of societies, became the basis for a number of adjustments in contemporary socio‑economic systems. The labour market, which is an element of the unstable socio‑economic system, also takes on certain features, which can be described as flexibility or transiencetransiencetransience.

The flexibility of a labour market means that:

• it is easy for the workers to adjust to the needs of the companies they are working for,

• new workplaces are created by the companies,

• unemployment is quickly eliminated (or at least diminished) after a period of an economic slowdown is over.

A labour market is flexible when, thanks to the existing regulations, it is easy to change your job – the companies can easily dismiss the workers they don’t need anymore, and the workers have no trouble finding another job. At a flexible labour market:

• the workers – thanks to their qualifications – can change the type of work they are performing without any difficulty,

• the increase in income is adequate to the increase in productivity,

• the companies are keen to create new workplaces,

• the institutions that are supposed to help find new jobs are effective.

A rigidrigidrigid labour market is a market that makes it very difficult to find a new job. The flexibility of a labour market depends on its structure, the level of education of the workers, the institutional solutions and economic policy.

If a person looking for a job is willing to change his/her profession or place of residence in order to get the job we call it professional mobility.

A mobile employee knows how to adjust to the requirements of the labour market and his potential employers. He should raise his qualifications - by learning a language, participating in various courses and seminars, getting valuable certificates.

More and more companies expect their employees to have this kind of mobility. It consists in acquiring the professional competences required by the employer. It is most often connected with the changes in labour law, the development of new technologies, introducing international quality standards. Professional mobility is highly dependant on the industry, position, or age. The main reasons for the emergence of professional mobility are unemployment and the willingness to find better‑paid employment. Sometimes it is difficult to make the decision about changing your job. Why? Because it is connected with doubts about the positive outcome of the new job search in the future. Internal barriers are limitations depending on the candidate for work himself, which make it impossible for him to adjust to the requirements of the labour market. Objective barriers on the side of the labour market are called external barriers.

Why do we look for a job? The first answer could be: because a period of our education is over and it’s time, to begin working. Another argument could be: because we want to find a different job.

Let’s consider the first situation – a graduate at a labour market. From the point of view of the labour supply on this market there are three main groups of graduates: economically active, economically passive and those who continue their education and are not entering the labour market (they postponeto postponepostpone the moment of employment). It is worth mentioning, that those graduates, who, during their education, did not undertake any steps to gain some work experience like an internship at an organisation or a company, are in the worst situation in the labour market. A wise strategy is combining education with work. Statistics show that the situation of persons with no experience is much worse. Of course it doesn’t have to be gainful employment. It could be volunteer work, that allows you to practice your skills, and for an employer it is a sign that he is dealing with a responsible, independent person who knows how to work in a team.

Looking for a job by the agencies

There are various institutions who can help you find employment. Their role is to assist the people who want to find a job. Some of these institutions are public, like employment offices that we need to register at if we are unemployed, and some of them are private employment agencies.

An employment office deals with the research and analysis of the labour market, disseminatingto disseminatedisseminating information to unemployed people and intermediation for people looking for a job. There are voivodeship and poviat employment agencies in Poland.

A private employment agency is an organization providing services in the field of job matching (in the country and abroad), occupational guidance, personal consultancy and temporary worktemporary worktemporary work. All private employment agencies in Poland should be certified by the voivodeship authorities of the local government and be registered. When looking for a job we can also use w website called EURES (European Employment Service) which is a network of public employment offices and their partners in the labour market. The role of the organisation is to foster employment on the international level, in the EU member states, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. The EURES network is created by the representatives of ministries responsible for work and employment, as well as regional and local employment offices, trade unions and employers’ organizations. The EURES network was created by the European Commission in order to facilitate the free movement of workers through:

• international placement of workers,

• dissemination of information on the conditions of living and employment in the member states,

• identification and prevention of mobility barriers.

The EURES services are available to everyone, free of charge and addressed to the people who are looking for a job, interested in leaving their own country in their search, as well as the employers, who wish to recruit workers from abroad. The EURES network is supported by a special website of the European Commission, which is a source of information on the issues connected to mobility of workers on the European labour market.

Curriculum vitae

CV (latin curriculum vitae – literally “the course of life”) is simply an overview of your professional career history, written in an organised form. It is a fundamental document in the recruitment processrecruitment processrecruitment process that allows the employer to find out all the important information on the candidate for work.

A resume is one of the most important documents when applying for a job. An effective and professional CV is half the battle to get the job of your dreams. It works as a personal advertisement you use to present yourself to the employer. The CV and an accompanying personal statement are key elements in the recruitment process to convince the potential employer to invite you for a job interview. In the contemporary labour market some recruitment processes involve hundreds of resumes for just one position. It is paramount to have your CV prepared professionally and stand out.

A couple of hints:

• Make sure your CV is not too long (a student’s or graduate’s CV should be no longer than one page, experienced professional should be able to present their achievements on no more than two pages),

• Organise all the information into logical sections (read below), which are most often included in resumes.

A piece of practical advice

• Stay away from passive voice in your CV.

• Make sure your CV is clear and logical, both in its form and content.

• If you decide to email your CV in a format different from pdf, use fonts that are likely to be installed on your recruiters computer.

• Do not use color or thick paper, because you CV may be scanned or copied.

• Do not be afraid to use bullet points – they are clear and easier to read.

• Do not include your picture unless it was required. If you do, use an up‑to‑date one and in a format you would use for documents like an ID or a passport.

• In some countries, including Poland, it is necessary to insert an information clause and your consent to process the information.

Europass is a set of five documents to help European citizens make their skills and qualifications clearly and easily understood in Europe. Two of the Europass documents are freely accessible:

• Curriculum vitae to present your skills and qualifications,

• Language Passport – a self‑assessment tool for language skills and qualifications.

Three of the Europass documents are issued by education and training authorities:

• Europass Mobility – recording the knowledge and skills acquired in another European country,

• Certificate Supplement – describing the knowledge and skills acquired by holder of vocational education and training certificates,

• Diploma Supplement – describing the knowledge and skills acquired by holders of higher education degrees.

Keywords

CV, resume, personal statement, professional mobility, flexible/rigid labour market, internal/external barriers, employment office, private employment agency, EURES, Europass, disappearing job

Glossary