Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Having Difficulty Finding a Job? Then Start Looking at Jobs Others Typically Don't Want! Three Examples With Potential Pay Between $30k and $100k+!

If you need a job, you should seriously consider those jobs that nobody else wants... Jobs that have a high turnover rate. Good examples are retail service, government customer service and military.

Picture this, it's Black Friday and you have to deal with stressed out and aggressive shoppers. Or, you're manning the phones as somebody yells at you because they don't want to pay the IRS their overdue taxes. Finally, picture yourself deployed to the Middle East on Thanksgiving, Christmas and your anniversary, all in the same year! These are examples of things people hate to do. But, if you suck it up, you can land yourself a decent paying job! Heck, if you're out of work, you stand a lot to gain by jumping into one of these demanding jobs.

I know one person who worked her way into a managerial job making just over $30k per year when she was 18. She had a store management job for a shoe store (Lady Foot Locker). Many people hate retail. The hours are brutal. You frequently work on most holidays. But, it's money in the bank. Even if you don't get hired on as a store manager, consider accepting a lesser position. If you are willing to relocate within a district, you can frequently promote up to a store manager position once you've proven yourself and your store manager vouches for you with the district manager. If you want a retail job, start at your local mall and check out Monster.com.

I know another person who works for the IRS. Jobs with the IRS as a customer service representative (CSR) are pretty demanding. If you're assigned to phones, you spend most of your day talking to people who owe money to the IRS or otherwise need assistance with their taxes. People that owe the IRS money typically aren't the most cordial to the IRS. Because of this, IRS CSRs have a high turnover rate. But, this type of work could be for you if you have a thick skin and don't take things personally. IRS CSRs are typically hired around July to September. It's to late for this year, but if you can stretch out your unemployment pay, the IRS may be a good fit for you next fall. As an IRS CSR, you get about 3 months of training and start off at the GS-5 paygrade. GS-5 pay ranges from $26,264 to about $32,176, depending on your locality. As a new hire, you get pay raises every year and top out at somewhere between $46,839 to $57,382. Even more money can be made if you accept overtime which is widely available early in the year. Finally, you will automatically get some 401k matching and can qualify for a pension amounting to 1% of your base pay for every year on the job (5 year minimum to qualify for pension). If you want a government job, check out usajobs.gov. Unlike IRS CSR positions, other government jobs are available year round at usajobs.gov.

Finally, if you're college bound or already out of college, consider becoming a military officer. In 1992, I accepted a full military scholarship worth over $70k. I completed a four year degree and was making around $30k when my peers were making $41k just out of college. Military work is demanding. As an officer, there's the potential for you to be away from home frequently. You also have the potential to move every 2-3 years. But, if you stick through it all. You qualify for a pension after only 20 years. An O-5 (typical paygrade for somebody in 20 years) qualifies for a pension that is worth about $46k per year, starting immediately after you retire. I'll be 41 yrs old when I can collect! If you're exceptionally good and get promoted to an O-6, and serve 30 years, you can retire with a pension of about $86k per year. I've been in the Navy for just over 12 years now and make about $96k per year. If you want a military job, go to your local recruiting office.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

customer support career, Call centres and BPOs, for instance, are the best means to understand the importance of customer service