Coping With a Job Loss—Again

From Wall Street Journal | Oct 6, 2009

In October 2007, Susan Guldenschuh lost her job as a human-resources
supervisor for Circuit City Stores Inc., which shut all its stores
earlier this year. She landed a professional human-relations position
elsewhere five months later.

But when the downturn deepened, she got laid off again last
December. The Louisville, Ky., resident pursued more than 100 openings,
including a receptionist's spot. Mrs. Guldenschuh was finally hired
again a few weeks ago. She is now an hourly worker, taking online
orders for Guess Inc.

"I am making half of what I was making at Circuit City," she says.
"We have suffered significant financial hardship." Her husband, Rick,
who drives a concrete truck, was temporarily laid off between December
2008 and this March.

The sad saga of Susan Guldenschuh is all too common nowadays.
Numerous Americans have lost their jobs twice during the past two years
and their ranks are larger than in past recessions, according to career
coaches, labor economists, executive recruiters and outplacement
counselors.

Tyler Bissmeyer for The Wall Street Journal

Susan
Guldenschuh finally found hourly work after being unemployed twice
since October 2007. She and her husband, though, recently moved out of
their home because of financial reasons.

"We
see [the trend] more today than we have ever seen before," says Dennis
Zeleny, senior vice president of human resources at Sunoco Inc. Mr.
Zeleny has noticed a pattern of consecutive recent layoffs among
applicants' résumés, though the oil refiner isn't hiring much. He hears
human-relations executives elsewhere describe similar experiences.

Settling for less, as Mrs. Guldenschuh did, often seems like the
sole solution for repeat victims of unemployment. With the ranks of the
jobless continuing to rise, individuals experiencing repeated layoffs
face a difficult time proving their worth to hiring managers.

"Those who have lost jobs twice recently will have to work twice as
hard to convince the next employer why they ought to be hired there,"
says Jeffrey Garber, co-founder of 360JobInterview.com, an online
coaching service. "Many businesses believe such individuals lack
abilities and credibility rather than being victims of economic
circumstance."

However, there are out-of-the-box approaches to handle this
depressing dilemma-ranging from a personalized Web page focused on a
potential employer to using a specialized coach. Such advice would
benefit any jobless person, but someone laid off more than once lately
should pursue these tactics aggressively, employment experts say.

Fighting the Stigma

You can combat the stigma of
back-to-back layoffs by supplying a sound explanation during
interviews, according to Jim Camp, author of "NO : The Only Negotiating
System You Need for Work and Home." He proposes saying, "I have been
laid off twice in the worst economy in 50 years."

Before launching a job hunt, though, you must overcome your anger
about your recurring joblessness. "If you feel like a loser, those
emotions will be reflected in your job interviews," notes Mr. Camp, a
negotiation coach in Dublin, Ohio. He believes helping the less
fortunate helps neutralize such negative sentiments during your search
for paid work. Charity efforts that tap your key skills rebuild your
self confidence and list of references.

You might pick a volunteer activity that already involves a company
you're hoping will hire you. Your participation "will get you
networking with current employees," and a better sense of whether you
fit into their culture, says John O'Connor, president of Career Pro
Inc., an outplacement firm in Raleigh, N.C. In going the extra mile to
understand a possible employer, you also should talk with vendors,
rivals and ex-staffers. Mr. O'Connor finds some Career Pro clients use
this deep "due diligence" to prepare lengthy reports about a company's
challenges for hiring managers.

A customized Web page highlighting your relevance to a specific
company offers another way to attract attention. Give officials a
private link from your site where you describe how your experience
would benefit their particular business. "Relate it to the issues
facing them," says Brian Walker, president of recruiters Wise Group in
Fairfield, Conn.

Bryan Derballa for The Wall Street Journal

After being laid off twice since December 2007, John DiMura finally found a job as a production manager.

Online Awareness

To further widen awareness of your credentials, Mr. Walker recommends putting your LinkedIn.com
and Twitter links below your email signature. (The professional
networking site and micro-blogging one now are popular recruiting
tools.) He occasionally offers expert commentary through LinkedIn and
Twitter, a tactic that he advocates for twice-jobless individuals
looking to showcase their knowledge of an industry or profession. He
also recommends offering to take questions or give advice as a virtual
consultant via Twitter. But "give good, solid answers," he advises.

One challenge for victims of multiple recent layoffs is surviving
multiple interviews. As the applicant pool gets smaller with every
round, people with repeat layoffs in their recent past may be at a
disadvantage. A career coach savvy about your field may bolster your
prospects-as Joan Goodwin belatedly discovered.

The Orange County, Calif., organizational-development consultant
lost her $250,000 position with an accounting firm in July 2008. She
became a vice president of an outplacement concern that December. Then
that job disappeared this July.

Soon after she began vying for a senior post at a global nonprofit
group in mid-August, Ms. Goodwin used a 360JobInterview.com coach. The
coach, a veteran human-relations manager who has lived extensively
abroad, encouraged her to emphasize her frequent business international
trips while working at the accounting firm and elsewhere.

The suggestion came just before Ms. Goodwin expected the nonprofit
to summon her for a third round of interviews and she never got to
present her polished global pitch. Ms. Goodwin thinks that was the
reason she didn't make the cut.

Nevertheless, she says, "if I am interviewing for another global
position, I will have a more effective story in describing my global
experience."

Ms. Goodwin adds she intends to supply greater detail about her work
with various country managers and customized efforts "based on their
culture and market conditions."

Luck Changes

John DiMura, a production supervisor from
Clifton Park, N.Y., found that a little perseverance-and an offer to
work for free briefly-can change the luck of a twice-laid-off
individual.

He was unemployed twice since December 2007. Following his latest
job loss from Eclipse Aviation Corp. in March, Mr. DiMura interviewed
several times with Tech Valley Technologies Inc., a start-up in Wilton,
N.Y., that makes shooting-range targets for military and
law-enforcement agencies. "You're my guy. We're just waiting for the
financing," Mr. DiMura recalls the hiring manager telling him in June.
So he proposed toiling a few days without pay. The manager declined his
offer.

But Mr. DiMura stayed in touch and Tech Valley's financing for the
position finally materialized. On Sept. 29, he joined as the company's
permanent production manager. He says earns "pretty close" to the
$65,000 that he previously made. "I am ecstatically happy to be
working," he concludes.

-Email joann.lublin@wsj.com