We will be giving away an IPAD 2 at our booth so be sure to come by and enter in the drawing to win!  We are booth number 725 and will be located near Exhibit Hall B.  If you have any direct questions, please feel free to email us at jobs@verigent.com.

We hope to see you there!

1.     Research.  The internet is the perfect tool.  Search your industry to see what companies are hiring in that line of work.  Make your search more specific to the region you want to work and live.  Once you break down your components (whatever they might be), write down some of the companies you’ve found and check out their background and reputation.  After narrowing down your search, you will be able to see what companies sound like a good fit and what positions they are hiring for.

2.     Work with a  Staffing Firm.  Staffing firms want to put you to work!  Many firms, including Verigent, have short-term, long-term, and permanent placement opportunities that provide you with opportunities that best fit your lifestyle.  Recruiters will not only help you land the job you’ve been seeking, but they will help dress up your resume and cover letter for future purposes.  By working with a staffing firm, you can reduce the amount of time you are spending job hunting and focus your energy on getting hired.

3.     Connect with Social Media.  Join the social media world by creating a Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google + profile page.  Creating accounts on these sites can help you connect and network with people from your past or present who might know of available opportunities.  On some of these sites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google Plus, you can join groups specific to your industry, which also expands your viral networking.  For instance, Verigent has joined these sites so our information and job postings are updated daily, which is a great tool for our followers.

4.     Be Specific.  The more focused you are about what you want to do the better your search will be.  You want to make sure you are industry specific and that your resume reflects the type of job you are looking for or applying to.  If you aren’t consistent overall, you will probably be overlooked.

IN250: BICSI ITS Installer 2, Optical Fiber Training

When goal setting, it is best to keep a journal with dates of short-term and long-term goals.  By writing them down, you will reinstate the idea in your mind and you can look back and check it off when it is accomplished.  It is important to create realistic short-term goals, in order to achieve your long-term goals.  Once these goals have been met, you will feel accomplished and your self-confidence will grow, which is another tool for success.

Review your goals in your journal from time to time to make sure that you are staying on track.  Give yourself time frames so that you can meet your personal deadlines.  If you find that you aren’t meeting your goals in the time frame you planned on, make it a little simpler or move it to a long-term goal.  By establishing long-term ideas first, you can build and brainstorm from those.  Think of your goal setting like a puzzle.  Every little piece fits to create the bigger picture.

On Friday, December 23, 2011, President Barack Obama signed H.R. 3765, the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011, into law. The Act extended the reduced 4.2% employee social security tax rate that applied in 2011 through February 29, 2012. The employee rate cut is often referred to as the payroll tax “holiday”.

The 2012 employee social security rate in HR/Payroll is set to remain at 4.2% until further guidance is issued. The employer social security tax rate is not affected by the Act and will continue to be calculated at 6.2%in 2012.

Under the Act, the continued 4.2% employee rate applies on the first $18,350 of subject wages paid in January and February of 2012, and an additional 2% tax applies on wages in excess of $18,350 but not exceeding the annual wage base of $110,100. However, the language of the law is not clear on whether employers are expected to withhold the additional tax or if affected employees will be required to pay it when they file their income tax returns in 2013. The Act directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue applicable guidance.

Senate and House lawmakers plan to resume conversations in the near future to approve a longer term extension of the ““holiday”.

THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION — DECEMBER 2011

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 200,000 in December, and the unemployment rate,
at 8.5 percent, continued to trend down, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported today. Job gains occurred in transportation and warehousing, retail trade,
manufacturing, health care, and mining.

Household Survey Data

Both the number of unemployed persons (13.1 million) and the unemployment rate (8.5 percent) continued to trend down in December. The unemployment rate has declined by 0.6 percentage point since August.

Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for adult men decreased to 8.0 percent in December. The jobless rates for adult women (7.9 percent), teenagers (23.1 percent), whites (7.5 percent), blacks (15.8 percent), and Hispanics (11.0 percent) showed little change. The jobless rate for Asians was 6.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted.

The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.6 million and accounted for 42.5 percent of the unemployed.

The civilian labor force participation rate (64.0 percent) and the employment- population ratio (58.5 percent) were both unchanged over the month.

The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) declined by 371,000 to 8.1 million in December. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.

About 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force in December, little different from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months.  They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.

Among the marginally attached, there were 945,000 discouraged workers in December, a decrease of 373,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.6 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in December had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities.

Establishment Survey Data

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 200,000 in December. Over the past 12 months, nonfarm payroll employment has risen by 1.6 million. Employment in the private sector rose by 212,000 in December and by 1.9 million over the year. Government employment changed little over the month but fell by 280,000 over the year.

Employment in transportation and warehousing rose sharply in December (+50,000).  Almost all of the gain occurred in the couriers and messengers industry (+42,000); seasonal hiring was particularly strong in December.

Retail trade continued to add jobs in December, with a gain of 28,000. Employment in the industry has increased by 240,000 over the past 12 months. Over the month, job gains continued in general merchandise stores (+13,000) and in clothing and clothing accessories stores (+11,000). Employment in sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores fell by 10,000.

In December, manufacturing employment expanded by 23,000, following 4 months of little change. Employment increased in December in transportation equipment (+9,000), fabricated metals (+6,000), and machinery (+5,000).

Mining employment rose by 7,000 over the month. Over the year, mining added 89,000 jobs.

Health care continued to add jobs in December (+23,000); employment in hospitals increased by 10,000. Over the year, health care employment has risen by 315,000.

Within leisure and hospitality, employment in food services and drinking places continued to trend up in December (+24,000). Over the year, food services and drinking places has added 230,000 jobs.

Construction employment changed little in December. Within the industry, nonresidential specialty trade contractors added 20,000 jobs over the month, mostly offsetting losses over the prior 2 months.

Employment in professional and business services changed little in December for the second month in a row. The industry added 42,000 jobs per month, on average, during the first 10 months of 2011.

Government employment changed little in December but was down by 280,000 over the year. Job losses in 2011 occurred in local government; state government, excluding education; and the U.S. Postal Service.

The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 0.1 hour to 34.4 hours in December. The manufacturing workweek increased by 0.1 hour to 40.5 hours. Factory overtime decreased by 0.1 hour to 3.2 hours. The average workweek for production and nonsupervisory employees on private nonfarm payrolls edged up by 0.1 hour to 33.7 hours.

In December, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 4 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $23.24. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 2.1 percent. In December, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees were unchanged at $19.54.

The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for October was revised from +100,000 to +112,000, and the change for November was revised from +120,000 to +100,000.

Verigent is a premier provider of Telecom and IT Staffing Services across the nation. We have been in business since 2003, and have been honored by Inc. Magazine as One of the Fastest Growing Privately Held Companies in America. In addition, we have been consistently recognized as one of Charlotte, NC Largest Temporary Staffing Firms and have been honored as one of Charlotte’s Best Places to Work.

We currently support client projects in over 35 different states. We manage the technical staffing needs for many of America’s leading companies and offer them, and our employees, an unmatched level of service and experience in the staffing industry. We pride ourselves on our ability to find innovative staffing solutions that solve the unique challenges that our clients face today. Our process is based upon a collaborative approach to understanding the needs of both our clients’ and employees’.

These solutions include: contract staffing, contract-to-hire, permanent placement and payroll services. Whether your needs are short-term, long-term, or permanent, Verigent has a staffing solution for you.

Our staffing services are designed to address any hiring scenario that you may face. Our core service offerings: contract staffing, contract-to-permanent, permanent placement and On-Demand Resources are tailored to best fit the needs of your business. In addition, we closely manage all contract assignments and resources to provide the best value to our clients. Whether your needs are short-term, long-term or permanent, Verigent has a staffing solution for you.

Verigent has built a nationwide network of personnel that are available to respond to client projects on an as-needed basis. These projects can be virtually anywhere in the country supporting the deployment of numerous technologies. We have supported hundreds of client projects that involve the installation, testing and troubleshooting of client infrastructure systems and other related technologies. We currently have over 200 people working on various on-call/on-demand projects in the top 40 markets across the country. These rollout/national deployment projects can be for as little as one day in duration or could last for months. Most of these assignments and projects take place on a part-time basis. Although most of our projects are Time and Material in nature, we can support Unit/Fixed Price where it is required.

How to Self-Promote–Without Being Sleazy

Social Networking through Social Media:  Join the rest of the world on social sites such as Linked-In, Facebook, and Twitter.  Believe it or not, these popular sites have established so many connections for people.  According to statistics, every second, someone new signs up for Linked-In.  Linked-In is known for building professional networks through connections with people who you know.  When creating your profile for these sites, make sure you have a current picture of yourself, your profile information is accurate and up to date, and you keep up your reputation.  Building these connections are great tools because employers are looking for candidates all of the time and people can easily access your skills and expertise.

Know What You Want to Do:  Don’t be wish-washy when looking for a job.  Know what you want to do and know what is available.  Be honest with yourself and make sure you would truly be a good fit for the company you’re hiring with.  If you don’t feel 100% confident about the position, maybe you should spend more time looking elsewhere.

Compare Your Resume to Others:  Not sure if your resume is up to par?  Do some research online and read reviews on what people see as quality resumes vs. poor resumes.  Critique your resume against the notes you’ve researched to know where you stand.

Follow Up:  After you’ve sent in your resume, give the employer a week or so, and if you still haven’t heard from them give them a call to see where you stand.  You want to know the status of the position and that you are serious about getting the job.  Be wise about choosing what day to call; think about calling during the slower half of the week so that you can catch them at a good time.

Although finding a job is tough in this economy, don’t let it get you down.  Make the best use of all of your resources to better ensure your likelihood of interviewing with the company of your choice.

Sometimes it can be frustrating if you are always the listener, but it can actually be a valuable tool if used properly.  You can learn a lot from your surroundings, establish more time to evaluate your opinions, and you can have a better relationship with the person you are speaking with.  Listening is an effective way for people to open up and trust you, which will give them incentive to build a relationship with you.

Below, we have provided a few tips that can help you become a better listener.

-Express genuine interest in what the other person is saying – even if the conversation is dull or is something outside of your interest, you should never show the person on the other side.  Naturally, people like to talk about themselves so taking the time to  listen to them will help draw you in.

-Ask questions – by engaging in the conversation, it will show your interest and that you care about what they are saying.

-Don’t let your mind wander while in a conversation -  if you are only half listening to someone, they might notice this later on, which can make them loose credibility for you.

-Don’t finish their sentence - sometimes people drag out stories and often times you want to speed it up by finishing their thought.  Don’t do this!  It shows disrespect and will appear that you are uninterested.

If you are having trouble being “the listener”, think of what you like about people who listen to you.  Why do you talk to that person?  How does he/she respond?  Spend less time talking and more time observing how others react in conversations and see if it is beneficial for you!