Hello and Help Finding Work!

[WelshSwede]

Hi, recently I was made redundant from work as now looking for work as well as looking after our newborn son!

Work out the blue gave me a letter last July with just 2 months notice even though I had worked for them for 5 years, not missing a single day in that process! Luckily I was registered with the union who fought my case and I was given some further months!

I have since been applying, on average 10 jobs a week and not getting any response, my Cv has been looked at by a third party and says is very good but still no hits! Not even getting past the door for an interview even when applying for anything!

I'm 38yrs of age, live just north of Stockholm and my last job was for a tour operator, previously in the UK I worked for a bank and in fleet administration! My Swedish is ok and Im currently going to SFI to improve my grammar, a friend today suggested using a forum! So here I am!

I'm now grabbing the odd hour as a substitute teacher in an English school but Im looking for full time! Any ideas or help would be appreciated!

[Nekkid]

Hi!
I'm assuming you don't have a Swedish education, and that'll be your biggest hurdle. Sadly it's not like in the uk where a company will employ you based on whether or not they like you and think you could learn the job. Here it's the education that counts. Not that an education is any guarantee of profficiency mind you. I've worked with plenty of newly qualified kids who dont know their ar$e from their elbow despite having a 3 year long utbildning of which they are oh so proud. I was a performance and risk analyst in London for a multinational company before I came here but couldn't even get a job doing admin, despite the fact I could do it better than most.
The sort of 'starter' job you might look at in the uk if starting a new career is always filled via arbetsförmedlingen here, who pay half the employees wages.
Your best bet is to claim arbetslöshets ersättning and start jumping through arbetsförmedlingens hoops in the hope that in a couple of years time they'll get you into a promising company through the back door, as it were. That seems to be what most of the school leavers do anyway.
Or start your own business doing something you're good at. Nothing too revolutionary mind, they'll never go for it.
All that said, I do get that the job market is Geographical, and this applies to where I live, which is Finnerödja. It might be better in Stockholm. I would say that 10s of jobs isn't enough. You need to be applying for absolutely everything.
Good luck with your search!

[Gordon Barlow]

I think you probably need to be doing more than sending off CVs. My son (aged 38, unqualified, English, speaks Norwegian but not Swedish) has just moved to Stockholm with his Norwegian girlfriend. He found a job within ten minutes, knocking on doors. He wasn't fussy about what job he took, and was offered a job driving a delivery van. Easy peasy.

[edp]

Hi WelshSwede. Firstly good luck, you will need some of that. I have been here just over two years and have a lot of experience and lots of qualifications. I have never had problems finding work in the UK and when living in France I didn't find it hard to get something to keep the wolf from the door. Sweden is a different kettle of fish and while Gordon's suggestion is useful i think its not always so easy. In my first year, I taught some English, made a fence for a farmer and did 3 months praktik. My second year I got some IT contractor work for someone who pretty much only employs immigrants as its a company that uses foreign language speakers. I live in Northern Sweden so I would imagine Stockholm has more opportunities but I would suggest that you make as many contacts as you can. I wouldn't say its pointless but I think the odds of getting a job by sending out CVs to job adverts gives the chances of slim to none. I am still working at the moment and possibly going to be made permanent but if i thought my only way of finding work was to compete with 99% swedes via CV and covering letter I would pack up and leave. Life is too short and the whole experience would be soul destroying and in my opinion futile. I have started a distance course at a Yrkeshogskolan which includes 4 months work experience, this might be a way for you to go. Its an incredible struggle for most foreigners in Sweden. Of course there are people who sail into things but I have met far more people who are banging there heads on brick walls than not. Get what you can out of Sweden and make sure that, if you have to, you leave with something that you can use....and not too much in debt.

[Gordon Barlow]

Here's a link to a newspaper article on the subject. Might be useful. http://www.thelocal.se/jobs/?site=tlse&AID=50522