Why Use Job Hotlines in Seeking Employment?

Why Use Job Hotlines in
Seeking Employment?
(Excerpted from National Job Hunting Directory: The Job
Finder’s Hot List by Sue Cubbage & Marcia Williams)

Massive downsizing continues unabated even though tough economic times have been replaced by the strongest economy in decades. The Human Resources, or Personnel Department, is one of the most vulnerable departments during downsizing and belt-tightening. Responsible for employees selection, record keeping, health and welfare, workman’s compensation, compliance with government rules and regulations, and advertising and filling vacant positions, this department is a catchall for all the things no one else wants to do and is often the first to lose personnel in a downsizing. Decision makers view Human Resources as not producing the company’s product, and they target it for personnel and budget cuts when trying to cut operating costs.

To respond to these manpower and budget cuts, Human Resources Directors had to identify ways to cut expenses. They realized that their employees spent hours on the telephone talking to potential job applicants. Frequent calls from completely unqualified people took valuable time from other duties in the Human Resource Department.

There had to be a better way to tell callers about job openings than to tie up the time of human resource employees. The job hotline fit the bill!

An employer does not have to spend a lot of money to establish and maintain a job hotline system. The answering equipment can often be purchased for less than $500. Usually only one dedicated telephone line is needed. It can take as little as one hour a week to add new job openings and remove filled positions. In addition, the employer cuts down on interruptions of other duties by hundreds of inquiry calls each week and is able to disseminate detailed information about job vacancies without the higher cost of advertising them. For the potential employee the benefits are also quite substantial.

Job hotlines give you the convenience of job hunting from the comfort of home at any hour of the day or night. You can access job descriptions at an employer that interests you. A job hotline that is well-operated will actually answer many of the questions you have about a specific job and how to apply for it. You save time and money by targeting those employers for which you wish to work.

We do not pretend that job hotlines are the only tool available for finding a job. Job hotlines are just one of several different job-finding tools that you should use as part of a savvy, balanced job quest. Their advantages have been recounted for you earlier in conjunction with job hotlines to substantially increase your chance of landing the job you want where you wish to live.

For more information about National Job Hotline Directory: The Job Finder’s Hot List by Sue Cubbage and Marcia Williams, click here.