- Library workshop
Nowadays, most people turn first to Google or other search engines when they need information. The unemployed are no different, but they face special needs. What they find through the Internet will not in itself satisfy their needs.Many do not have computers at home. How can they search in the first place? At the library.
Recent studies indicate that 10% of the population of the United States has used library computers in the course of looking for work. Some of them have no other access to a computer. All of them have benefitted from other library services. After all, an Internet search can turn up an overwhelming amount of information. It cannot personalize this information to fit any one individual’s needs. That often requires direct communication with other people.
Libraries offer the opportunity to meet with a reference librarian, who will help you both find and use information, whether online or from books on a variety of topics that job seekers need to know about. Beyond that, libraries offer a variety of classes and workshops taught by local experts on various aspects of job hunting.
People who have been laid off from jobs they held for a long time face a job market that is drastically different from the last time they looked for a job. For one thing, looking for work today requires computer skills that hardly existed as much as ten years ago. Many of the newly unemployed might have gained important skills at their last job and may also be adept at using social media, but looking for work requires different computer skills. Others of the newly unemployed might not have very good computer skills at all. Library classes and workshops teach computer skills from the most basic to the most specialized.
Other classes and workshops at the library include
- how to identify career goals
- how to identify the kinds of jobs that satisfy those goals
- how to find job openings
- how to write a resume and cover letter
- how to prepare for a job interview and what to do when it’s finished
Some people may decide to start a small business instead of look for a traditional job. In fact, in communities beset with major factory closings, starting a new business might actually be easier than finding a new job. Library services include resources, classes, and workshops to help entrepreneurs as well as job seekers.
If you need more detail, check out some of my other writings, including Services for the unemployed at the library and Library services for the unemployed.
Photo credit: Some rights reserved by Technology & Social Change