Job seekers have been advised to keep credit on their phone to ensure they can be contacted at all times.

Labour Officer at the National Employment Bureau (NEB), Randy Clarke, made this suggestion recently at the Tek Care of Yourself Workshop organised by the Internal HIV Education Committee of the Barbados Government Information Service for underemployed and unemployed women.

Speaking during an empowerment module on the topic Phone Etiquette, Mr. Clarke told the participants that they should anticipate being contacted by telephone if they had applied for a job.??

Moreover, he maintained that being easily accessible by phone was one of the critical factors to landing an interview.

"If you are applying for a job, have money on your phone.?? Employers do not have time to waste.?? If you put your cell number on an application form make sure you can be reached easily, especially from a landline number," he stressed.

Noting that hundreds of applications were sent to business places, he said it was very easy for a caller to move onto the next individual in line "simply because you can’t get hold of a person".

Disclosing that the NEB also encountered the "problem of not being able to get hold of people", the Labour Officer said that his organisation had invested in a cellular phone so that they could reach applicants who did not keep credit on their mobiles.?? However, he was quick to point out that this was not a common practice for most business places.

Mr. Clarke further revealed that phone interviews were on the increase and advised participants to always answer their phones professionally.??

"Many human resource managers are doing this now so that they can analyse the candidate’s phone etiquette.?? This is especially done for receptionist posts and customer service jobs," he explained.

The NEB official also stressed that it was important to keep a consistent cellular phone number.?? "In this competitive job market there may not be a vacancy when you apply, your application could be kept on file.?? You could get a call five months later inviting you to come in for an interview.?? Think about what would happen if you had changed your number," he said.??

shamkoe.pile@barbados.gov.bb

Author: Shamkoe Pil??

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