Jessica Miller-Merrell, CEO of XCeptional HR, better known to many as @blogging4jobs has joined the Zero Unemployment Movement founded this past April by Jerome Ternynck, international recruiter, blogger and activist. This is the post she wrote to help spread the word about how we can all make a difference – in 15 minutes. The power of many.
This job market cannot move unless we all make conscious steps to change it. We are running scared, afraid to take the risk of making a new hire, afraid that we may not have found the “perfect” candidate, afraid that if we help someone else it may mean we lose our own job, or that there just isn’t enough to go around. New graduates entering this job market are being shut out, at a time we need their education and skills more than ever. Take 15 minutes this weekend to do something to help reverse this dangerous course in American business. We will all be the beneficiaries. Thanks Jerome & Jessica for the leadership. Joni
In advance of this September 5 Labor Day, SmartRecruiters CEO and Zero Unemployment Movement founder Jerome Ternynck encourages everyone to add the word, “Give,” to Labor Day.
Before enjoying a well-earned day off on September 5, Ternynck proposes we all take fifteen minutes of our time to help a friend get a job.
Labor Day has always been a time to remember and celebrate achievement. The United States Department of Labor describes Labor Day’s founding as “a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.” However for millions of us, there isn’t labor to celebrate. The Zero Unemployment Movement’s “Give Labor Day” Initiative urges everyone to take tangible, specific actions to help the unemployed.
Organizers plan to continue the Initiative each year and hope that fifteen minutes of job assistance becomes a regular component of Labor Day in the future in much the same way that Martin Luther King Day has become a focus for community service.
Six recommended activities for the September 5 Give Labor Day are:
1. Make a referral or introduction
2. Critique a resume
3. Rehearse a mock interviewShare relevant job openings
4. Share relevant job postings
5. Leverage Facebook or LinkedIn connections
6. Help a friend write a cover letter
Participating individuals and businesses will be posting their activities and sharing their accomplishments at ZeroUE.org, on Twitter at #GiveLabor or on Facebook. Any participant can show their support by posting a “Give Labor Day” Badge on their own website or blog leading up to Labor Day (“Zero Unemployment: Give Labor Day,” “Give Labor Day: You Can Help,” or “Join us on September 5, 2011.“). The Zero Unemployment Movement also encourages businesses to innovate and implement their own ideas on how to put “Give” in Labor Day.
The Zero Unemployment Movement (#zeroUE) was founded in April 2011 with the objective to eradicate unemployment globally by promoting the creation of a more efficient labor market. A labor market where people that want to work, can work; a labor market where businesses that need talent, get talent. Imagine a world where hiring is easy. This website (ZeroUE.org) launched in August of 2011 to further the discussion surrounding Zero Unemployment beyond the social media platforms where it was originally founded on.
The ‘recession’ may be ‘over’ but unemployment remains at an unsustainably high level. The national unemployment rate rose to 9.2% in June 2011. “There are more than 4 million jobs open right now while 14 million people are unemployed in the country. Why can’t we fill every one of those positions right now? Giving fifteen minutes of your time before you enjoy a drink by the pool is something simple that will have great impact.”
So what are YOU going to do on Give Labor Day?
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