Hello work! Good for F*cked gaijins?

[Hokuto-shinken]

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Hello fellow gaijin`s,

Just wondering how does everybody rate Hello Work and has anybody been successful in finding a job through their system.

Thank you.





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[FG Lurker]

I know Japanese who have found work that way, but I have never heard of a gaijin who has.

If you speak good enough Japanese (ie can work in an office nearly as well as a Japanese person could) then it should be possible.

The best way to get a good job in Japan though is to network... The more people you know the better your chances are. Get out to business-oriented events and meet people. If you don't have meishi get some made -- don't print them on a printer yourself, they look like shit with the perforated edges and all. (And yes, good looking meishi ARE important.) Spend a bit and get something simple made with your name and contact details. Include a basic job description under your name -- "Network Engineer" or whatever fits. (However, writing "English Teacher" is not a good idea. Don't write a title if that is the only thing you can put down. Right or wrong, teaching English here makes it harder to get into a good job.)

Good luck with it. There ARE jobs out there, you just need to get out and meet the right people. It is usually not a whole lot of fun trying to make small talk with people you don't know...but the end result is worthwhile.

[Hokuto-shinken]

[font="Fixedsys"][color="Green"]FG Lurker, thank you for your reply.

Having visited a few Hello Work offices, I think it is quite rare to see a gaijin looking for a job. Although they do have English speaking services for consultations, all of the jobs are advertised in Japanese.

So you would advice getting a professional business card made even though you don`t have a job? At the moment I don`t have a job but I would like to work in an office as a programmer, system engineer or in personnel. Do you think system engineer「システムエンジニア」would be suitable for my business card and won`t tarnish the possibilities of getting an HR or programming job?

Sometimes I think to myself, ARE there really jobs out there, but I am sure there must be. I reside in the Kansai area and I don` t think there are that many opportunities to engage in social networking. Unfortunately I am not fluent in Japanese, so I think it will be quite hard to start talking to somebody I don`t know. Do you have any good ice breakers?

Thanks for the tip about the business cards, I have found a few websites;-

• http://card.hankoya.com/?gclid=CJnYzOnhvIsCFQu2bgodG0kSLQ
• http://www.youmeishi.com/
• http://www.gakugei.co.jp/paper/name_card.htm
• http://www.bcard.co.jp/?gclid=CPLqn8DivIsCFRpNYQodq3sYxw

What type of layout do you think is suitable? Japanese style, basic or colourful. I think because of the lack of information about your company, the card look a little plain. Do you know a good online shop?

Any advice would be great and much obliged.

Thank you very much.

　
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[AssKissinger]

I think if your Japanese is perfect and you already have a visa the chances of finding work through Hello Work are still very small.

[GomiGirl]

Can somebody put a post as to how Hello Work operates? A friend of mine is doing it - some sort of Hello Work training school - but he is not able to explain fully how it works. But he can't work at another job while doing the training.

[Doctor Stop]

I was referred to a company through Hello Work. They actually called the company for me and set up the interview. Before the interview, the conditions looked quite good, but at the interview it looked even better: the monthly salary was substantially higher than what I was previously earning and on top of that there were Japanese-style regular "bonuses". I would actually do very little real work every day, but there was a lot of long-distance commuting to different sites. My impression was that this company was going places, they needed my skills to get there and, most importantly, they were willing to pay more than the market rate for my skills.

At the second interview, things changed. They admitted there weren't any full-time positions, and I was offered a salary (with no bonuses) at one third my previous salary. They explained how I was to be an important part of the company's future and that I'd have to wait a year or more until they expand enough before they could actually pay what was originally offered.

I turned them down, and angrily went back to Hello Work and told them that the company didn't actually have the job that they advertised. I know that Hello Work didn't take note of it because they later asked me how the interview went.

Some years later, I read that this kind of scam was quite common. People are quite frequently referred by Hello Work for jobs that don't exist. I recall that this kind of scam was, and probably still is, used to pull in suckers for sales positions.

[Hokuto-shinken]

[font="Fixedsys"][color="Green"][color="Magenta"]GomiGirl[/color], no idea. I did not know Hello Work have a training school. It would be useful (for me) if they offered more help to Gajin`s looking for work.[/color][/font]

[Hokuto-shinken]

[Doctor Stop]

You aren't going to find any positions in any field for a monolingual English speaker at Hello Work unless something has seriously changed there. If I were you, I wouldn't waste my time there.

(Few people know this but overtime, even paid overtime, is technically illegal except in certain rather rare circumstances.)

[Hokuto-shinken]

[color="Green"][font="Fixedsys"]Just wanted to say I am not monolingual nor am I bilingual. My Japanese level does restrict me somewhat, but does not prevent me from using the Hello Work computers to search for job opportunities.

You said;-

I wouldn`t waste my time there.

I think in the Kansai area especially there is not a large means for finding work. Would you rate going to a recruitment agency or perhaps contacting companies directly?

Thanks
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[FG Lurker]

So you would advice getting a professional business card made even though you don`t have a job? At the moment I don`t have a job but I would like to work in an office as a programmer, system engineer or in personnel. Do you think system engineer「]
It will be quite difficult to get an HR job in Kansai without speaking very fluent Japanese. Nothing is impossible, but the likelihood is....small. Finding work as a programmer or system engineer is more likely, so I would probably put both of those on the card under your name.

The card doesn't need to be anything fancy at all. A good quality (ie not too thin!) white card with crisp black lettering is perfect. Have it done in English on one side and Japanese on the other. On the English side have your name first/last like you would in English, and on the Japanese side have it last/first like you would in Japanese. Include your contact email (ideally not webmail) and a phone number or two, maybe your home number and a keitai. If you have a resume online then you might want to include the address, but maybe not depending on how much personal info you wish to give out.

Next get a simple business card holder to keep them in, and carry them with you always. (Don't keep them in your wallet, try to keep them looking good and unbent.) If you meet someone you can give them a card. If you don't have a card you will be scrambling for pen and a scrap of paper, and the paper will probably end up lost or forgotten, and it never looks professional. If you give someone a business card they will put it in their card holder and then file it away later for further reference.

Sometimes I think to myself, ARE there really jobs out there, but I am sure there must be. I reside in the Kansai area and I don` t think there are that many opportunities to engage in social networking.

There are jobs around, and there are chances to meet people, but you have to dig a bit. Certainly Tokyo is a better place to work for a gaijin, but overall I think Kansai is a nicer place to live.

I live & work in Osaka (for 12 years now, in IT), and would love to get together for a beer sometime. Unfortunately between a business trip next week and golden week coming up, I probably can't manage it until the second week of May. If you'd like to get together drop me a PM...

[CrankyBastard]

I got a job through them about 30 years ago. Actually, they were'nt called 'HalloWork' then but had a desk in the local ward office.
The job was only temporary, but I enjoyed it.
It was a position that required English corresponcence and was located in the animal quarantine complex in Yokohama, and it paid 200,000 yen per month.
I would be at the office from 8:45am to 5:00pm for five days a week for seven months.
During the whole seven months I wrote three letters. The rest of the time I spent fishing from the quay next to the quarantine station.

[akatsuka]

[Hokuto-shinken]

I got a job through them about 30 years ago. Actually, they were'nt called 'HalloWork' then but had a desk in the local ward office.
The job was only temporary, but I enjoyed it.
It was a position that required English corresponcence and was located in the animal quarantine complex in Yokohama, and it paid 200,000 yen per month.
I would be at the office from 8:45am to 5:00pm for five days a week for seven months.
During the whole seven months I wrote three letters. The rest of the time I spent fishing from the quay next to the quarantine station.

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That seems like an easy number. Not sure if I will be lucky enough to find a job like that. [/font][/color]

[CrankyBastard]

Well, yes that was back in the early seventies. Things have changed since then obviously, but not so much that if you're prepared to try anything, and whatever doesn't pan out, you're willing to put down to experience, then you will succeed here in Japan just as you could anywhere.
Good Luck.

[CrankyBastard]

I forgot to add, bluffing and bragging works, too.

[Hokuto-shinken]

Well, yes that was back in the early seventies. Things have changed since then obviously, but not so much that if you're prepared to try anything, and whatever doesn't pan out, you're willing to put down to experience, then you will succeed here in Japan just as you could anywhere.
Good Luck.

[color="Green"][font="Fixedsys"]:kanpai: Thanks for the advice! Also I won`t forget about the bluffing and bragging.[/font][/color]

[sublight]

I went to them after I got laid off by NEC in '99. Didn't get referred for anything or take any classes, just collected my 90 days' unemployment insurance while I looked for work on my own.

The money definitely helped. Now I have enough contacts in enough fields that finding work to cover my family's living expenses (if not an actual full-time career) is a snap, but back then it was tough. Old enough that my BA wasn't impressive on its own, but not old enough to have any real accomplishments on my resume.