Become a #LinkedInvolunteer because we all need help sometime!

A wonderful movement is occurring on the #LinkedIn platform. It's the rise of the #LinkedInvolunteers. The time is right...and hopefully you will join us!

I started volunteering with this movement when I saw how many people were suddenly unemployed. Shell-shocked at the sudden announcements of being laid off, or desperate when they could not find work despite trying so incredibly hard and long, I longed to help them. I am a business speech coach, a corporate speech pathologist, and a scholarship search coach, by profession. Even though I am not in human resources or recruiting, I was capable of collecting resources and re-posting job opportunities.

As so many people are laid off, other LinkedIn members also want to help them get a new job as fast as possible. Volunteers are, on their own, doing some really impressive actions.

The easiest and quickest action to take is to re-post job opportunities, or posts by those seeking employment, to your networks. It takes about 3 seconds to re-post, with maybe a minute more if you choose a specific group you belong to already on LinkedIn to get the post. Choosing the right group to post it to often dramatically increases the numbers of views it gets. The right group for a specific post may be one that is in a particular location or industry. Many people are re-posting, or "liking" a post.

Another group is compiling lists to share. They may be lists of jobs in a specific field.@EricAllenWeidner compiles and updates a list of jobs for recruiters, for example, at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YgTUSm1-IFuDcIljxxUdYbJTpB7yjmin1v15EvObj9E/. Other people compile separate lists of jobs in this field. @JDDillon is a recruiter who has jobs for training and development specialists. David Marr, CIR, CSSR publishes a great list of jobs frequently updated in the field of HR. An updated list of IT jobs can be found at  www.farath.substack.com  “100 Tech Jobs Every Week". Graphic design jobs can be found at https://dribbble.com/resources/where-to-find-graphic-design-jobs ; I do not know the person in charge of this list. Ravon S. developed a helpful list for customer service jobs at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tYBNk-c8g9y8dB48nCL9e7zmEY1w4CCHB1RIdQBi_-8/edit#gid=0

People in the hospitality industry who want to hire others or get hired will want to visit  www.thechefagency.com Www.GoodPeople.ai/company/community/jobs  run by Suzy Choi, has information on salaries.

Many (maybe all?) states offer a job board. Find your state's by going to "job board + your occupation + your city and state + past 24 hours". (Get the latest job updates!)

LinkedIn ha a wonderful Jobs tab. You can input information on experience, location, remote/in person/hybrid work and more.

Of course, the Federal government also has helpful sites. Try www.careeronestop.org. This superb site also offers a lot of other information on jobs, ranging from assessments and lists of transferable skills. A website listing USA government remote jobs is https://www.usajobs.gov/Search/Results?rmi=true.

There are a lot of great sites listing remote jobs. Nocommute ([email protected]) shares a long list of openings in many fields daily.

Nodesk, WeWorkRemotely, and Wellfound are just a few of the many sites for remote work. Search for "job board + job title + remote + past 24 hours (or one week)" to locate them.

At least one organization compiles weekly lists of a variety of jobs in a specific community. The community, the Triangle region of NC, reportedly currently has over 2000 openings. https://wraltechwire.com/2023/04/04/ Change the date in this link to a given Tuesday to see the current list of companies hiring. (Scroll way down for this list, and then click on relevant companies' names.) Nice work on this, @MarthaJennings !

Some volunteers choose a specific population and list companies that are "friendly" to that group. International professionals working in the US on a H1B visa have 60 days to find a job after being laid off. A smart group of companies in Chicago realized that they needed this talent, and worked hard to figure out how to do the required extra paperwork faster than usual. Their site is jobs.gotechchicago.com Another site for immigrants is https://curiousmaverick.com/unshackled/

Some candidates need "expecting parents friendly" new employers. An unknown volunteer compiled this Parentaly list:  https://lnkd.in/gxBGTh8n

A site that helps members of the military transition to civilian careers and find work is https://www.militaryonesource.mil/transition-retirement/transition-to-civilian-life/12-ways-to-land-that-civilian-job/

One team decided to make a website that allowed people to search anonymously for jobs, in case they hadn't been laid off yet but wanted to get a head start on job hunting if needed. Www.mirajobs.com does a superb job of explaining how it is different. Congratulations, anonymous LinkedIn volunteers who created this terrific site!

Yet another group realized that qualified candidates sometimes needed a little help to get an interview for an open position. The anonymous volunteers who created of this site realized that they could help. Candidates apply for the job they want, and then go to www.refer.me. This site offers an amazing variety of services, including a job board and mock interviews. They also offer to give qualified candidates referrals to available jobs.

Sometimes people need financial resources. Here's a wonderful list, https://www.careertoolbelt.com/where-to-get-help-when-unemployment-runs-out/ compiled by volunteer Alison Doyle Housing options can be discussed at -https://m.facebook.com/groups/6758853177/ Local resources for financial help with rent, food, utilities bills and more can be found at www.211.org and www.findhelp.org. The national crisis hotline is 988, in case people need help with stress or other issues.

We all on LinkedIn can do something to help others find new employment. As we end National Volunteer Month, take a few minutes to repost jobs or "like" this article, help a job seeker connect with someone in your network who can be a mentor or who works in a particular company, refer someone who is searching to a relevant job opportunity, or compile other needed resources. Become a #LinkedInvolunteer; it's good for you and for our community.

Katie Schwartz, CCC-SLP is the director of Business Speech Improvement. She offers coaching and e-books in spoken business communication skills and in locating college and graduate school scholarships. She is a #LinkedInvolunteer , because we all need help sometimes!