Ask a Manager

It’s tiny answer Tuesday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. I saw an email with harsh feedback about me as a job candidate

I recently applied for a job and my boyfriend of three years realized that he knew someone in a position of authority at the firm (but not in the hiring department). He sent a polite email to that contact, alerting him that I had applied for the opening, and the contact responded favorably.

The next day, both the recruiting department and I received an email from the contact that was sent from the individual’s iPhone (we are both on the To: line). The message is very informal, and in it he expressed the specific reasons why he wasn’t impressed with me as a candidate (saying that my coursework and experience weren’t a fit). While he didn’t mention anything I wasn’t already aware of, his phrasing was harsh, and to be honest, a bit hurtful. He closed the message by saying that although it wasn’t his call, he thought I wasn’t a good choice for the position.

Now I don’t know what to do. Should I assume that this email was sent to me in error, perhaps as a result of being sent from his phone? Is it possible he meant for me to receive it? Should I respond (and if so, how), or should I just ignore it? How should my boyfriend behave when he interacts with this man in the future?

I would assume that it was sent in error, and would ignore it.

While I’m sure it wasn’t pleasant to see, try to look at it as a useful glimpse behind the curtains that candidates almost never get — you got to see candid feedback on your candidacy from an employer’s perspective. It’s actually something a lot of people would like — sort of like being a fly on the wall in the interview room after you’ve left and your interviewers are talking about you.

Read an update to this letter. 

2. I lost vacation time when I got promoted

I work for a hospital, where I was hired in 2008 as a clerk. One of the benefits explained to me at the time I was hired was that my 30 days of PTO time would increase to 35 after 5 years of service.

Last year, I applied for a change of title and was promoted. But now I am working for a subsidiary of the hospital (a physicians group that manages all the doctors in the emergency department). My boss tells me now that with the change, the PTO increase calendar has reset and I need to do another 5 years before I can earn 35 days.

I’d understand this except that my boss, a director, is an employee of the hospital, not the physicians group. This same director also handles all reviews, increases, and time-off requests for the two employees of the group who aren’t physicians. My job also requires me to support staff of the hospital in addition to the physicians group.

It seems to me like the powers that be want to cheat me out of time I’m owed (not to mention a well-deserved increase) and yet keep me “in the fold” when it comes to supervision and reporting. Does this sound kosher to you?

I doubt they’re really trying to cheat you over a mere five days a year, particularly when they’ve established this as a benefit that they’re fine with employees earning — rather, it sounds more like it’s a badly structured system that relies more on bureaucratic rules than common sense. You shouldn’t be penalized for getting a promotion, and they should care more about rewarding and retaining good employees than this type of rule. It’s worth pushing back with your boss and arguing for an exception to be made, but whether or not they’ll budge will depend on how rigid — and short-sighted — they are.

3. When a customer wants to friend you on Facebook

We’ve run into an interesting question at our company, and would be curious to see if others have as well, and if so, how they handled it. One of our inside sales reps was asked by a customer if he is on Facebook, presumably with the intention of friending him. While the employee is friendly with the customer, and has taken care of him for many years, he would rather not blur the lines between his personal and professional life. Is there a polite way to say no to the customer?

He doesn’t need to say no. He can simply ignore the friend request. The customer probably won’t even notice, but if he does, and asks about it, your employee can (a) say he didn’t notice the notification, (b) say he isn’t on Facebook that much, or (c) say he tends to use Facebook only for a small group of friends and family. Or unending variations of those.

4. Is the “sent from my iPhone” line on emails unprofessional?

I know its become the norm for people to check, write, and reply to email on their phones (I do it too! I love it!), but I think its almost … unprofessional to see the “sent from my iPhone” or “sent from my Blackberry” at the bottom of emails. There’s an option to remove (or personalize) that signature on phones, and I removed it as soon I as I could. I realize people work from everywhere nowadays, but seeing that signature seems a bit too casual. Am I weird for thinking this? For what its worth, I work in HR, and seeing emails from candidates with “sent from my iPhone” on an application doesn’t seem like the best idea.

Hmmm, it doesn’t bother me, but I can see how it could. It’s not that the line itself is objectionable, but rather than you potentially risk appearing that you’re treating the communication more casually than you should — i.e., are you sending job applications while you’re waiting to meet friends for brunch, as opposed to sitting down and really focusing on it? I can’t imagine anyone rejecting a candidate over it, but there’s an argument to be made that it signals that you’re not taking the communication as seriously as something like hiring-related communications generally warrant.

(I can’t decide if I stand by that argument or not, but I don’t think it’s a crazy one.)

5. Is the EEOC questionnaire on job applications truly confidential?

At the end of every online application is the EEO questionnaire. Is this info really confidential or is it seen by the recruiter? Does it hurt or help if you do or do not provide the needed info?

For companies that do it, the data is separated from the application and not seen by the recruiter or hiring manager. (The information is aggregated and is used to help comply with federal record-keeping requirements. For instance, the company might look at statistics like, “Of all applications received for management positions, 20% were minority candidates, but of candidates hired, only 5% were minorities.”) It doesn’t hurt if you choose not to participate in their information-collection.

6. When’s the best time to ask for time off around the holidays?

When’s the best time to ask for time off around the holidays? I don’t know why, but I feel almost guilty asking for time off so early but the slots fill up fast (they only let a certain number of people off at a time). Our office is closed on all federal holidays already, so it’s the days after that I’d like to have off to make it a long holiday weekend. (Specifically, I would like the Friday off after Thanksgiving and the 26th and 27th off the day after Christmas.) I also just started working there in February of this year, so I would feel bad getting one of these slots over someone who has been there longer. Is there a right or wrong way to go about this?

Ask your manager! You certainly don’t want to be the person who books up all the holidays before anyone else can get to them, but you also shouldn’t penalize yourself if you don’t need to. So just ask how it’s done and what’s appropriate. Say something like, “I’d love to request these days off now, but I don’t want to request so early that it would deny other people those days. How does this usually work?”

7. Is this rejection email as bad as I think?

I wanted to share with you an excerpt from a rejection email I just received (sent at 11:30 p.m. on a Sunday night, too): “Due to the high volume of interest in this particular position, we regret to inform you we will not be moving forward with your resume. This in no way is a reflection of your qualifications, but is due to resume volume management processes.”

I know you often say to take things at face value … but the phrase “resume volume management processes” makes it seem like they received so many resumes that they just randomly deleted half of them. I would have preferred to be rejected based on my qualifications — that way I knew I had a chance if I wanted to apply for a similar position in the future. But this email suggests that it’s a total crapshoot.

What do you think?

Yeah, that’s a terrible email. That wording absolutely does suggest what you concluded, although I think it’s more likely that it was simply written by a bad writer who isn’t communicating clearly. Which is the case with lots of hiring-related communications, unfortunately.

It’s mini answer Monday — seven short answers to seven short questions. Here we go…

1. Should I tell my manager she might have offended my new coworker?

I am a senior member on my team and am often asked to do more detailed analysis than the rest of the team. We have a new team member who is very experienced in the industry but new to the company. My manager asked me to run some data that fell under the new person’s area of responsibility. I had run a similar report in my own area and she wanted to see the data in the same way. I did what she asked and emailed it to my manager and the new coworker.

As soon as the new coworker opened the email, she asked if our manager had asked me to do it. I said, “Yes, why?” because she sounded annoyed. She said, “I don’t understand why [manager] wouldn’t ask me to do that.” I told her that I had run a similar report before and that our manager just wanted to see the data in the same way. (It is really just data, she is still going to make decisions on what to do with it.) Honestly, I don’t disagree with her, and she could also run the information easily.

Should I tell my manager that the teammate might have been offended? I know my manager thinks highly of her but often doesn’t give much positive feedback to anyone on the team. Other teammates (including those that have left) have expressed that they did not feel valued by management. I don’t think it’s my place to tell my manager that morale can be low because of a lack of feedback. However, I think this is a concrete example of why morale might be low on our team.

If you have a good relationship with your manager, you can certainly give her feedback on this area in general, but I wouldn’t report this specific instance to her — it’s too likely to backfire and make your coworker look bad for making a big deal out of it. However, if your manager asks you for something like that again, you could certainly say, “I’d be glad to, but I don’t want to step on Jane’s toes since it’s her area. If you want, I can show her how I formatted that report for you last time so she can run it.”

2. My company always holds our paychecks until 6 p.m.

My company constantly holds everybody’s check until 6 p.m. every payday so that we don’t cash it that day. Is that legal in any way? Our usual work day is from 8-5 p.m., and for others it’s 7-3:30, and for some it’s even earlier. We are constantly stuck sitting around waiting to be able to get our checks. They also will not offer direct deposit. Also, for the hourly employees, they make them clock out at 5:00 but make them wait till 6:00 sometimes even 7 to 7:30 to receive their checks. Is there anyway of stopping this and being able to get my check in a timely manner?

Also, this past Memorial Day, at the last minute they decided to have everyone come into work. Fortunately, I had plans and decided to just use a sick day, but my general manager was not too pleased with my decision and told everyone in my office that she was going to dock my pay for not coming in. If I am a salaried employee, can she dock my pay for using a personal/sick day and can she tell others in my office that she is going to do that?

In no particular order:
* Most states specify that you must be paid within X days from the end of a pay period. As long as your office is within this limit, it doesn’t matter how late in the day they give you your check. I would simply start planning as if pay day is a day later than it really is, so that you’re not inconvenienced when your check isn’t ready earlier, and so that you don’t feel you need to wait around for it.
* It’s legal not to offer direct deposit.
* If you’re an exempt employee, they can’t dock your pay for not coming in one day. If you’re non-exempt, they can.
* They can indeed tell others in the office that they plan to dock your pay.

3. My coworkers call me names when they walk by my desk

How would you advise handling coworkers who engage in unnecessary, mean, petty behavior? For example, walking past my desk and uttering nasty things (“bitch”) under their breath. Or, talking about me within earshot. So far, I’ve just let all of this roll off my back, but I think this is nuts. Especially since I’ve only been there a short period of time. Also, if it’s relevant at all, I’m in a different department then them but do have to work with one of them occasionally, and due to the nature of my job, I’m the ultimate decision maker on the projects we work on together.

That’s hostile to the point that you shouldn’t let it roll off your back. Talk to them — calmly and professionally — about what’s going on (example: “I don’t need you to like me, but I do need you to be polite and professional toward me in order for us both to get our work done”), and speak to your own manager if that doesn’t work. It’s not reasonable to expect you to work in an environment where people are behaving this way as a matter of course.

4. Getting paid for travel time and honorariums

I work for a small nonprofit, and occasionally I am asked to go speak about our organization to an outside group on the weekend. Sometimes these events are out of town. The staff member who does our timesheets told me that I would receive mileage for the distance from our office to the event, regardless of whether I started from home or the office, but that I would not be paid for driving time. I understand that no one is paid to drive from their home to their office on a normal day, but what should I do if the event is more than an hour away? It seems awfully inconvenient to drive an hour somewhere on a Sunday morning, get paid to speak for 30 minutes, and drive an hour home.

Second, what is conventional when it comes to accepting an honorarium if you are an hourly, non-exempt employee? Obviously salaried people accept them all the time; is it any different for hourly?

The federal rules on travel time are less than clear, but they should probably be paying you for that travel time if it’s notably farther from your home than your office is, particularly if it’s on a day that would normally be a non-work day.

Whether you accept honorariums or not has to do with the culture and conventions at your office, not with whether you’re hourly or salaried. Generally, though, people who accept them for work-related appearances have them paid to their organization, rather than keeping them for themselves.

5. Applying to a job on a tip, when that job might not exist yet

Here’s the scoop: I am a full-time customer service rep with a print manufacturer. On my own time, I am often working on freelance graphic design projects, as graphic design is ultimately my career goal. Some of my coworkers are aware of this where I work. I received a tip from a fellow CSR that one of her accounts is looking for a graphic designer, as they are having quite a few issues with their current one. This was just mentioned to her briefly on the phone after she alerted the customer of an issue with some artwork that was sent to her.

I dug around a bit online so far, and it seems no position is posted yet. I will do more digging, but perhaps the company is still deciding on if they’re actually going to search for a new hire or not, and what was said to the other CSR was just spurted in the heat of the moment. In any case, how does one apply for a position that is not publicly posted (or at least not posted yet)? Also, I’d feel leery about mentioning that my coworker was the one who brought the position to my attention. I don’t want to get her in trouble with our current employer. Do you have any pointers on how I should tread here?

Hmmm, this is tricky — if it were just a question of how to apply to a not-yet-posted job, you could just go ahead and send it your materials, but in this case your tip is based on something that may have been said to your colleague in confidence. The ideal solution would be for your coworker to go back to the client and mention that she’d like to recommend someone, but if that’s not feasible, then ask her how she’d be most comfortable with you proceeding (applying and mentioning her name, applying and not mentioning her name or why you’re contacting them, or not applying at all).

6. Is LinkedIn stalking crafty or creepy when the company purposely keeps contact information from you?

I just completed a telephone interview with the hiring manager at a large West Coast technology company. The company’s interviewing policy is that the recruiter schedules the interview, and emails the candidate with the first name of the interviewer and the time the interviewer will call, and the phone call’s CallerID comes in with a generic switchboard number — that’s it; I guess they have had issues in the past where candidates are a little too ambitious whilst following up.

This is a rather senior position, and the combination of the hiring manger’s first name and the business unit — and a bit of Google-Fu and LinkedIn noodling — makes it pretty obvious who he is. Is it uber creepy to send him a follow up email directly, or should I send it to the recruiter in hopes she passes it along? I think it’s a bit creepy to email him directly when his contact information has not been proffered, while my wife (who was born and raised in the city where this job is, and has had multiple jobs in the technology field while there) thinks it demonstrates internet fluency and the ability to do my research that would go a long way to a senior marking position at an internet retailer.

They’re making a point of preventing you from having direct contact with the person you’re phone-interviewing with; I’d respect that. That said, it’s not going to be a disaster if you don’t … but since they’re making their preferences pretty damn clear, I don’t know why you’d ignore them.

7. Can my employer fire me through a message to someone else?

What can happen to me or my former employer if they fired me but did not tell me to my face or call me? The way I found out I was fired was through an employee who had no managerial position. Is an employer allowed to do that?

Sure. They can communicate your firing however they want — through skywriting or a midnight phone call if they want to. It’s incredibly lame, but it’s perfectly legal.

It’s short answer Sunday — six short answers to six short questions. Here we go…

1. I have a trip planned for the week of an important event at my new job

After reading your e-book and being a faithful reader of your blog for years, I just landed a wonderful new job opportunity that I definitely credit in part to your advice! However, I do need a little more help with a vacation request. I accepted the position this week and I have a planned vacation from 6/29-7/6 that is prepaid for with my family. Normally I would not be hesitant to bring this up to a new employer since many respect a planned vacation, but this might be a unique situation.

The job is part of a new facility that is opening on 7/1 (I will be working in HR, the facility is a call center). Since my vacation would fall within the same week of the opening of the facility, I do not know if it’s reasonable to still ask for this vacation time. While I would be really bummed to have to give up this vacation (I only take one vacation a year and this one is completely paid for already), I do not want to seem like I’m bailing during a crucial opening week. Is it naive to ask for the week off or should I ask anyway? And if so, should I ask in person when I see my boss in a week or send an email now?

Uh oh. It sound like you already formally accepted the job but haven’t brought up the vacation yet. Generally, you always want to mention any pre-planned vacation time as part of your offer negotiations. Otherwise, if you wait and bring it up later, it can sound as if you assumed it would be fine to take, when it fact it might not be — especially a week-long vacation just one month into starting a new job (which many employers really, really wouldn’t like to have sprung on them once you started, whereas they might have easily approved it if you brought it up during the offer conversation).

In any case, it’s too late for that now — but I wouldn’t wait until you start. Instead, email your boss now — but I’d be prepared to cancel the trip, at least if you value the new job more than you value the trip. And you should make that very clear in your email; explain that you realize it’s only a month after you’ll be starting and during an important week to boot, and ask if you should cancel it. In other words, put the focus more on your willingness to cancel than on your hope that you can still take it — because otherwise you risk starting off on the wrong foot.

2. Leaving your mailing address off your resume

Recently I’ve been seeing a lot of people advising that long distance candidates leave their mailing address off their resume entirely. This seems really bizarre to me, and like it would make it look like you’re hiding something (which you are!). What do you think of this advice?

It does look like you’re hiding something, so it’s not ideal, but it’s not such a huge deal that it would get an otherwise great candidate rejected.

3. Applying for a job with a company that rejected me last year

I applied for a dream job at a dream company last year and got to the final round of interviews. They told me that they picked a local candidate (it was originally posted as a possible home office job). The process took over 4 months and I met with at least a dozen people in the company, up to an executive vice president.

A VERY similar job was recently posted (I suspect that they split the territory for the original job) and I want it so badly, it hurts! The problem is that I’ve never written a cover letter for a job from which I was previously rejected. They know my skills and qualifications so the normal templates for cover letters won’t really work. I know I need to tell them that I’m willing to move this time around, but what else can I/should I tell them that they don’t already know and that convinces them that I’m the right pick this time around?

Also, should I send a note directly to the hiring manager even though the company uses an applicant management system?

Well, first, stop using templates for your cover letters, because those aren’t going to lead to a particularly great cover letter. But aside from that, open by saying that you’d love the chance to talk with them again and that you’re willing to relocate. Aside from that, I have no idea what you can tell them that will convince them to hire you because I don’t know why they didn’t hire you last time — but I CAN tell you that it’s unlikely anything you put in a cover letter will outweigh whatever they already know from the extensive interviewing last time (good, bad, or otherwise), so I wouldn’t stress terribly about it.

And yes, email the hiring manager directly too since you’ve interviewed with her in the past (presumably).

Also, you can’t have any idea whether it’s really your dream job, and it’s helpful to keep that in mind.

4. How can I calculate my annual salary when I’m hourly with variable hours?

I have a question about dealing with required salary history entries on online applications. My last job (my first out of grad school) was a salaried position with benefits, etc. That position ended last year, and since then I have been employed in an hourly wage position with lower per-hour pay and no benefits. This is seasonal work, and in the off-season my hours get cut back based on what my boss can afford from his research budget. I have been applying to jobs in my field, but all of the online applications require annual salary histories. How should I enter my current salary? My W-2 from last year is only from a partial year and I’ve since received a raise. If I use hard salary numbers from 2012, it doesn’t reflect the variability of my hours and the fact that my boss thinks I’m worth $X per hour — it would appear that my wages were much lower per hour than they really are.

I’m concerned because I don’t want to lie on the application, but don’t want to be thrown out by the screening program used by these companies. The salary ranges for these positions are about double what I’m making now, so a huge disparity between my current salary and the desired position would probably be a big red flag.

There’s no good way to do this and these systems are ridiculous for requiring it at all, but I’d probably take your current hourly wage and project it out into an annual salary. If you advance further into their hiring process and they ask about it, you can explain how you calculated it and why (while privately flipping them the bird for using such a crappy system).

5. How can I back out of my new internship if I get a better offer?

I have been job searching for about six months and am having a great deal of trouble finding a job. About six months ago, I applied to a great looking job that was right up my alley but never heard anything back. I moved on and applied for a paid internship that was not in my field because it gave me 10 paid weeks to figure out what to do.

Three days after I accepted the internship, I received a call from the company I applied to six months ago, asking if I would like to come in for an interview. The interview went very well and the interviewer apologized for taking six months to get back with me. Apparently the department went through some restructuring and they didn’t want to hire anyone until they knew what the new department would look like. Four days later, I received a call from the interviewer asking me to come in for a second interview.

If selected for the job how do I resign from the internship? I will have to resign before the ten weeks are up but I would like to keep doing some of the things I’m doing as a volunteer. The awkward part is that the internship is at my church so I am going to see most of these people every Wednesday and Sunday. Plus, the minister I’m working for can be very difficult to work with. Two of the secretaries told me you need to be psychic to work with him because he never says what he means and is incredibly disorganized. How do I resign in a way that will allow me to keep volunteering and won’t burn any bridges at my church? I am on my second week of the internship if that makes any difference.

You may not be able to. All you can do is notify them as soon as you have a formal job offer from the other place (if you get one), and offer to do whatever you can to help them out in the interim and afterwards. How they respond is up to them. (And it’s worth noting that they’d be entitled to be a bit annoyed; you made a commitment to them that you’d be reneging on, and that’s legitimately frustrating, no matter how understandable your reasons.) But it shouldn’t burn your bridges at the church, not unless they have black, black hearts.

6. How do I follow up on networking contacts offers to interview me?

I am in professional school, and my field’s recruiting season is coming up in a couple months. I chose my school for the unparalleled professional opportunities it offers, but it is across the country from my hometown, where I am very intent on returning for personal reasons. Since my school is so far away, companies from my hometown don’t often recruit there, and I have had to do much of the legwork on my own. I’ve had several informational interviewing/networking conversations with some personal connections at a handful of companies there, and these conversations have all ended with the other person saying something like, “If you’re interested, let me know when you’ll be in town during recruiting season” or “I’d be happy to set up an interview if you’d like to work here.”

I’ll be returning home a few times during the next couple months. How should I follow up with these contacts and let them know I’ll be in town and that I would be thrilled to interview with them? Since they told me they would interview me, not just “pass my resume along” or whatever, I’m not sure how to phrase my follow-up without sounding presumptuous. I am also not sure if I should include a resume and cover letter separate from the text of the email, or if I should wait for confirmation from them that they can/will actually speak with me. I know it sounds like I’m overthinking this, but I would really love to work at these places, and I don’t want to inadvertently turn anyone off by sounding pushy.

“Thank you so much for meeting with me last month. I’m going to be in town several times in the next few months, and I would be thrilled to take you up on your offer to interview with ABC while I’m there, if that offer still stands.” Or, “Thank you so much for meeting with me last month. You mentioned that I should let you know when I’ll be in town during your recruiting season, and my trips are now booked for DATES. I’d be thrilled to be able to meet with you or someone else recruiting for the company while I’m there.”

And yes, attach a resume (not a cover letter, since this isn’t an official application). That’s not presumptuous; it’s courteous, because it will save them the time of having to find it or having to ask you for it.

It’s short answer Saturday — six short answers to six short questions. Here we go…

1. My offer letter has different hours than I’d thought we’d agreed to

I recently started a part-time job, and I’m just filling out the new hire paperwork now, which includes my letter of offer. When I interviewed for this job, we agreed to 3 days per week. All the full-time positions that are similar to mine are 35 hours/week, so I was under the impression that my 3 days would mean 21 hours/week, and I think that number came up in our discussions, but I couldn’t swear to it. We also agreed to a six-month contract.

I was reading my letter of offer today and it’s for 22.5 hours/week (7.5 hour days) and five months instead of six. The letter came from the Operations department rather than from my supervisor. I don’t know exactly how much detail my supervisor gave them, so I can’t say how much of those details came directly from him and how much was their own interpretation. I’d really like to write them back before I sign the offer and ask them about the discrepancies between what was discussed and what’s in the letter. I’m not too concerned about asking about the number of months, that seems like a big enough deal that they would take it seriously, but I worry that asking about the hours will seem petty. 22.5 hours won’t be a dealbreaker for me, but I would really rather work 21 if I can. I’m paid hourly, so they would only pay for the hours I worked either way. My impression of my supervisor is that he won’t really care whether I work 21 or 22.5 hours, but I worry that the fact that I care will make me seem petty if he hears about me asking the Operations people about it, which he certainly might. Can you help? Is there a way I can ask about this that won’t reflect badly on me?

“This is a small thing, but I want to make sure it’s right. We had discussed a six-month term, but here it it says five months.” I wouldn’t bring up the hours if you’d just assumed it would be 21 hours/week — but if 21 hours is what was explicitly agreed to, then add that in too: “It also says 22.5 hours, but I think we’d agreed to 21.”

Straightforward, direct, we said X but now it says Y, and that’s it.

2. Asking to work when I’m home on breaks

I am a college student who dorms away from home and I was wondering: if I got a job for the summer somewhere, what’s the best way to tell/ask them if I could continue working when I go home for breaks and such?

“I’d love to continue working for you when I’m home for two weeks in the fall and four weeks in the winter, if that’s a possibility.”

3. How should I approach a connection about a job where she works?

I just found a job posting that I’d like to apply for and have discovered through LinkedIn that someone I used to work with not only works for the company advertising the job posting but also belongs to the same department this position would report to. I believe the hiring manager for this position would probably report to her, but I’m not 100% sure.

I’d like to contact her to see if I could get some further information about the job opening. While she is a connection, I haven’t spoken to her in a while. It’s been a couple years since we worked together. So, it seems inconsiderate to even ask for help. How do I convey that I’m not expecting her to help me find a job, but just wanted to see I could get more information about the role, if she’s willing to provide it? At the very least I’d like to get the name of the hiring manager so I know who to address the cover letter to.

Just tell her that you’re applying and you’d love any advice or insight she can give you. This is normal to do.

Don’t worry about who you address the cover letter to though — no one cares about that.

4. How can I find work in my field without recent experience?

I left my nonprofit job in late 2008 with the hopes that I would find something else. The economy crashed, and after 4 months of job hunting, I decided to take a job as a nanny with the hope that it would be temporary. I have been applying and interviewing off and on since then, to no avail. I am glad to have income now, but after 4 years, I am ready to go back into the nonprofit world permanently. I have work experience and a master’s degree, but I feel like I am being discriminated against because I haven’t been behind a desk for the past few years and employers would rather hire someone who is currently in the field. I’ve also met a few mothers on the playground who want to go back to work after taking a few years off and are facing the same issue. What do you suggest?

You probably know this, but just to make sure — you’re not being discriminated against in the legal sense; it’s legal and even understandable when you think about it for employers to prefer candidates with more recent experience in their field. Of course, that doesn’t make it any easier on people who are in your situation.

This post has advice for stay-at-home parents who are now returning to work, and it might be helpful for you. Essentially, project work, which lets you start to build contacts and reputation, and networking are going to be your friends. Good luck!

5. Explaining my TPS work authorization

I have been granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The benefits of TPS are temporary protection from removal (or deportation) and employment authorization in United States. The length of this program is 18 months and is extendable.

When an employer ask me “do you need sponsorship now or in the near future,” what should I say?

“I currently have work authorization and don’t need sponsorship.” You can also add, “I expect my authorization to be renewed in the future” if that’s true.

6. I can’t stop thinking about my dream job

I interviewed for a dream job in November. I made it to a third set of interviews and met the team of 7 and had lunch with the VIPs. I never heard back from them. I sent an email to the hiring manager in January and called in February, and first they said they needed to interview someone from out of town, and then they said the job was on hold. It is June, and they reposted the job, with essentially the same job description.

I am going to be starting a new job soon, but I keep on going back to this dream job. I have read that I should just move on, but it is really getting to me what happened with my candidacy … I cannot stop thinking about it, I want that job more than the new one that i will be starting next week. I feel jilted, and really sad when i see this job reposted…and I think why would I want to work there when they treated me that way to begin with?

Should I forget about them or should I contact them again? If I still do not hear back from them, I suppose I would finally give up. If they are still interested, even after I start my new job, should I consider working for them? I am probably holding out hope for nothing, but does it mean by how they acted, that they would not be good to work for anyhow? I do not understand why they never hired me, I really thought they were going to offer me the position, do I ask them why they decided not to? Am I taking this too seriously?

Move on. People don’t get offered jobs for all sorts of reasons, some of which could be about you, some of which could be about them, but all of which mean that the job wasn’t the right fit and you should move on.

You have another job now. Put your energy into excelling at that one, not into one that didn’t materialize. (Moreover, stop thinking of it as your dream job! You have absolutely no idea whether you would have been happy in that job or not; there’s no way to tell for sure from the outside.) Move on, move on, move on.