Friday, October 3, 2008

discrimination against the 'over-qualified'

I am regularly contacted by people who tell me that they are unsuccessful in obtaining work in Tasmania because they are 'over-qualified'.

This is particularly so for people who are considering moving to Tasmania.

I fail to understand how and why someone can be over-qualified.

I know I harp on about skill shortages (with due reason), however when someone specifically wants to work in Tasmania yet are continually knocked back interview after interview because they are too qualified it makes me wonder whether Tasmanian employers really want to help themselves.

I think it is the right of the job seeker to decide what sort of work they want to apply for. I would have thought having someone highly qualified would have been a positive for the job seeker.

What is it that is preventing organisations employing highly skilled and qualified people?
  • risk of attrition?
  • do they feel threatened?
  • think they have to pay them more?

I am really interested in some feedback on this particular topic.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's not just the 'over-qualified'. It also includes the 'over-articulate' and anyone with glasses.

It's just the excuse they give on the day. Though they are all united by the fear of employing someone who is not stupid, or, more importantly, not 'one of us'.

Illiteracy and inarticulateness are seen as indicators of loyalty and a propensity to not 'move-on' (leave Tasmania).

As a result dimwits are economically rewarded in Tasmania and the bright sparks get by on the dole, if they stubbornly refuse to leave the island.

The labour shortage may help change this but not until those rewarded by the current cultural 'regime' are kicked out. Reading this blog post it still sounds like it's a long way away.

As one of the long term unemployed I have seen this time and again. I have never been accepted into an entry level job here and never will be (at my age now I should be training others. Actually the shortage in trainers you've previously outlined is directly related the lack of employment (opportunities and experience) in the late 80s and nineties for gen x and y). Dimwits lack foresight.

It's not a conspiracy per se, just a refusal to accept who actually lives in Tasmania. It's part of the reason why hippies and the Exclusive Brethren like living here. It's easier to disengage when potential employers look past you in hope of some ideal person they failed to train/employ/give experience to a decade or more ago. Diddums.

The only ones deserving of 'help' are illiterate logging families, and the only ones entitled to employ them wear tweed (at least psychologically). No doubt because they (Masonically) fear that otherwise the Papist french or revolutionary russkies will take over or something.

[The resistance to the Gunns mill in the Tamar shows this as changing, however (too late for me with 20+ years on the dole). I like to think of the pulp mill battle as between two superannuation funds: RBF of Tas (mostly public servants' super) has 20% in Gunns and the leading voices in the Tamar have invested their super in vineyards and strawberries and such. Pity the recent Wall St financial crisis has taken the stuffing out of this proposal, and we won't see it played out to a climax so much as fizzle.]

Anonymous said...

i would laugh if it wasnt so true

Anonymous said...

Whew! Now there's a response for you Lisa! I find I agree with a lot of what Anon 11.40 says.

At a time when I was particularly disenchanted with work a few years back I too applied for a job which I deliberately selected as being one that I genuinely wanted to do but knew well I was way overqualified for. I knew I would also be discriminated against so deliberately dumbed down my resume.

I got an interview but not the job. The reason I was given was that they felt as I was so overqualified (AFTER I'd dumbed the resume down!!) I'd get bored and leave in a few months.

The recruiter I'd originally sent my resume to had assured me that I was ideally suited to the job after she'd questioned me about my motivations for applying, and my prior qualifications and experience. She took what I'd told her on face value, so employer should have trusted the expertise of their recruiter.
Helen

Lisa Taylor said...

Phew indeed!

It's certainly an issue that has me baffled.

I hear so much from people who are wanting to get jobs in Tasmania, whether they are here or not, but can't for whatever reason. Yet on face value appear to be qualified, experienced and potentially valuable employees.

I should have added 'age' to the original blog about discrimination, as many of the above-mentioned people are 50+ years of age.

So what do we do?

Anonymous said...

Who is 'we'? Are they one of us?

Wish I was.

Anonymous said...

The 'we' referred to by Lisa is the collective 'we' who meet here on this blogsite to discuss these issues of (presumably) mutual interest.
I think the onus must be on the employer to consider these people along with sole parents returning to work, and people with a slight disability but who want to work.

The link below will take you to a post relating to this subject:

http://pc-rita.blogspot.com/2008/10/experienced-kitchen-steward-job-going.html

Helen

Lisa Taylor said...

Yes, the proverbial 'we'.

I refer back to the blog post 'addressing new problems with old strategies' very few people appear to be willing take responsibility and make change.

It's very easy to be a commenting observer, but what is needed is a collective 'we' who are commited to finding and delivering a new strategy to address these new problems we face.

I think though that there will always be some feathers ruffled in these instances.