Milo, Carrie, Alex and Maggie don’t have jobs at the moment. All four of them are out of work for various reasons. Listen to what they say about their present job situations.
Milo: I lost my job three weeks ago, but I’m not worried because I know I’ll get another job soon. I’m very optimistic about my chances for finding work again quickly. I work in retail, and there are lots of opportunities in this work sector at the moment. I’ve already had three interviews and was offered the position after each interview, but the working hours were not what I wanted so I didn’t take the jobs. I’ve three more interviews scheduled for Thursday and Friday the week after next. I’ve worked in four different types of shops over the last five years, so I’ve got plenty of experience selling different sorts of goods. I love working in shops and meeting people. I am a very sociable person and dealing with the general public in retail is definitely the right career for me.
Carrie: This is the second time I’ve been out of work in the last two years. My last job finished four weeks ago, but I knew it would because I was on a contract for six months. I am a waiter and usually work in a hotel. I enjoy my work but really I would like to stop full-time work, get a part-time position and go to college to train to be a chef. I know that I could cook as well as some of the chefs I’ve worked with. It is very difficult to get a part-time job at the moment. No hotels are taking on part-timers. I have an interview next Friday in an Italian restaurant but it’s for a full-time position. I’ll take it if they offer it to me and just look around for something with fewer hours.
Alex: I’ve been working full-time since I was eighteen, and this is the first time I’ve been out of work. Yes, I’ve been working for more than ten years now so it seems very strange at the moment not to have a job. I need to find something quickly because my wife doesn’t work and we have two children and a mortgage. I also give my mother some money each month to help her out. I’m a shipping clerk and have worked in the offices of the same company for the last four years. Three of us lost our jobs at the same time because our company owed thousands of dollars to factories in China. I don’t know how long the company will survive. It’s a worrying time for everyone who works there.
Maggie: My friends think I was very silly to give up my last job, but I hated it so I had to go. I couldn’t stand it any more. We got a new hospital manager and there was a clash of personalities between the two of us. Everything changed when she came to work with us. Nobody got on with her, but I was the one she disliked the most. I chose to leave. She didn’t push me out. I want to make that clear. I think she had a very unprofessional approach to her job. I’m not going to give you all the details, but she should have felt forced to leave, not me. But I have an interview tomorrow and I think it’s pretty certain I’ll get the job because I’ve worked there before and everyone knows me. So, wish me luck!