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(Editor’s note: As the West Michigan economy turns around and companies are starting to hire again, some people are still feeling left out of the rebound. While much ink has been printed about employers’ hiring concerns, MiBiz wanted to turn the tables and ask job seekers what issues they’re running into. We hope this piece can help inform the business community about what this particular subset of the candidates is experiencing, and we hope to start a dialogue with area HR managers. Send us your feedback at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .)

By Andy Domino | MiBiz
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WEST MICHIGAN — Job seekers, especially those who have been out of college for decades, want employers to know they’re not too good for a good job.

In March 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported preliminary figures of about 9.9 percent unemployment in West Michigan cities from Muskegon to Niles, and a U.S. average unemployment rate of about 8.8 percent. A constant stream of new graduates makes for a competitive job market, even when the unemployment rate is significantly lower. The combination of a high unemployment rate and all those college kids means jobs for people over 35 are hard to come by.

“(An interviewer said,) ‘Based on your qualifications, you should be doing my job,” said Mac Hultmark, 40, who is looking for a job in data analysis or sales.

Ageism, deliberately rejecting a potential employee for being too old, is rarely, if ever, the problem. Instead, it’s the feeling that being older brings with it certain expectations. Job seekers say employers are worried that hiring an older worker and spending time and money training him or her will all be for naught. They anticipate that a worker will flee the new company as soon as a position that better fits his or her skills or needs makes an offer.

“(In one interview) they didn’t use the word overqualified, but voiced a concern that I would leave when the economy picked up,” said Rick Wood, 58, who has a background in metallurgy and technical education.

Workers say they often feel that any paycheck is better than nothing at all, but don’t feel they can make that point in an interview. Debbie Selcz, 56, who is experienced in financial analysis, said she tried to counter claims that she’d be bored at a more entry-level position than what she was qualified for by saying she could use it to build her own skills.

“I tried to turn it into a positive,” she said. “(I said,) ‘It would give me an opportunity to learn your processes and systems, so that I could be in a better position to help develop improvements.”

That attempt didn’t succeed; Selcz is still looking for work.

Despite the drawbacks, older workers do have one advantage many younger people do not: a little bit of a “cushion.” Many have a rainy day savings fund, and some are able to save money by relying on a still-employed spouse and cutting expenses.

“My wife is still working, so I have the time to search for a job I want, not what I’m forced to do,” said Maynard Knight, 53. He’s still looking for a position that uses his data analysis training.

However, that cushion can only protect a worker for so long. Several workers said they’ve been out of a job for a year or more. That’s led many of them to consider new lines of work, either by returning to school or simply applying for jobs that appear to be less than ideal for their skill sets. Potential employees say that while they would prefer a job that makes use of their abilities and extensive resume, they’ll take what they can find. Steve Danyi, 37, has been out of work for two years. His experience is in manufacturing, specifically in glass fabricating, but he’s open to positions that don’t necessarily have to do with glass at all.

“I’m keeping my contacts (in the glass industry) but I may have to go elsewhere,” he said. “After the first year, I expanded my search.”

Hultmark said he’s trying to stretch his definition of a job, even by trying to market his talent as a piano player.

The older job seekers say a problem they have not had is keeping up with technology, making the caricature of an employee who can’t even power up a computer a thing of the past. Like employees in nearly every office, computers are constantly being updated, and employers push to have the latest programs at their fingertips. Experienced employees say they have little problem meeting the qualifications for professional computer skills, from complex computer-aided design programs to database software.

It’s the so-called soft skills, like relationship building and teamwork, that are more of a challenge, said Knight, who last conducted a job search when he graduated from college in 1981.

“After working so long, how do I find a job in today’s market?” he said. “The computer thing wasn’t an issue for me — it was how to answer questions in the new style of HR. Situational questions, like, ‘What do you do when you run into someone who’s antagonistic?’”

Selcz said the job market now is in some ways very similar to the way it was in the early 1980s.

“Applications were made in person or through the mail, and then there were long waits for responses,” she said. “Now, email and the Internet has increased the search capability, but has done nothing to improve the long waits for decisions.”

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TAGS:

• ageism
• debbie selcz
• human resources
• job seekers
• mac hultmark
• rick wood
• west michigan