10 professions looking for NYC employees
NEW YORK POST article .pdf – Posted: 12:28 AM, September 5, 2010 – By LEISHA BOND
10 professions looking for NYC employees
Help wanted — no, really!
It may be hard to believe, with the national unemployment rate hovering at 9.6 percent, but there are businesses in New York looking for new workers. Despite the recession, some companies have found it difficult to find qualified candidates.
What’s more, many of these local firms are prepared to dangle fat salaries and handsome perks to win you over.
Investment banking firm Allegiance Capital is one such frustrated employer, offering a million-dollar pay package with a Park Avenue office to two worthy candidates.
Despite advertising the lucrative positions for almost six weeks, they’ve yet to be inundated with qualified resumes.
“We are looking for highly skilled applicants and we are ready to sort through hundreds to find a good match,” said the firm’s managing director, Christopher Parisi.
“Currently, we’re challenged to find the best way to alert good candidates about these positions. We thought it would be easier to reach them in this market, but that hasn’t been the case.”
And the firm is not alone in its struggle to fill high-paying vacancies.
Labor Department analyst Jim Brown said it was hardly shocking that so many employers were in a hiring fix, despite the 380,000 Gothamites currently out of work.
“There are thousands of occupations and there will always be sets of skills that are in short supply,” he said.
In just five days The Post has found 10 employers looking for help.
1 HANDLERS FOR BEDBUG-SNIFFING DOGS It’s a job that would make most people’s skin crawl. While bedbug outbreaks have been good business for pest exterminators, they have also increased demand for dogs trained in sniffing out vermin. Assured Environments in Manhattan has been searching for at least two handlers for more than a month with no success. The role requires someone with proven experience in training canines in law enforcement or another professional capacity and must be prepared to care for the animal after-hours. Salary: $40K-80K
2 INVESTMENT BANKERS Allegiance Capital’s Park Avenue office thought its biggest challenge would be sorting through a mountain of resumes when it posted two openings paying big bucks six weeks ago. But the firm, which focuses on the sale of privately held companies, has struggled to find candidates with qualifications that include C-level operational experience, industry specialization and access to high-yielding networks. The firm is also looking to fill another six positions outside the city. Salary: $1M plus (commission-based)
3 SENIOR ONLINE AD SALES EXECUTIVES Advertising entered the Web age long ago, but still few people possess the high-level experience required to manage online campaigns and branding initiatives for major players in consumer package goods like Kraft and Nestlé. If you have the right skills, you’re pretty much guaranteed a job. Salary: $180K (plus commission)
4 E-COMMERCE SECURITY For the past two months, Todd Morris of Brickhouse Security has been trying to fill seven open positions. While the Manhattan company’s inbox has been swamped with applications, only four job-hunters out of hundreds have been qualified for the positions ranging from VP of finance to copywriter and project manager. Morris is looking for people who have broad skills and have exceled in similar firms. Salary: $40K to $100K
5 RUBY ON RAILS DEVELOPERS It may be a job title that’s best explained by the tech nerds, but it also happens to be one of the most sought-after roles in the online realm. A Web framework used to build sites such as Twitter, Ruby on Rails is experiencing a shortage of developers because the software is so new. Tram Tran, a specialized recruiter at RoR Power, said she is on the hunt for at least 15 to 20 good New York-based developers every month. Salary: $80K- $140K.
6 NURSES FOR FLU SEASON The onset of winter means Manhattan headhunters Prime Staffing must fill 75 positions with experienced registered nurses happy to provide endless flu shots from mid-September to March at New York’s top hospitals, clinics and private companies. Salary: $40 – $50 an hour
7 FAÇADE RESTORATION CONTRACTORS Gary Zaremba said a fruitless search for experienced contractors skilled in restoring the face of city landmarks has prevented his thriving Manhattan business — Artisan Restoration Group — from expanding. He needs up to 10 construction workers, but also two project managers who combine technical know-how with solid leadership skills. Salary: $125-$200 per day for workers; $75K for project managers
8 NON-PROFIT MANAGERS Community Option Enterprises, a non-profit specializing in developing housing for disabled people and offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn, has tried all sorts of incentives, including paying its staff recruiting bonuses in order to find six high-level managers — positions that have been vacant for the past six months. Candidates must be experienced for the job and display a long-term commitment. “I am not interested in people using me as a bus stop,” said CEO Robert Stack. Salary: $90K – $175K
9 FACTORY WORKERS Retaining workers in this troubled economy has been MHT Lighting’s biggest challenge in filling up to 10 positions at its Staten Island factory, which manufactures commercial induction lighting. $10-15 per hour
10 FBI AGENTS Special agents, in telligence analysts and linguists are just a few jobs perpetually up for grabs but difficult to fill because of the extensive screening process. All candidates must undergo rigorous testing, hold US citizenship and pass a national security clearance check. Salary: $30K to $100K.