Gaping holes in your CV or a long spell out of work does not mean you have
nothing to offer a prospective employer, Sarah Lang-Jones
tells Amanda Elliot
So you’ve seen a job, got the application form and started putting together
your work history, but suddenly you notice your CV has more holes than a slice
of Swiss cheese. How will you explain away those years of ill-health, unemployment,
depression or globe-trotting without mentioning HIV, or lying through your
teeth?
CV gaps present a particular problem for people living with HIV who feel physically
and psychologically well enough to work, but fear their patchy employment
history will lead to inevitable rejection by employers. It’s enough
to make many tear up the application form and bin the lot along with all their
best intentions.
You do more than you think
Sarah Lang-Jones, career guidance manager for the UKC, tells her clients it
doesn’t have to be that way. She advises HIV positive job seekers stressed
and ‘trapped’ by CV gaps to think positively about what they have
done in those intervening periods.
Some of Sarah’s clients have been out of the employment market for a
considerable time or others have more recently left jobs through ill-health,
or because they couldn’t cope with work after the trauma of receiving
an HIV diagnosis.
“The most common question I get asked is: ‘I’d like to go
back to work but how do I fill the void in my CV?’ says Sarah. “I
advise clients to think about the person they are and where they want to be.
I then get them to and write down all the things they have been doing with
their time.
“It’s good to start by compiling a list of your achievements.
This doesn’t just mean exams or paid work. Include all the real life
things people do like parenting, caring for others, hobbies, exercise programmes,
volunteering, sport, self-taught computer skills or travelling; all valid
activities that require a range of transferable skills. And don’t forget
your hobbies.
“Most people come in saying they’ve ‘done nothing’
but leave realising they have in fact done a great deal. They certainly haven’t
just been watching daytime TV. Dig a bit further and you discover many are
active in tenants’ associations, church groups or play groups. They
may have been the main caregiver or have arranged funerals or tied up affairs
for family or loved ones.”
Making life-skills work on job applications
Sarah encourages clients to get hold of a few employment packs for jobs they
are interested in. Most jobs have a ‘person specification’ that
lists the type of skills, experience and knowledge the employers want.
“First go through the person specification and match your skills to
the spec. For example: the job might require a highly organised person, a
good communicator or perhaps someone good at accurately recording figures.
“If you are secretary of a tenants’ association or keep scores
for your local cricket club you are clearly going to be an accurate record
keeper. Employers are also crying out for people who have good organisational
skills. Once you have matched your life skills to the person spec you can
see if they are transferable to the job description. This will allow you to
clearly identify any skill gaps where you may want to seek further training.”
Golden rules of engagement
Sarah has two golden rules for people with HIV seeking employment. First:
HIV is not stamped on your forehead or, put another way, it is not glaringly
obvious to employers that you are HIV positive. Second: always make the gap
in your CV appear as an active decision on your part rather than ‘something
that has happened to me’ (see box).
Public and charity sector organisations, and most big companies, should follow
equal opportunities polices in their recruitment process. This means, in theory
at least, they should avoid asking probing questions about your illness during
the interview.
But if you are suddenly ambushed by the question, you still don’t have
to disclose.
“You can answer the question honestly without telling them. You could
always describe the symptoms, for example ‘a condition that caused disabling
tingling or numbness in my hands’. The key point to stress is that you
are now in good health and ready and able to work.
Ultimately it is good to remember that people living with HIV are not the
only ones with gaps in their CV. These days portfolio careers are the norm
and career breaks are more likely to be regarded as a positive rather than
a negative thing.
Sarah stresses this point: “Gone are the days when you spent your entire
working life in one job and then retired with a clock at 65. Research shows
now that people have on average between seven and 11 jobs during their working
life. These days we are constantly chopping and changing.”
The truth and nothing but
You think: “I haven’t had a job for five years”
You say: “I took a career break to evaluate my career
You think: “I was diagnosed with HIV four years ago
and couldn’t face working”
You say: “I have had an illness and am now in good
health and ready to return to work.”
You think: “I have spent the best part of my working
years caring for my late partner and trying to get over my loss.”
You say: “I took a career break to care for my late
partner.”
You think: “I cashed in all my savings and blew them
all on a world trip because I though I was going to die”
You say: “I came into some money and decided to travel
- now the wanderlust is out of my system.”
You think: “I have been depressed and isolated since
my diagnosis
You say: “I have taken time out to re-evaluate my career
and learn new skills”
Useful information and resources
• Places are available on the UKC’s Thinking about Work course
for anyone living with HIV having trouble with assessing their transferable
skills and achievements. The courses run 13 April at UKC and at THT in May.
• Contact Sarah-Lang Jones on 020 7564 2180.
Positive East runs an Apply Yourself course. Contact: 020 7791 2855.
• Carl Mills at UKC’s Job Finder Support service on 020 7564 2180
offers one to one advice on job hunting.
• People outside London seeking advice can contact UKC who will
be able to refer callers to appropriate local agencies and advisers. To access
Career Match, a web-based resource, contact UKC as above or complete the transferable
skills self-evaluation form on the UKC website.
