Women: For Pity's Sake, Don't Work

We all lie when applying for jobs, don't we? 

Rarely huge lies, but before we know it we've talked up 3 months of bumming around that happened to include a days kayaking whilst in Australia during a GAP year as a 'life building experience leading a series of team building exercises on a freelance basis'. In fact, I think my six months selling baked potatoes (2 hours a day Mon-Fri. Ah Halycon Days!) in Aix-en-Provence is still down as 'Head of Buying and Acquisitions in Emerging Market'. What? It's true-ish. 

And we do these things because, frankly, our CV's should be a reflection of our potential, not the reality; what you could have done, rather than what you have actually done. 

But there is a subtle moral code at work here, that our employers also buy in to: we only lie about the things that we could actually do. If push came to shove, we really could do what we promised on our slightly overly optimistic CV. Isn't that why getting promoted is so stressful? Some ridiculous boss asks you to do exactly what you told them you could do months ago in an interview. 

OK, so we have all, to a greater or lesser extent, stretched the truth to get a job. But I bet NONE of you have ever had to go to the following lengths to gain employment, or even to get your foot through the door. 

Our excellent friend, who shall remain nameless, has been trying without success to get a 'career job' here for over 2 months. Talented, qualified, intelligent, engaged to an Argentine and as such increasingly fluent in Spanish... in the States, she worked as a Human Resources manager in a large construction company.

So, what's the catch? 

Well, quite a tricky one. She is a girl. A little girlie girl, trying to work as a manager of PEOPLE? Ah, wait until I tell the lads (Senior Management Team) at work. 

And yes, actually, this is a problem, enlightened readers. Because on the recruitment sites it specifies AGE and SEX (but not looks. Though many do ask for PROFESSIONAL APPEARANCE). 

Because on the adverts they ask for AGE and SEX. If you want to be a manager, better be MALE and around 25 - 40. And if you wanna be a Receptionist or a Secretary, you need to be FEMALE and 25 - 30.  

And if you are the wrong sex, you cannot apply. Go to www.zonajobs.com.ar if you don't believe me. You apply for a job as a female when they're looking for a guy, and a big old sign appears: You are not QUALIFIED for this position. 

Hilarious. Well, what does six month of searching for a job in such an environment do to an otherwise sane individual? I'll tell you in the next entry.