For many of us today, the idea of being able to walk back into a regular job after the COVID-19 lockdown can feel fanciful. Many of us will have either lost our jobs or will be on reduced contracts for the foreseeable future. If you wish to make sure you can step away from that role and find something more suited to your present needs, there are some useful suggestions out there for you today. How, though, can you go about opening up future job opportunities in the construction industry once lockdown is complete?
Update your CV
First off, make sure your CV is as up to date as it can be. Many companies will wonder why you aren’t employed; showing them a positive employment history paired with your furlough/redundancy will go a long way to making sure you can find a fair settlement for all involved.
You should definitely look to update your CV so that it reflects where you are in 2020. It might help to open doors that would otherwise have been closed to you.
Reach out to friends
Of course, many friends in the construction industry might be able to help you find some kind of gainful employment again. You should look to reach out to them and see if anyone that you know can help you to land a job in the near future. It might be something part-time, but it could be the best chance to get your foot in the door with a company, hopefully leading to long-term employment.
Learn a new skill
A useful way to help diversify your employment opportunity in construction is to go and pick up a new skill. For example, you might be skilled in joinery at present, but you could also learn some supporting skills. Why not go and enrol in a course... something like bricklaying course or plastering course?
Anything that can give you a helping hand to start learning a new skill and broadening your horizons is very much an idea worth exploring.
Invest in some training
Another great way to help open up new doors that might have otherwise been closed is to take a new course. For example, you could look into taking something like NRSWA courses. This would mean that you could start working on or adjacent to public roads and highways. It’s another skill to add to your collection and could go some way to helping you land a role in an industry that might need more employees than before.
Utilise social media
From updating your LinkedIn to speaking out on social media about your availability, you should not be shy about letting the world know that you are looking for work. The more that you can do to try and raise awareness about your abilities and skills, the more likely it is that you can land a job in the position that you were hoping for.
It’s all about trying to push yourself out of your comfort zone and looking to add to your skill list at present. It won’t be easy, but the results can be very impressive if you are willing to invest the correct amount of time into the process.
Lockdown has been a major issue for all of us, but it does not mean that you have to step back into an employment vacuum. Make some conscious changes like those listed above, and it might be easier to progress as intended.