Moving to East Hawaii & Seeking a Job? Pls read.

[malolo]

quote:

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Malolo, if it is "something else entirely," why are there so few caucasians working in county offices?

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Geee.
I dunno Chunkster.
Attitude maybe?

The "I see you don't have what I consider to be enough Swedes/Lithuanians/Italians/Danes on your workforce here, so obviously I'm entitled"-strut?

Confidence in one's abilities is one thing.
Arrogance, something else entirely.

In my experience, arrogance (and/or the equally if not even more annoying "I'm-a-victim"-whininess) generally comes through loud and clear in an interview.

In every situation for that matter.
Anywhere on the planet.
Not just Hawai'i.

As does humility.

What place does humility and a willingness to learn (as opposed to mere bragging about one's qualifications) have in an interview?

Seems to me that everything else being equal, education/experience/referral-wise, it's gonna be pretty obvious, after speaking with folks for a bit, which of the applicants are going to make good team-members /leaders /fellow-workers /employees /partners /whatever... and which of course are not.


---malolo (...who, by the way, thinks that holahan and leilaniguy made some valid points above as well)

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Edited by - malolo on 05/23/2007 23:19:26

[ericlp]

Yeah, I read that article when it first came out as well.

I moved here from oregon too! hahaha

But, I know what to expect. I wouldn't (personally) want to work with a bunch of locals... Not my cup of tea... I'd rather just stay home and do side jobs...

Think about it... If she thought she had it bad in the interview process just think how bad she would have it if she actually got the job!

I'm not saying it's right... It's a Hawaii attitude that should be fixed. Tho, how do you go about fixing it? Fire everyone and rehire?

Tho, this happens on the mainland from time to time as well. It happens and most people don't even think they have done anything wrong. A lot of people are unaware when the are discriminating by ones color. It's like the cops pulling over all the red cars because red draws attention and appears to look faster then the white cars.

It's also a known fact that officials in a basket ball or football game will usually call plays in favor of what color that team is wearing.

I was kind of wondering when someone would post this topic... All I can say is welcome to Hawaii... Bring lots of $$ so you don't need a job!

[loffelkopffl]

maybe alot of the caucasions are over qualified and the locals doing the hiring are afraid it will make them look bad?

but as others have said this is a fact of living here, i always equate it to being in the majority when living on the mainland, what comes around goes around(and around)lol.

[bystander]

It could be just a matter of perception. I see many caucasions working for the county. Portuguese are considered caucasions aren't they? The police dept is dominated by them. Many work in the P and R dept. I guess they aren't the kind of caucasions the OP was talking about though.

I've noticed almost all the OP's posts seem to be about stirring up racial strife. From his "kill haole day post", to locals litering, and now this. It just makes me wonder what his agenda is.



Edited by - bystander on 05/24/2007 07:01:53

[Gardenia Lady]

I moved here one year ago. I am very qualified (that's not being "arrogant" just confident - I do know my skills) for many of the positions that are open in city, county and state gov't.

I think I am patient, a good listener, and teachable. I believe I do work well with others. I don't rattle off my qualifications and don't have a "strut" of any sort. I do my best to be a professional with a pleasant demeanor.

I was rejected for jobs that were not even something I would normally go for but that I was well-qualified for and needing a job. I was rejected for jobs that were exactly the type of work I have been doing for years, with loads of very good references. I have been told many times that I interview extremely well.

I am not pointing a racial finger. I love diversity. I wish everyone were color blind. I do feel there's something other than my skills and personality at work here, unfortunately.

I speak purely from experience. I am not encouraging a heated racial debate here. Please ignore this if you want to say something hurtful.

[Hotzcatz]

Way too many "I"s in that post, Gardinia Lady to be considered humble by local standards. Hmm, every single sentence other than the last one is started with an "I". Generally, humble folks don't put themselves so forward and don't use the "I" word often unless in a sentence such as "What can I do for you?". Even the most self affacing and humble person wouldn't be perceived as modest if all their statements started with "I". If this speech pattern is only typical in this one email, then it should't cause any difficulties in finding employment, however if it is the same speech pattern used in job interviews then it might cause some difficulties.

In many societies, it is considered healthy to have pride in oneself and one's abilities, and it is here, too, but it is anathema for the person to be saying prideful things about themselves. This is especially difficult during a job interview where one is supposed to present oneself in the best possible view. It is pretty difficult since usually when speaking about oneself NOT using "I" is difficult.

Here's a sample job interview:
Prospective employer: "Have you had any experience in this type of work?"
Prideful prospective employee: "I worked for ten years at XYZ company and I was the best worker they had."
Modest prospective employee: "For ten years I was working at XYZ company and I would like to use that experience working for your company and hope you can teach me as much as I learned there."
(Note: there is a sensitivity to folks coming here from the mainland and trying to change things around to the way they are done on the mainland so showing one is experienced yet still willing to learn is a good thing.)

It is much easier to work with a less qualified yet humble and modest person than a really qualified prideful person. Since this is an island with small communities, folks have grown up knowing this on a really basic level and they may not even know they know it.

[aline]

A lot has to do with attitude and it is not the same as interviewing on the mainland. Here qualifications count but so does what they perceive,such as am I going to spend a lot of time and money on training this person only to have them leave in a few months. Does this person have a sense of community and wants to belong. I also found that while interviewing aggressively on the mainland is the norm like "strutting your stuff" I can see where it would have the opposite effect here as it would be perceived as being "better than you"and could easily come across as arrogant. It doesnt matter if it is not true it is how it is perceived.

[nnickle]

Ok here is my 2 cents for what it is worth. I am a haole. Moved here 10 years ago. Never had any problems getting a job. I am in Human Resources. Worked for a major lumber company, worked for an insurance broker and now a shipping company for over 7 years. I am the first haole to work for the company. I have interviewed both local and non locals had to decide which to hire. Attitude is part of the deal, knowing how much money and training will go into the position only to have the non-local move both having the same qualifications, quess who I hired. I do not strutt by stuff acting as if I am better than them even tho I have much more education.

[bystander]

If you want to see real discrimination here, look at the situation of black people. Ever wonder why there are so few here? Have any of you ever seen a black person working a county job? I know plenty of locals who freely use the "N" word when refering to them.

[Bill]

I guess that I have to agree, that there may be valid reasons why newcomers may have a difficult time finding employment. I learned early on as a manager in Alaska,that new arrivals were very risky to hire. Due to our remoteness from the rest of the world, and the weather and the costs, many folks did not last a year. The husband may have liked it, but the wife hated it....it all sounded good in the books, but after the realism set in, of how far from family and friends, of how the long winters, ect. ect. many would leave.

I think that in many ways, Hawaii is similar to Alaska in that regard.

I learned that the cost of training, the scheduling of vacations, the relationships with our customers were all made more difficult when we had someone leave, so I always preferred to interview and hire long term Alaskans; it made my life much easier.

After people had a couple of years under their belt, and I could easily get a sense of how they were fitting in, while interviewing, and I was more likely to look at them as potential long term employees.

Probably true here too.

"Be kind whenever possible; it is always possible"
-Dalai Lama-