Dislocated Workers Program (a necessary rant)

I recently joined a Dislocated Workers Program to gain access to job-related resources and grants that would help me take job-related courses and even cover tuition for a career change (which first has to be approved by the case worker and a grant has to be written -- I took a grant writing class so I could even write my own grant).

But, I just have a bad feeling about the case worker I have been paired with. He's brand new - 6 weeks into the job and he has no career counseling experience or supervisory experience in his previous jobs. Plus, he is a man and as my threads have shown here, I have serious trigger issues with men in general.

The Dislocated worker program supervisor who paired us, was at my first meeting. She's 27 years old. So, there I was, sitting across from a guy with no career counseling experience, new on the job, with a young woman who has been in her role for 5 years.

I know everyone has to start somewhere. But, I also know myself very well. And, I could see myself arguing with this guy all the time because I used to teach resume writing; I took a graduate level grant writing course; have taught students as a former teacher so I have supervisory experience; and have serious trigger issues with men in general related to my father and other abusive men in my past.

So, I emailed the Dislocated supervisor tonight and cc'd the new guy and told them that I was going to cancel my 2nd meeting and that I would call the supervisor to discuss being paired with a woman case worker who has been in her role for more than 6 weeks.

My hope is that neither of these two people will try to talk me out of my values -- like try to undermine me and try to convince me that the things I want (a seasoned case worker/career counselor who is a woman older than 30) is too difficult to provide to me.

If either of these two people do that, I won't listen to them. I believe in myself and I'm willing to do the work to be a better person so that I can find a great job that fulfills me and isn't the wrong job just for health insurance or a paycheck (temping has been hell but it pays the bills when I get temp work).

They won't convince me to stop asking for what I need. Why should I stay with this guy as my career counselor/case worker if I know on a gut-level he is 100% wrong for me.

After my first meeting with the two of them, she went back to her office and the new guy walked me out to the lobby. He attempted to sympathize with me but it ended up just rubbing salt in my wound. Why? Because, he said, "I've been in your shoes when I was let go from my last job. I used my year's severance and worked a part-time retail job, etc. until I was hired here."

First of all, he needs a hearing aid. I spent 30 minutes in a small room telling these two people my job history and my life story. I think he is either inept or has very poor people skills and has no business counseling ANYONE in their career paths.

You don't tell a woman that you had the financial security of a year's severance, plus a wife who works, and savings, to help you through your job transition who just finished telling you that she is living week to week, with no savings, with a mentally ill roommate, in a masters program that has zero practical application because there's no license or certificate attached to it at the end of the masters program.

He was totally oblivious to what I just shared about my journey in the workforce and I felt minimized, insulted, and invisible. Like hell I am going to let this person counsel me as a career counselor. Like hell I am. *rant over*

Will you be able to get paired with someone else or do you have to take what they give you?

@sarahsweets I hope I can get paired with someone else. Since it's not through my county and through Goodwill Easter-Seals, if the supervisor tells me that I'm stuck with him as my career counselor/case worker, I will leave that program, and join the county one instead. Both are the exact same and use the same resources. I just didn't know the county offered a Dislocated Worker program until after I'd already contacted the GES Dislocated Worker program.

I called the supervisor and left her a voicemail today. Apparently, the email I sent must not have been read by either her or the career counselor/case worker as the case worker sent me an email in response to my "Canceled: Meeting today" invitation. He wrote, "thanks for your time today." Like I said, inept?!

I had already canceled our meeting via email by rejecting the email invitation so he could clearly see that... and that was his response?! Thanks for what time? We only met once and that was last week with his supervisor.

I cannot put the trajectory of my job search in this man's control. I hope the supervisor calls me back by tomorrow. Otherwise, I will go to the physical location and see if I can met with someone else.

Also, he'd said in our first meeting he would email me 4 to 6 online interest/career assessments and he never did that. He's the full-time employee. I understand mistakes happen. But if you're going to take a job as a career counselor, you can't screw up like that. That just makes you look untrustworthy because you don't follow through on your word.

He also probably never had to manage more than a few people in his previous work. But if you become a career counselor/case worker for Dislocated Workers programs, you can be expected to manage more than 10 people at a time, easily.

Clearly, he's already demonstrated that he can't follow through with what he said he'd do for me in our first meeting with his supervisor who was also at the meeting. If you can't even take the time to attach 4-6 links of career assessments to one of your dislocated workers, then what the hell are you doing as a career counselor?! You have to be able to manage your time, and all the case notes and activities you've discussed with your dislocated worker.

I could be a better case worker than this guy -- except I have a low tolerance for people in general so I would fail in what is 99% of the job: managing other people's expectations and psychological state.

The supervisor called me back. Turns out, my gut was right. He is overwhelmed b/c he's the only career counselor for ONE county. Um, that's horrible. The supervisor told me she would forward my case to another office that has three times the staff. Now, I just have to wait and see who contacts me from the other office.