December 27, 2009

Looking For Work in France

As soon as my contract at the restaurant ended in October, I gathered all of my paperwork and went to register with the unemployment office in Béziers. It was an errand that took a ridiculous amount of time driving around lost in a Zone Industrielle with unmarked streets before I finally stumbled across the nondescript Pôle-Emploi building surrounded by car dealerships.

Once there I met with a couple of young, perky fonctionnaires and left the office with my all important registration number and yet another dossier crammed full of information to translate.

Almost every morning I dutifully log in to their website to see what jobs are available within a 50 kilometer radius of our village. You'll never guess what employment opportunity popped up on my search the other day...



a job as a shepherd.


For a second it looked intriguing.

Then I read the job requirements and they only wanted a shepherd with at least three years experience.

Guess that leaves me out of the running. Pin It

14 comments:

David said...

Hey, at least it's all the brebis you can eat...

georgiegirl said...

Very funny. I was thinking the same thing that David said.

Jamie said...

Mary had a little lamb... could be cute. I really think that you should consider becoming a fonctionnaire, I mean didn't you see on the news that there are more fonctionnaire employed in France than non-f's? Jobs galore! I'll bet that shepherd is one. Great benefits, no work required and a million vacation days a year! And you can never be fired!

You are one brave soul job-hunting in France!

spacedlaw said...

Strange. Not the type of job I would have expected ever to surface at the ANPE.

Polly-Vous Francais said...

Little Bo Peep! How adorable. Maybe you have other transferable skills/experience that could help you at least land an interview? :)

JChevais said...

Loulou had a little lamb...

Srsly, are you sure you didn't also need a CAP or BEP or whatever the hell diploma to apply for the job?

Lol!

Jennifer said...

David and georgiegirl
Don't think that didn't cross my mind too!

Jamie
The whole thing is a bit daunting, especially since I've had so many kinds of jobs in different fields over the years and that isn't looked kindly upon here.
I would love to work in a Fromagerie! :)

spacedlaw
Me neither. And the job that followed it was for a tractor driver. lol

Polly
I think it was a live-in situation (as in, live in a stone hut in the mountains). I would miss my family too much. And my shower.

JChevais
There are currently 3 shepherd jobs offered in France. One of them does ask for NIV. 3 (BAC+2) Ecologie. :)

Vivi said...

OH my goodness, you know I feel your pain! Of course I wasn't obliged to log into the site every day because I wasn't signed up with the ANPE, but I did anyway in order to get the jump on getting my CV in the right hands ASAP. The funniest one I saw on my search was a coach for American football. Too bad I don't know the rules perfectly... Good luck!!

Kathleen said...

Wow. Shepard, huh? In the positive column you'd get plenty of exercise!

Maria said...

bummer....the outfit look tres joli.

Anonymous said...

I don't envy your job search! Good luck and bon courage.

Jennifer said...

Vivi
A coach for football? How funny!
Thanks for the good wishes. Fingers crossed I'll find something soon.

Kathleen
I would need the exercise to work off all of the cheese calories I would ingest!

maria
Cute, isn't it?

Dedene
Merci!

Amanda said...

lol wow! I am so intrigued by your blog... I love France but not Vogue's version... more like YOUR version! Real like stuff!

Blessings-
Amanda

Jennifer said...

Amanda
My life? Vogue? lol
The real France is not anything like the Vogue version. It is so much better!

Love your 2010 petit fours. Hope you have a Happy New Year!