20% of job seekers still do it with a folder in hand and in person, according to a job expert

20% of job candidates still apply for a job offer in person, i.e. leave their CV to the company, despite the fact that there are currently various digital platforms. 80% do it online. And looking for a job the traditional way gives a person the assurance that their resume has been received and feels “much more effective,” according to employment expert Vanessa Velásquez.

Approximately 295,660 economically active persons are unemployed in Ecuador as of August 2023, according to the monthly report of the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC).

An ad for a supermarket job gets a big response in a shopping center in the north of Guayaquil

“80% of my clients do it virtually, there is a very important issue where CV submission should be less than 20%. The selection processes, in which I sometimes even participate, actually take place through virtual bulletin boards,” says Velásquez.

However, the fact that at least 20% continue to apply in the traditional way is exactly on the side of those who are “desperately” looking for a job.

Furthermore, it indicates that personal job search will be more than evident, but the call will be massive in both modalities: in person or online, the only difference is that on the line the influx is not visible.

“It probably doesn’t matter to a recruiter (whether virtual or in person), but to someone desperate for a job it’s not the same, they feel that a virtual job board doesn’t have the same opportunity to be successful, employable as leaving a resume and knowing they’ve been hired, being safe that he was accepted. Far from applying virtually, even at job fairs organized by the public-private sector, they find it much more efficient to submit their resume and it’s close to: ‘yes, you have a job,'” says Velásquez.

However, for a work specialist, regardless of how one searches for or applies for, or even calls for a job, there is a more serious problem that needs to be taken care of, and that is the limited possibility of getting a job.

“There can be a lot of mechanisms and computer updates, the fact that you don’t go face-to-face with a resume to look for a job and apply to digital job boards ends up in the same thing, where there is a lack of employment. There is a very serious employment crisis in the country, which manifests itself in a certain number of jobs, and those who are looking for them are usually twice, three times, four times larger than the number of existing vacancies”, he says.

Low unemployment rate in Ecuador: 3.5% of the economically active population does not have a job

And what happened recently in Guayaquil is proof of that, he says, referring to the influx of people who came to leave their resumes at a job call sent out by Coral Hipermercados.

A situation similar to the one that happened this Thursday, October 12, happened in Quito last July, where dozens of people came to leave their resumes at the invitation of the Metropolitan Cleaning Company (Emaseo), which had 200 vacancies. but the entity received more than 10,000 resumes.

According to the August Multitrabajos report, the commercial sector represents 44.75% of the jobs companies are looking for, with the most sought-after positions being sales and sales at 19.78% and 18.91% respectively, while customer service at 1, 88% and logistics with 1.92% are the areas with the lowest demand.

One of the challenges for the new president who will be elected this Sunday, October 15, according to Velásquez, after security, is employment, which is considered the second biggest concern of Ecuadorians.