Blog Identifies Fake Staffing Companies Phishing For Your Data

Called Fake Staffing, http://fakestaffing.blogspot.com/ just saved me from clicking on a link sent by someone claiming to work for forusajobs.com. I hovered over the link and it looked way too long to be anything remotely safe. So I googled forusajobs.com and Fake Staffing came up as one of the top ten Google search results, so Fake Staffing, congratulations for a job well done and getting near the top of Google's search results!
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What's really going on.

Here is what has happened since 2001 in Sangamon County, regarding the workforce:

Applying for work online can be troublesome

I went to Lowe's for some replacement parts. While I was checking out I casually mentioned I previously worked there and was wondering if there was a position open in the Building Materials department.

One of the Customer Service Associates said that someone had transferred from there to the flooring department so a position might be available.

I came home to go online and fill out an application for that position, but it wasn't posted on Lowe's website. I figured 'well it won't hurt to just submit an application' but they make it impossible because they would be flooded with and endless stream of online applications.

I walked into the Capital City Center on Mason Street with my CMS-100 form filled out, just to submit my information, but you can't proactively submit any information without a specific position. There was a time when you could submit your CMS-100 online, but they've since turned that off.

No. I live in Springfield, Illinois.

Last year I also signed up at Kelly Services online, went in and took their tests and performed moderately well on their Microsoft Office tests. I get regular updates from Kelly Services via email, but all the jobs they list on their updates are from every state except Illinois. Are they being funny?

Then recently the Illinois Department of Employment Services has been sending me notifications about hiring events not in Springfield, but in Decatur. Their system must be automated but they need to work on their algorithms.

I couldn't figure out what was going on. I thought it was me, but then just the other day Fox Illinois 55/27, the television station posted a news story on their website: Report: Springfield 9th slowest-growing city in U.S.

Aha! That must be why I never hear from local employment agencies. But get this: According to the report, the city with the lowest overall ranking for growth in the United States is... That's right, Decatur, Illinois.

Express Pros I Don't Know What to Think.

I started working for them again last year and after months and months they finally had someone who could use my skills.

I had the job interview and I really liked the boss at HPR Marketing Group and he hired me to start a few days later.

The day I was supposed to start, I caught a severe cold. What was I supposed to do, call them and tell them I'm sick on the first day of work?

I struggled through that first day and everyone knew I had a cold. By lunch there was a bottle of hand-sanitizer on my desk. That night I got a call from Express telling me I just wasn't a good fit. The boss liked me, but his partner who I never met did not.

The cold was so bad it lasted for five weeks. I don't remember if I ever bothered to go pick up my paycheck for that one day of work, but I sure got a W2 for my taxes. I never heard from Express again about any other work.

What's with Hy-Vee?

A job search engine to which I subscribe sends me a flurry of notifications about jobs opening at Hy-Vee, but over the last few months many of the same positions keep reappearing.

The increased frequency of turnover suggests an increase of intolerable stress, especially for a company that's supposed to be "employee owned."

I applied for a job there as a night stocker. At the interview they looked at my aging obese body and said "we like to people to hustle." Then they fast-walked me back to the service desk.

I've seen how the employees hustle, some employees are much heavier and slower than me, but they were younger. Despite the fact they would have received a tax credit for hiring a veteran, they sent me a rejection email.

No, I'm not going to tell you which store.

Blog Layout Update and New Help

I updated the blog with some Reddit links and a warning page about signing up at one of those websites that are supposed to help you find a job. It includes a video at the end of one experience.

I was inspired by r/Unemployed at Reddit because I keep seeing posts about people on their last thread. I want you to know that you are not alone, so  I included links to some Reddit communities where you can connect with people in your situation.

Live Internet Town Hall March 19 7PM

Coming to the Internet on 3/19/2018
Live Internet Town Hall
Featuring Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Michael Moore

Information Sources:

• The Hill (03/08/2018): Sanders to host town hall on economic inequality
• Huffington Post (03/08/2019): Sanders to host town hall on economic inequality 

Where to watch

• Buzzfeed
• Now This
• The Young Turks
• act.tv
• The Guardian
• Facebook pages for
• Bernie Sanders
• Elizabeth Warren
• Michael Moore