ON THIS PAGE:

-Story: Cashing in with Coupons
-Tips for Selling Jewlery
-Job Links
-Money Savers
-Tips for Finding a Job
-How to Avoid Employment Scams

• Story: Cashing in with Coupons - plus tips for couponing

Web Extra: Interactive Map of U.S. Unemployment by State (AP)

Unemployment Numbers, By County

Extra: What you should know if you plan to pawn. Click on the video above.

Headlines - See A Full List of Economy-Related Stories Here

North Carolina IT Job Trends Report [pdf] - January 2009
What To Do If Your Company Stops 401(k) Match -- (02/20/09)
Special Report: Preparing For A Layoff  (03/05/09)
Cell Phone Users Switch Plans To Save Money  (03/24/09)
Special Report: Where Are The Loans?  (03/26/09)

Filing For Unemployment Benefits

       • By Phone: 1-877-841-9617
       • Online: NC Employment Security Commission


Tips for Selling Jewelry 

• Consider getting your jewelry appraised first. Go to a professionally accredited gem and jewelry appraiser who does not buy or sell jewelry. You'll walk out with an appraised value that you can use.
  
• Expect to pay a fee. The gemological institute charges $35 to have a plain gold item appraised.
  
• Look for an inspection seal on the scale. The main tip is to make sure the scale that your gold is being weighed on has been tested and verified that the calibration is correct.
  
• Think twice about mailing your jewelry. A recent complaint received by Virginia's Office of Consumer Affairs was from a Virginian who sent gold jewelry to a company in Maryland then heard nothing further. The case is pending. Consumer Affairs tracked the company to Florida, spokeswoman Marion Horsley said.
  
• The Better Business Bureau of Southeast Florida and the Caribbean in West Palm Beach, Fla., warned consumers about one company, Cash4Gold, which it rates a D minus. That company is the subject of 348 complaints. 
  
• If you mail it, get a delivery confirmation and insure it. Spend a few cents more and add a delivery confirmation to your package, urged Cathy Boule, district communications coordinator for the U.S. Postal Service. Also, proper packaging is critical, she said. Place the items in a well-padded envelope or a box. Photograph and describe what you're sending and stick in a copy to the recipient, Ehrenwald said. Insure it for what you feel it's worth.
  
  
  
  Money Savers 
• Recession Proof Jobs (Forbes - 07/19/08)
• NBC17 Special Report: Inexpensive Holidays
• Money Survival Guide - What Steps Are You Taking To Save?  
• Budget Calculator
• Look Up Free Resume Printing At FedEx Offices

Other Links

• Federal Reserve
• The Unemployment Security Commission of NC
• Fidelity Investments
• Wall Street Journal Summary Of Bailout Plan
• Timeline of Mortgage Crisis
• Interactive Primer On Foreclosures
• Financial Stability

Fear A Layoff?

Richard Bayer, an economist and chief operating officer of The Five O'Clock Club, a national career-coaching and outplacement organization, said there are several steps people can take to help keep their jobs while preparing for the worst -- a layoff.

Here are some tips:

• Get your ducks in a row: People who have not been laid off but consider it a possibility should start testing their market with a preliminary job search.
  It shouldn't be an aggressive job search, but you need to go through all of the initial steps.
• Link yourself to important projects: The best way to protect yourself at your job is to take assignments that are important to the future of the company. These projects will help boost your status and keep you in front of those who hold your job's fate in their hands.
• Get your résumé in order: The easiest thing you can do to get prepared for a layoff is to update your résumé. Be sure to include very specific information about the projects you've worked on. You need to know your résumé like the back of your hand.
• Keep in touch with your contacts: After your initial meeting or phone call with these companies, stay in front of them. Give your contacts there a call every six to eight weeks. Let them know how you're doing and how much you enjoyed meeting them.
• Network: Keep building and nurturing your list of other business contacts. Go to trade-association meetings to keep up with changes in your industry. Join social networks such as LinkedIn to cast a wide net for contacts.
  

Finding A Job

• Manpower Inc.
• LinkedIn
• Monster.com
• North Carolina Jobs
• North Carolina Office Of State Personnel
• Help Wanted Triangle
• Tips For Job Search Success (NBC17 Story - 11/24/08)
• Cameron Village Library Offers Free Resume Help  (Press Release 2/18/09)
• Durham JobLink Career Center
• 2009 Spring Capital Area Joblink Career Expo at the Mckimmon Conference and Training Center (Press Release 3/9/09)
  

Tips for the job search:

• Do not use your severance time as a time to wait. "Some people make the mistake of saying, 'Everybody's going to be looking right away so I'll wait until the end. I'll take advantage of this time off,'" said Jane Snead, branch manager for Ajilon Professional Staffing. "You need to be getting your résumé out and networking."
• Network with everyone you know, from business colleagues to neighbors to church members.
• Stay involved in your field in some way, possibly through association work or through volunteer work while you look, said Charlene Jeter, who was laid off as vice president for marketing at SunTrust MidAtlantic. If nothing else, "It gives you something to talk about," she said.
• Use the Internet to make connections. Post your profile on sites such as LinkedIn.com, build up your recommendations there and create connections online.
• Assess the opportunities. Are jobs available in your field in your region? If not, are you willing to move? Look for employment ads in print and online at sites such as monster.com and hotjobs.com.
• Be creative. "Just because people got laid off doesn't meant they got stripped of their talents," said Elinor Burstein, president of Placement Professionals. "People have a whole toolbox of things they've done and talents they've never explored. It's a time they have to take an inventory. That's where creativity comes in." Switching careers or starting your own business are among the possibilities.
• Work at it. "You have to hustle," said Keisha Snead, who's working at a temporary job that resulted from her persistence. "You have to keep calling them. Don't sit around and wait for somebody to call you. That's not going to work."
• Supplement your personal job search with a recruiter. Generally there's no cost to the job searcher.
• Stay positive. "The most important thing is a great mental attitude," Burstein said. "Don't get in a depression over it. If you want to mourn, wait until you have a job. It's not a permanent thing. It will change. As soon as you find a job, you won't be unemployed." 
  

Consumer Alert from AG Cooper: Watch out for employment scams in a tough job market

• Thousands of people across North Carolina have been victims of recent layoffs and are looking for work.  But watch out for scams that seek to take advantage of job hunters, Attorney General Roy Cooper warned consumers today.
• “Promises of a great new job or a chance to earn thousands of dollars a week working from home can sound tempting, especially if you’ve recently lost your job,” Cooper said.  “But watch out for employment scams that will cost you instead of helping you earn money.”

Here are some tips to help you avoid getting scammed when you’re looking for a job:

• Check out a company thoroughly before you apply for a job with them.  You can check with the Attorney General’s Office and your local Better Business Bureau to find out about a company’s track record.
• Never pay for information about a work-at-home offer, or for any kind of start-up kit, instructional booklet or list of clients.
• Avoid applying for jobs where you’re asked to pay an application fee or required to pay for a training course before the job actually begins.
• Steer clear of job offers or opportunities that promise you’ll earn a commission by transferring money through your account, cashing checks, or working as a secret shopper to test out wire services.  These are schemes to steal your money, not legitimate employment opportunities.
• Be skeptical of employment agencies that guarantee they’ll get you a job, and beware of agencies that charge up-front fees even if they promise you a refund if you aren’t satisfied.
• Watch out for job interviews that turn out to be recruitment sessions for pyramid schemes.  Employment ads in newspapers or on the Internet are sometimes used to recruit new members into the pyramid.  Under North Carolina law, a pyramid scheme is any plan in which a participant pays money for the chance to make money when new participants join the program.  
• To report a potential scam, file a complaint, or check out a company, contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 1-877-5-NO-SCAM toll-free within North Carolina.  You can also download a complaint form at www.ncdoj.gov.
  

BBB Warns of Employment Scams

With unemployment rates at 25-year highs—8.1 percent nationally and 9.7 percent in North Carolina, according to the U.S. Department of Labor—people are exploring all avenues in search of new jobs. Better Business Bureau of Eastern North Carolina (www.bbb.org) warns consumers to use caution when dealing with companies offering help in the job search. Complaints are being filed regarding the deceptive practices of several companies offering employment opportunities.

Highlighted in BBB's March 2009 Consumer Alerts, Talent 6 offers jobs for extras, models and actors in movies, videos and reality TV shows. Complainants are dissatisfied with job opportunities posed on the business's Web site and reference difficulty in obtaining refunds. At first, consumers are told they can cancel during the first two weeks. Then they are told they can only cancel after 90 days, and only if they haven't been contacted by a director. One consumer was informed she had to pay $4,500 for the subscription. More than 125 complaints have been filed against this company, and they have the BBB's lowest rating.

"It's truly disheartening to see companies taking advantage of people searching for employment," says Beverly Baskin, president and CEO of Better Business Bureau of Eastern North Carolina. "Their unscrupulous activities come at a time when unemployment figures are at their highest levels in a quarter century."

A second company, Advancement Solutions, is offering employment opportunities as body guards, special agents and prisoner transporters. Complainants cite issues with sales practices, guarantees, refunds and advertising. "We are not a hiring company, only a headhunter service that provides consumers help in getting a position," states an Advancement Solutions representative in response to BBB's request for substantiation. Most of the complaints filed through the BBB are unresolved, and the company has the BBB's lowest rating.

Consumers are encouraged to contact BBB through its Web site at www.bbb.org, if they have similar experiences with these or other companies.

Got some resource suggestions? E-mail them to wncnwebcontacts@wncn.com.

Related Links

1. A List of Companies That Have Stopped 401(k) Matches