Addressing the 'A' Word: Re-Entering the Workforce After an Absence

Whether you’ve been raising a family, studying, travelling or caring for an ill family member for 10 months or 10 years, re-entering the workforce after an absence of any length can be extremely daunting.

Ready Resumes has got some great hints to help you create a dynamic resume and cover letter that will make that transition much easier for you.

Mind the gap!
Your resume is NOT the place to address your gap in work history. A gap of any kind should be explained in your cover letter.  So that’s what we’ll review first.

Your cover letter
There's nothing wrong with being out of work for any reason, so the first rule is make sure the tone of your cover letter is not apologetic. A negative attitude will affect your resume and make it that much harder to write. Keep your tone positive and enthusiastic.

Some general points to follow:

  1. Keep it simple, to the point, and to emphasise your strengths. You want to summarise yourself, not tell your whole life story!
  2. Sell the skills, professional accomplishments and experience you gained outside the workforce that relate to the advertised position. For example, if you previously worked in public relations and continued to hone your skills through freelance or volunteer assignments, highlight this. Three examples of how to write this are below.
Examples:
  • "I have remained active in the field of media relations, serving as the chairperson of the public relations committee for the Boys and Girls Club. In this role, I successfully promoted many large-scale fundraising events and secured high-profile media coverage that resulted in an overall increase in public donations to the organisation."
  • “As you will read from the enclosed resume, I hold a Masters Degree in Special Education and have more than ten years of teaching experience in the XYZ and ABC School Districts. Whilst I have taken leave from teaching over the past five years to raise my two daughters, I recently began working as a Substitute Teacher in several local school districts and am anxious to resume a full-time teaching position.”
  • "Due to corporate downsizing, I have been out of the financial market for 10 months. However, during that time I have remained active in professional associations and pursued advanced education, completing six hours toward my M.B.A."
If keeping your skills and contacts up while out of the job market eluded you, think about other transferable experience and skills you developed. Many of the skills you use daily, as mundane or simple as they seem, translate as valuable assets in the business world.

For example:
  • You raised three children. Think of the interpersonal skills, problem solving, decision-making, and supervision skills you've perfected.
  • You managed a household budget. That translates to fiscal responsibility, financial planning and reconciliation.
  • You were a school class co-ordinator. Think about the scheduling, organising and communication of events, transportation, parties and fundraising.
  • You ran the canteen for your children's school.  This is a major business experience. Ordering, co-ordinating, staffing, delegating, dealing with the public, cash flow...the list goes on.
All of these skills translate into real marketable job assets!

However, don’t make potential employers imagine how these are valuable to them. Translate your general skills into benefits for them in a way that shows you are ready, willing and qualified to handle anything. For example, you didn’t just raise three children – you perfected your ability to think on your feet, supervise, and problem-solve in a time-starved environment.

The bottom line is that neither you nor a potential employer should view your time away from the professional workforce as a disadvantage. Take the time to craft your resume and cover letter to accurately present your experience and employment history honestly, and spend the bulk of your letter outlining your skills and accomplishments, your cover letter can be the first step toward re-entering the workforce and a great new job!

Ready Resume Cover Letter examples

Your Resume
Before you write your resume, think about these areas:

1. Research & Assess.
Educate yourself on the key people and practices of the field you want to get into. This will help to give you ideas of companies and areas you might like to explore.

Research what hiring managers are looking for in your target job market. Then assess and match your skills, experience and personal attributes. How would an employer benefit from hiring you?

2. Update Your Skills:
You might find that some of your skills need to be updated. Do anything necessary to compete successfully with job seekers who have remained in the workforce, on steady career paths. Enroll in courses, study, carry out volunteer work or take an online course. Not only will this give you a sense of achievement and boost your confidence, you will also display to a prospective employer that you have been keeping up to date with changes in your industry.

3. Get involved.
Become involved in professional activities. Join an organisation, a school PTA, attend
conferences, undertake volunteer work. These provide great opportunities to network, and you will be able to add recent and relevant experience to your resume. You need to convince employers that you still have what it takes to be successful and to contribute to their goals, despite your workforce absence.

For the nitty gritting on writing and putting your resume together (and some great examples), refer to our page on Writing a Winning Resume

NOTE:  The purpose of this article is to provide information about various employment related topics. No legal advice is being given. Please see the disclaimer for further limitations and conditions.