Jobseeker 'told to dumb down CV'

Work and Income has been asked to explain claims that it told a woman to "dumb down" her CV to boost her chances of landing a job.

Napier woman Natalie Meehan said she was told to delete reference to her political science degree and apply for jobs at Pak'n Save supermarket and fast-food outlet KFC.

Work and Income has confirmed its staff suggested she remove reference to the degree.

The advice has "mortified" Ms Meehan, who says Work and Income staff feared potential employers would be intimidated by her CV. "I am really proud of my achievements and I don't want to delete them. I'm just a kid wanting to start my career and that wasn't the kind of advice I was expecting. I was told to make my CV look like I had no skills."

Ms Meehan, 22, completed a political science degree at Victoria University in 2008 and since then has been doing administration and customer service work. Her last job, on a cruise ship, finished in March. She will join the navy in July and wanted a fulltime job until then.

After not finding work in Napier, she organised a meeting with Work and Income on Tuesday. During the meeting she says she was told to dumb down her CV.

"I was told by two women that, for them to get me a job, I would have to rewrite my CV, make it one page and take off my last two positions and also don't mention I have a degree. These ladies told me this is so employers won't be afraid to give me an interview."

Work and Income confirmed yesterday that a case manager did suggest Ms Meehan take out reference to her degree but did not tell her to remove her most recent work experience. Deputy chief executive Patricia Reade said it was common practice for jobseekers to tailor their CVs to the jobs for which they were applying, but it was not appropriate for staff to suggest they take out "valuable" qualifications or work experience.

The case manager's intention was to ensure the CV was targeted at the kind of jobs available for short periods. "We accept this was not well articulated and did not reflect what the case manager was trying to achieve. We have addressed this with the case manager," she said.

Social Development Minister Paula Bennett said she was seeking information on the case. "I certainly do not advocate for the dumbing down of anyone's CV."

Recruitment expert Tom O'Neil said sometimes people had to "bite the bullet" and make their CVs look basic, especially if they wanted only short-term work. "An employer might look at a CV and think, `This is a Ferrari' and they only want a Lada. There is also the risk the employer might feel like the potential employee is a threat to their own job. It's silly, but it happens."

- © Fairfax NZ News