So much has happened in this past week I don’t even know where to begin so I guess I’ll just cut to the chase: Last week my favorite airline called to tell me that after two phone interviews, an in-person interview, a drug test and a 10-year criminal background check…they’d finally decided to hire me.
!!!!!!!!!!!
Needless to say I’ve been over the moon about it. The competition for the job had been fierce (hundreds of applicants), and the wait had been long (the whole hiring process took about a month!) and I’m just so relieved that I’ll be working again soon. I celebrated the job offer with a shopping spree and a vaca to Los Angeles, which I’ll write more about that later but for now here’s a rundown of the job:
Position: Customer Service / Gate Agent
Where: San Francisco International Airport
When: I start training in Orlando, Florida next week!
Benefits: Medical, dental and free airfare!
My flight benefits will kick-in as soon as I successfully complete training (I’ve already started memorizing airport codes in preparation for it) and I’ve started a list of all the places and people I want to visit. A trip to Puerto Rico for my cousin’s wedding and a visit to London and Tokyo are the works!
More details later…Promise!
WOW! that is so cool, congratulations!
YOU PASSED THE DRUG TEST!?? Wow! I can't believe it! 😀
j/k. Congratulations!
Thanks! It's sorta bitter-sweet though, you know? Because although I'm so happy and grateful to have a job now, it also means that I'll be staying in one spot for a while. I'll miss living abroad!
Haha. That's probably why I was hired – There probably aren't very many unemployed people in California who could pass one. ; )
awesome.
i'm so SO stoked for you. If you make your way into LA/OC, give me a shout, as I'll be headed back there in 6 weeks.
I know this will open great doors for ya, friend : )
Congratulations! I will look for you when we pass through SFO later this year.
Drop me a line before you come to SFO and I'll let you know where I'll be so that you can stop by and say hi. : )
Congrats! I worked as a reservation agent part-time for Delta for 3 years and I loved it. The free airfare (standby of course) and the really cheap tickets for friends and family (buddy passes) was definitely the plus. There are so many airport codes to memorize but most of them are pretty easy, pretty soon you'll start noticing airport codes on license plates and elsewhere 🙂
With You at the gate I wouldn't mind undergoing all that boarding process. Congrats!
Congratulations!
Hooray for you!
I'm incredibly jealous about the free flights, but it's true you have to stay put to enjoy them ~ oh the irony.
Yeah, I can't help but feel a tad bit stuck. But there's nothing I can really do about that. I'm just too broke to move abroad again, that is unless I want to sign a year-long contract with a school in Korea so that they can pay for my housing and moving costs…but I don't think I'd ever want to live in Korea. And China, Thailand, etc. don't pay enough.
I think that my only options are to stay in one spot for a while and try to save as much as I can. That's why I think in a job with an airline is really my best alternative.
Hi there Nate,
So you worked for Delta? What was that like? Were you able to find the time and money to take advantage of your travel benefits?
My biggest concern is that even if I'm able to get an extra couple of days off (we're only guaranteed two in a row), I won't have the money to go anywhere. San Francisco isn't exactly cheap and I won't be making much over minimum wage. I worry that I'll be working so hard to make ends meet that even if I'm able to give away a few shifts, I just won't have the money to burn on a week's vacation in Europe.
Plus there's the matter of where could I possibly go with only two or three days off? LA? Mexico? Certainly not Japan or Europe…
Oh well, I'm sure I'll get the low down in training…and I'll learn how to work the system. I just hope it's all worth it, although at this point I need a job so bad, I'd almost being willing to work at Taco Bell.
Well, almost. : )
When I worked at Delta we did a lot of shift swapping, as in we would tell people that I will work such-and-such day if they worked such-and-such day. At least my office would let us do that to get around the 2-day guarantee limit. The other thing was that since you fly standby you take the chance of not getting on a flight, I've spent many a night sleeping in the airport and I've known of some people who have been fired for missing their shift. I hated the work but loved the co-workers and travel benefits. Best of luck, I'm sure you will like it, especially with all your international connections.