Dos and don’ts when you apply for a job in Luxembourg.
The basiCS
To secure a job in Luxembourg Luxembourg/EU, you must formalize this by applying for the job on a job portal by uploading your CV, To demonstrate to the hiring team that you have relevant skills and work experience to do the job. This application process is essential for blue and white collar jobsand work experience to do the job This application process required for blue- and white-collar jobs.
In your Curriculum Vitae you illustrate previous work experience, educational background and why you are a fit for the role.
Please note that, as per EU regulation, European companies can only recruit candidates from outside of EU if they can illustrate that they can NOT fill the job with EU talent. In Luxembourg, employers need to obtain government approval so that they can recruit a person who needs a work permit. This is an administrative process which requires time and follow-up.
How to find a job in Luxembourg
Jobs are published on multiple channels:
1. The career portal on the company’s website: here you will find ALL jobs open to external candidates
2. Linkedin: for white collar roles you will find a significant number of open jobs on Linkedin. You may set-up notifications to speed up your search process. Note: Not all jobs are published on Linkedin normally due to the cost, so if you like to work in a specific company, it’s better to check out the career page of the company.
3. Country specific job portals:
a. www.jobs.lu
The different types of recruitment agencies in Luxembourg
1. Executive search/headhunting firms: these agencies rarely publish jobs for applications, they work on tailored specific, senior management roles and find candidates through their network. Focus is to attract ‘passive, highly skilled candidates which are needed for the role/company.
2. Recruitment agencies: work on diverse roles and do a mix of sourcing passive candidates in combination with inbound applications. As they have varied customer base and work on similar roles, they can present multiple job opportunities to skilled candidates.
3. Interim/Temp agencies: Temp agencies connect potential employees to open positions (blue and white collar). These agencies have contracts with employers who are seeking candidates for temporary, seasonal, or part-time employment. Many organizations hire temporary employees to help fill hiring gaps or seasonal shortages. A temp is an employee who works for an employer in a short-term contract agreement.
How to communicate during a job application process
Your CV is the base document to initiate a conversation. Any HR professional will request this before engaging in a conversation regarding a job position. You can share your CV spontaneously with HR professionals via e-mail or a job application. After that you can follow-up via e-mail to have a status update on your job application.
It can take up to 3-4 weeks to get feedback on your CV. Sending daily reminders or text messages will not support your application in a positive way.
WhatsApp is used by certain recruiters to follow-up during the interview process for a candidate in the running of a role, as during that period you have a close cooperation. Outside of the interview process, we recommend to keep the communication over email and or linkedin.
Communication between the different stakeholders is formal. The following blog gives a good idea how to handle this: https://grammarly.com/blog/formal-email/
Regarding Freely:
Freely works mainly on headhunting assignments for senior management roles (+15 years of work experience).
As we observe that a recruitment process is a stressful experience to many candidates, we offer hands-on one-to-one sessions to support you on how to make a CV or how to shine during job interviews.
1. Mock-interview sessions: 1 hour practice where we provide you direct feedback on how you performed and we do 2 rounds of questions to speed your learning curve => 99 EUR for a 1 hour session and debrief document. You can request a mock-interview session via hello@freely.lu – we will send you a request for payment and a Calendly link to book your mock-interview.
2. Write your non-rejectable CV – see our website for the product offering on this topic - https://www.freely.lu/forcandidates
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