Before we get into it, it's important to clarify that while I have in my capacity as an RTL journalist written extensively about the employment market in Luxembourg and presented the views and experiences of other job seekers, this particular opinion piece is exactly that: my own personal experience. To be precise, that of a native English-speaking, French-learning, ADEM-sponsored third-country national in Luxembourg.
After almost a year, I've found a stable job I'm excited about, and one that fits my profile perfectly. And I don't have a cheat sheet or get-hired-quick guide to help those in the position I was recently in. But I do have a year of experience in the anxiety, frustration, exhaustion, and false hopes that being unemployed in Luxembourg brings – and possibly some insight and advice that could help.
Confidence. Uncertainty. Despair.
It started with too much confidence. I'd never been unemployed against my will before. I've lived and worked around the world for the last decade and have had a stable career I've been building. I moved to Luxembourg with a job I thought would last forever with plans of settling here. Next thing you know, things go south and you're in line at ADEM.
"No need, I'll have a job by then," I cockily told my counsellor when he tried to schedule our next appointment. He smiled politely with the wisdom and knowledge I then lacked.
I applied to carefully chosen opportunities with tailored CVs and beautifully crafted cover letters. Every single time I thought, "This is it!". When I cried upon receiving an automated rejection for a job I knew I was perfect for, I thought that was rock bottom. In hindsight, it was just the beginning.
The job search expanded. LinkedIn Easy Apply applications grew. My job hunt spreadsheet exploded, and all it led to was month after month of nothing.
I wouldn't have made it through without the ADEM safety net, which starts at 80% of your last drawn salary. While ADEM job-seeking support is available to all who are unemployed, it takes being terminated from your last job to qualify for chômage, or unemployment benefits.
You'll also have free or heavily discounted access to courses with language schools and the Digital Learning Hub. I strongly recommend taking full advantage of all that is offered.
Adding to the frustration are the never-ending trends that shape and steer the Luxembourg job market. At the start of my job search, a talent shortage was the hot topic. Then a talent hub was announced, even as unemployment reached record highs.
In recruiter circles, the consensus was, no talent shortage, just a mismatch. On that note, should English be made a national language to bring more talent in?
Job seekers know the feeling: you want to pull out your hair or set off a flare to let them all know of your existence. I know I speak for more than myself when I say it was the most invisible I've ever felt. The story is about you, but you aren't even really there.
From my own experience and that of the many I spoke to for reporting on this topic, I have to stress the trying circumstances being a third-country national brings. Even with support from ADEM and some time to figure it out, everything is different when you have no family property or support to fall back on. What you might have is an employment pass that needs stable employment for renewal.
In my case, I was the main breadwinner with more plans than my own resting on my ability to find a job. For many others, and for various reasons, giving up or going home isn’t an option.
You've made it all the way here; you need to make it work. (Meanwhile, new data shows that most expats leave within five years, and you’re trying your best to defy the odds and not count yourself among them!).
It's both. For the entire duration of my unemployment, I was networking up a storm and aggressively studying French, doing courses, freelancing with RTL, doing media consultancy, and more.
Eleven months later, at last, I ended up presented with two opportunities: both the results of networking encounters and personal connections.
So if I have any advice, it's this:
Go beyond LinkedIn for your job search. Check out the ADEM job boards and others too. Speak to recruiters. Ask around. Be audacious.
Network as much as you can, and do it authentically. Go to events, and stay in touch with the connections you make. A connection I made in month three of my job search led to my employment six months later.
Learn French. While English is the language I work, write, and mostly communicate in, my B2 French is something I was tested on during the interview, and now use for work every day. At the very least, B1 opens doors.
