In my experience many recruiters are recruiting for permatemp jobs. Places like Kelly or Aerotek can help you get a job, but it is going to be a low wage job with no benefits or job security that ‘may’ turn into a job with a living wage and benefits but that many times do not.
Are there agencies that help those who have work experience find positions with living wages and benefits?
Yes, there should be plenty of them in your area. There are in Boston anyway and all larger metro areas have some. The general title is ‘headhunter’ (as opposed to recruiter who works in HR for a specific company). I am most familiar with IT industry headhunters but some of those have tried to place me in scientific IT jobs because of my background and I do a hybrid of that now. There are specialty headhunter agencies that focus mainly on one in-demand field and more general ones that handle lots of professional areas.
Working with a headhunter can be good or bad but it is usually bad in my experience even though they have gotten me jobs. It shouldn’t cost you anything directly but they can make used car salesmen blush with their level of lying and game playing. The reason is simple. It is a high stakes game for them with a low probability of success for any individual candidate. They get about 25% - 30% of your first year’s pay from the hiring company to place you. You don’t have to pay it yourself although that fact may affect your starting pay indirectly.
There are a few good ones around but not many so be very careful who you work with. A bad one can actually hurt your chances of you getting a job because they almost certainly will be representing multiple people for the same job and may submit you for jobs that you applied for on your own or through another headhunter. That type of thing can disqualify you from a position simply because the company gets contradictory terms of who they have to pay if they hire you.
An internet search for ‘scientific headhunter’ or simply ‘headhunter’ for your general area should be enough to get you started if you want to go that route. However, they usually contact you rather than the other way around but you can contact them if you want. Having a fresh resume on a both large and specialty job websites is usually enough to get them to contact you (I still get several inquiries a month even though I haven’t updated mine in a long time for example).
One strong precaution, do not ever work or give details to an offshore ‘headhunter’. They are the equivalent of telemarketers on both sides. Any one worth working with will meet with you in person, help you fine tune your resume and tell you in detail about the jobs they plan to submit you for and why. Most of those are still scum but at least they dress well and may take you to lunch. Don’t even think about paying them any money yourself either. That isn’t just a red flag, it is a black flag of death and it means it is a scam. Professionals do not pay money to headhunters for anything - ever.
Aerotek is not the most discriminating service, in my experience. They work the numbers to make it up in volume. But they still provide exposure and an introduction.
If you are a good employee, ask your supervisor for a Recommendation on LinkedIn at the end of the assignment.
Ask the other temps to recommend you to their services.
If you don’t like your placement specialists, ask for a different one; they have about as much experience, and are as disposable, as you are.
And learn to live small. I know, it was a lot easier when I was contracting, but it’s still possible.
Excellent advice.
What type of scientific job - and how far along are you?
I can’t add much to Shagnasty’s excellent advice, but I know a headhunter for the pharmaceutical industry.They mostly specialize in experienced candidates - since they get paid a cut of the salary, they want to maximize the salary for the placement.
In my company new college grads are handled in a totally different way from experienced candidates - in fact the recruiter I work with can’t even talk to NCGs.
If you can find companies who do the kind of work you want to do, get a contact and call or email. You might find the recruiter on LinkedIn. Don’t assume they don’t want to hear from you - I’m looking for very specialized people and would love someone to call me out of the blue.