RE: Employment Resources (lack of qualified candidates)

["Backer, Corinne" <CBacker -at- glhec -dot- org>]

Katav pointed out that I should have been more specific in my original post.
Sorry.

The job is in Wisconsin. One of the biggest hurdles in the hiring process
for me is that we live in a very low-paid area (it's like second-to-last on
the STC survey). The cost of living is low, and it's a great place to live
for other reasons, so it's OK, but it's really hard for me to get
experienced people - I just can't pay them what they require. So I end up
with newbies (usually a previous internship or 2, or one other job), which
has actually turned out very well in most cases; I just have to follow an
aggressive training plan for the first few months. (But I get 'em before
they develop any *really* bad habits :D)

So, I'm stuck trying to write ads that are kind of conflicting: I want good
people with skills that can be considered relevant, but I know I'll probably
have to turn down anyone with more than about 3 years of experience;
therefore, I have to be somewhat lenient in my requirements. Therefore, I
get quite a few of those "I've been a VW mechanic for 15 years but I hear TW
is a great job." :)

Those of you who've had success in this area - what dos/don'ts do you
recommend for a good, clear, specific job ad that leaves some "wiggle" room
for hiring new TWs? Also, with the current tendency toward "CYA" behavior to
prevent lawsuits, how would you specifically document/justify your choices
when making this kind of judgment call?

Appreciate your help so far.
CB