When you get to a certain age, or a certain level in your career, part-time jobs aren’t always a selling point when they show up on your resume. But in this economy, job seekers are often stuck taking these gigs just to make ends meet, or to get them out of the house so they don’t go crazy in unemployment land.

The big question is, do you include those positions on your resume or not?

I just got an email from a reader, Susan from Windham, ME, asking this very question:

“Is it better to list a lower paying, part-time job on your resume (especially since I have read that some employers will not even consider you if you are currently unemployed) or should you leave it off, especially if it is has nothing to do with your career path?

Let’s use my husband as an example. He has had a long career in mid-level account management. His previous employer, who he was with for 14 years, filed for bankruptcy and his position was eliminated. After a year of unemployment, he took the only work he could find– a part-time job in a retail home improvement store making about one fourth of what he used to make. Should he list this job on his resume or not?”

Sales guy at a Home Depot, or hamburger flipper at McDonald’s isn’t a bad way to make some extra money — and FYI, McD’s is in hiring mode — but hiring managers looking to fill white-collar jobs aren’t going to give you props for this kind of work, and some may even hold it against you. (more…)