Most cities have temp agencies that can be very good. Since the companies they send you to are paying the temp agency rather than you directly, you won't earn as much as employees who are hired directly by the company, but they often lead to full time jobs with the companies they send you to. I've used temp agencies twice in my life, the last time about ten years or so ago, and each time the company ended up buying out my contract with the temp agency so that they could hire me directly, which meant a raise in my own pay. Typically, how that works is similar to an employment agency. They will interview you to determine which types of jobs they believe you are qualified for, and may give you a test to help make that determination. The last time I used one, there were two tests: an aptitude test of some sort and a typing test. My wife has also found work through temp agencies, her last time being only a few years ago.
I actually don't want to elaborate on this but I guess you have to be enlightened that in the Philippines there is the unwritten rule about age when it comes to employments. When you reach 50, unless you have a very special skill like technical, you practically have zero chance of getting employed. It's a sad fact that the prevailing atmosphere in business is like that. And you mentioned temps, yes, we have temps here but again, it is restricted by age. I really feel sorry for that colleague. Maybe the only recourse for her is to open up a small business like a boutique or a bakeshop maybe.
I just found out about another way to earn some money. This is by selling things on Amazon. If you have a account already when you sign in look up at the heading line for the word sell. You can do it as a business or just by selling a few things a month. These things need to be brand new and still in the box or just never used. We all have things like that. There are some fees of course, but it is not as crazy as E-Bay. Once you learn how it works and how to price things, you send in your stuff and they sell it and ship it for you. With smaller amounts of products the rules are different then with larger business accounts. I have had them buy DVD's & books off of me for a small amount of money, but I never even considered the sell factor because I thought it was just for vendors with oodles of merchandise. Might be something worth looking into if the options for work are limited in your area.
After 9 months of looking for work, my husband was accepted an employment as an IT at 59 to present 2 years ago. The company preferred him over the younger applicants. After 18 months, he was offered a permanent position. Imagine our family's rejoicing at the provision of a job!
@Corie Henson Has she tried seeking employment online? It seems there are companies looking for workers as mentioned above, to contact clients, or answering incoming calls. It sounds as if it's a very depressing outlook in the Philippines for those over the age of 50, or probably even mid 40s, who lose their jobs, but still need to work. Have you seen any change in the situation, whether positive or negative? I guess I'm wondering if this has always been the case, or if there's a recent bias against older workers.