Administrative Assistant duties - have they changed?

I'm back in the job market after a layoff and have yet to catch a bite. I've been searching jobs and some of them seem like they are asking too much for the title they have posted. For example:

"Candidate must be a self-starter with excellent organizational and time management skills with the ability to prioritize tasks, handle multiple tasks at once and adapt to an ever changing environment with minimum supervision. Outstanding writing skills are essential. Multiple communication specialties (employee communications, media relations, marketing communications), political savvy, and a solid understanding of business a plus. Above average communication skills required in dealing with inter-departmental personnel as well as outside consultants and contractors. Must possess and utilize effective verbal and written communication skills to make presentations to small and large groups. Must have the ability to effectively present information and respond to questions. Must be a strategic thinker, a team player and be confident in dealings with senior management. "

I found that one the other day and when reading through it (especially the part about being able to make presentations to large and small groups!) I couldn't help but think "Wow, someone in this role should probably have a more advanced title then Administrative Assistant'".

Though, maybe because it has been a while since I have been an admin I'm just out of the loop? Are employers asking admins to take on more roles within the office? And, subsequently, if they are is the pay scale going up to meet these extra demands? I guess my question is - is this job posting the new average or is this particular company just looking to fill multiple vacancies?

I'm not surprised you are in Florida. Good luck in finding a job.

What do you mean? Is this kind of request more common in Florida then other parts of the country?

They're trying to suck as much skills out of us as they can, and pay us the lowest price. I see paralegal jobs for $12.00 an hour. I have a Bachelor's Degree and a paralegal degree, and 20 years of experience.

Unemployment is high. There are a lot of unemployment professionals. It's unlikely (but not impossible) you will get a decent salary in your next job.

As for what you posted, a lot of this is put out by recruiters, and it's a standard boilerplate job description.

Haha, sounds about right. I too have a Bachelor's and had been doing some managerial stuff with a large company until recently. But so far I haven't gotten a call back on my resume. Maybe I'm coming across as 'over qualified' and thus likely to cost more.

I can't really fault the companies for that, though, as I know things are tight these day for everyone. It's just frustrating! Maybe 'dumbing down' my resume will help. At this point I just want a job!

(Huh, didn't think about it that way. Hopefully that was a standard boilerplate job description)

You can do substitute teaching. I got teacher certification two years ago (English 6-12 and Elementary). No job. I'm doing subbing and get $9.58 an hour. Google the school district in Orlando. The money isn't great, but it will get you out and make your unemployment last longer.

Mary - that is a really good suggestion. I'll have to look into it in my area!

Employers have soo many candidates out there that they know that people who have ran out of benefits and money are soo desperate that they will do anything just to get back to work and be able to somewhat provide food for the family they are trying to get off very cheap, I have seen ads for admins that want the jack of all trades, they probably want a 4 year degree and your references at the time you submit your resume and when they find a good candidate that fits what they want they will ask for your salary requirements ask if you are on Cobra or maybe not offer any benefits at all and expect you to pay your own taxes with a 1099 and offer $10 per hour. I actually had a call about a job like that, but they needed QuickBooks proficency and I did not have that so they did not even want to see me for an interview. I wasn't interested when I heard it was a contractor job with NO benfits. They wanted so much from me, so I was surprized that she only wanted to offer so little for so much requirements.