Jobs
The jobs system allows your character to obtain gainful employment in the world and earn an income! Having a job is in fact the most common source of income in Avaria, and it can also be a good way to train skills and make connections, besides providing material for roleplay.
Finding a Job
Finding a job can be relatively simple. When you visit shops, workshops, or a number of other places in the game, you may see a line in the room description about that location being a workplace. At a workplace, you can simply check jobs in order to see if they are hiring for any positions. If there are positions available, you'll see a listing of those job titles, a brief description of the work, and the skill(s) needed in order to be considered for the position. Once you've found a job that looks appealing, you can then apply (for) <job title>. You do have to be in the location with the job listing in order to request one of the available jobs, and if you have a job already, you cannot get another job. But if you want to leave a current job, you can resign from it at any time and place.
Generally, as long as you meet the skill requirements you will then be hired for the job. However, some employer NPCs harbor certain prejudices that may make them more or less likely to hire you, or you may have a reputation that the NPC feels disqualifies you for the job. Don't worry, though -- if you don't get a job in one place, there are usually plenty of other places hiring!
Working a Job
Once employed, you can do a variety of different chores for an employer that are related to the job you took. However, you're not required to do so, as your pay will be deposited in the local bank regardless. This is because you are assumed to be doing your job "off-screen," so you can simply imagine that character is working at least part of the time you're logged out of the game. Jobs in Avaria are meant to be a realistic way to earn a living while providing a useful source of roleplay material, not to mimic the tedium of real life.