The Energy Rip-off

[Garawa]

Whilst I agree with much of that brb, I do feel it is a slight generalisation. When Woolies went, the Job Centre had 24,000 people enter, many highly qualified technicians, long serving managers and people with HNDs and the like. It was immediately after Christmas, not the busiest time of year for recruitment! Many were lucky to get jobs elsewhere with the companies like Icelands that took over the stores. Some were poached by the big supermarkets as Woolies staff were regarded within the sector as highly trained. How many others got on I don't know but there were a whole range of skills available then and they really have no choice to use it when something like that happens so quickly.

Whether the jobs that fitted their criteria were there I doubt and most of the time it did seem full of junkies who had been there for years but I certainly wouldn't write off one means of potentially finding a missing piece or, from the side of the fence, finding a job desperately needed.

As an aside, I had a 4 week window in which to start again otherwise incur costly childcare costs. Not wanting to risk out finances (and with saving £300 a month not getting to work) I stayed at home with the children. But when I went to the Job Centre there were jobs for delivery drivers, it would be an OK stop gap whilst I looked for something more suitable. There were hundreds of these jobs listed in every town and was part of the "20,000" jobs listed as being available. When I rang, they said there was nothing in my immediate area. I GOT A CALL LAST WEEK OFFERING ONE ALMOST 4 YEARS LATER!!!! How many jobs are "available" that no-one can have as it seriously skews the people out of work figures!

[Elgrande]

They have to go to the job centre at least once a fortnight to sign on; so why not look for a job then? As for temping if you are any good you often get taken on full time; if that doesn't happen and you keep your head down and graft agencies will always find work for you. The problem is too many of the unemployed want/expect a job that pays £12.00 per hour straight away because too many want Sky, an Iphone and to be out every weekend. I have battled my way through the system for the last 5 years and managed to keep my head just above water, but not without giving up nearly every luxury.
Skill set is a problem and it was made worse by sending everyone to Uni and shutting Technology colleges.

[brb]

Garawa - sorry fella there was certainly no intention on my part to generalise 'job centres' but it appears on reflection I have.

However, with further thought, maybe the 'job centres' bring that generalisation on themselves? Just one example, security/staff that treats every individual as a number and not a human being with its own individual pride and respect. Maybe due to the job centre employees own generalisation of their working domain.

Also from experience when ever in the years gone by that we had advertised through a job centre, people only came to us, because they had too and had no intention of following through the entire process, other than to protect their benefits. Yes, you could report it, if you could find someone interested in listening to your feedback. Then again why should I be responsible for social issues, I was merely trying to fill a vacancy. Hence why we stopped using them and wasting our time. I know that sounds awful but as I say that is my genuine experience of them.

[Garawa]

No worries brb, I agree with everything you said there. Thankfully I only endured it for about 3 weeks but it did feel as if you were looked at like you were a bit odd, a social leper and yet some who were quite obviously the type who would never work laughed and joked with staff and were in and out within a minute - no grilling or investigation there! Two members of staff of mine were treated so badly by job centre staff and made to feel so worthless that they left crying despite supposed "special help" being given to ex-Woolies staff from Peter Mandleson - big deal! They were hardly the workshy type as they found a job within a month or two and have been there ever since!

I definitely think these centres have created an atmosphere making people not want to go there and at the same time not cracking down on those with no intention of working. I unfortunately knew so many that used the money to spend drinking (amongst more illegal substances) as they "earned" their income from seasonal cash in hand work. Like you say, they know the system so well and staff MUST be aware and yet nothing ever gets done!

[Rimshot]

ElGrande, there are a vast number of FE/HE colleges which offer everything from Accounting to Web Design, with portals to apprenticeships and links to local employers. On this my friend, you are simply wrong.
One of my clients is a 'super-college' in the Midlands with 20,000 students and over 1000 staff. Like many others they are struggling with budgets but they provide an essential link between education and work. Suggest you check your facts.

[brb]

Shock horror, we never would have worked it out, unless that whistle blower had told us that energy companies were manipulating prices!

[Elgrande]

Rimshot. Medway have just closed their College of Technology, Canterbury's has been down sized and Polytechnics were mostly changed to Uni's. I know there are some available, but nowhere near enough.