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AIBU?

AIBU and PFB or is there a serious flaw in our job market?

111 replies

Fatstacks · 06/07/2015 19:12

I may be over reacting and pfb about this so prepared to be told so.

DS 18 is at college, 13.5 hrs a week so needs a job as well.

After many many applications he got a job at a bakery, night shifts on £4 per hour which ended when he turned 18 and his nmw increased risk Angry

Next he got an interview and two day training course to sell heating boilers.
No salary, all commission, no expenses, he needed a suit and it was doorstep selling..... exactly where people buy boilers Hmm

Then he started work at a nearby factory on the production line. A zero hour contract where he turns up at 6am to be either put to work or sent home. He hasn't had a shift for four weeks, he gets up at five and goes to wait at the gates and is also charged £3.50 per week admin, whether he works or not Confused

Now on Wednesday he has an interview for a pot washing job, it's a care home staff bank and they told him he will need a DBS certification which he has to pay £65 for! To wash pots!

I'm older and luckily have had the same job forever so no clue but surely we are doing something wrong?

It's costing Him money to try and go to work.

I'm thoroughly pissed off.

AIBU?

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Tuskerfull · 06/07/2015 19:15

YANBU, poor lad. In my experience (my own, and that of my friends) the teenagers with good, steady jobs where they aren't thoroughly exploited got those jobs through their parents or friends of their parents. Can you put feelers out among friends and family to see if any of their companies are looking for a bit of low-skilled help?

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takemetomars · 06/07/2015 19:15

YANBU. Sounds utterly shite and really feel for him! He needs to keep going tho, tell him not to give up. Sounds like you raised him right!!

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Golfhotelromeofoxtrot · 06/07/2015 19:16

Nope. It's horrid. It's just getting worse and worse, the Tories don't seem to care at all.

Let the poor get poorer and the rich get richer.

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fairfat40 · 06/07/2015 19:18

No YANBU .... But it's the same for all of them. Decline of retail, I guess. Plus, less unskilled clerical labour needed. Such a shame. Working is good for young people. Def tougher, and horrendous if you don't have loving parents with a bit of cash behind them.

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HagOtheNorth · 06/07/2015 19:22

Both of mine went through this, added to the 'No experience, no job'
DD was checking through the CVs for a minimum wage Saturday job at her place of work (retail) i60 applications and counting.

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Seriouslyffs · 06/07/2015 19:23

Shock
He sounds amazing. You're not being pfb- that's appalling.
What's he doing at college? Can you encourage him to go further and stay in education for longer? The more qualifications he can get the better.

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Egosumquisum · 06/07/2015 19:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Purplepoodle · 06/07/2015 19:33

It's the same for low skilled older people too. Zero hour contracts should be abolished

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Fatstacks · 06/07/2015 19:36

Aw cheers Smile

I'm just bloody despondent today.
He is a good lad, doesn't drink or go out causing mayhem.
It's feeling like he's doomed to some sort of Jarrow March situation like in a Catherine Cookson novel Sad

Both me and DP work in the military and DS has asthma and is dyslexic so a military career is out. Most of our friends and acquaintance are military too.

He's doing ITC at college so we are just populating a map with places he can volunteer at. He's on the waiting list for the local city farm and even the dementia cafe.
He needs experience not money but at every corner there is some barrier.

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Mayvis · 06/07/2015 19:37

What about bar work?

Most places are willing to take on someone unexperienced as long as they're up for weekend evening work. Great social job plus it's always handy to know how to pour a pint.

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TheWitTank · 06/07/2015 19:41

Poor lad -you are not being pfb at all.
I second the bar work idea or waiter work?

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irretating · 06/07/2015 19:42

YANBU, his story is very similar to a young lad who volunteers for us. He's few years older than your son but hasn't had a proper job since leaving education, just little bits of work here and there. We're trying to get him on to an apprenticeship. Is that something that would work for your son?

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Fatstacks · 06/07/2015 19:43

I did bar work back in the day when one for yourself was encouraged Mayvis there is a quiet dignity about knowing how a black n tan is made.
He's C.V. dropped our local pubs but, like our Mac and McDonald's, they prefer to employ females to avoid hassle.

It's shit, he's ideal for bar work.

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dementedma · 06/07/2015 19:47

I feel your pain. Two young adult DDS here working their way through uni and open uni. One in a coffee shop, one finally managed to get a reception job after about 40 applications. Started in June and has yet to be paid a penny. It's bloody hard for youngsters today.

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Chips1999 · 06/07/2015 19:52

I feel sorry for him it sounds really hard. I don't know what the solution is other than to keep his head up and keep trying. I started off with a dish washing job in a cafe, it was hard work but I really enjoyed being able to earn my own money. Fingers crossed for him.

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DisgraceToTheYChromosome · 06/07/2015 20:00

It's bloody horrible, especially for working class young men. DD has a good weekend job, but we know perfectly well that she got it because good looking size 10 females with Received Pronunciation are in demand.

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Frasras11 · 06/07/2015 20:10

Is there an NHS trust near you? They often have staff banks for catering, portering and admin. Yes they are zero hours but you basically choose your shifts from those released. It's worth looking into. Our trust does apprenticeship schemes as well. And they'll pay for your DBS check.

It's shit for young people today. The jobs we had when we were younger are now taken up by older men and women who have been made redundant. A friend's son found it so difficult to get a job as he kept losing out to older people with experience of the world of work.

I really hope he finds something soon.

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Ubik1 · 06/07/2015 20:15

Call centre work?

I worked with lots if students who did nightshifts and then went straight to lectures afterwards Sad

What about dog walking?

Sorry he is going through this - it's shit, it really is.

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bruffin · 06/07/2015 20:17

We paid for both dc to do their NPLQ , so DS 19 has worked at the local sports centre since he was 16, he also did some sales over christmas for Comet just before they went bust. He is hoping to do lifeguarding when he gets to uni in september, he is on the waiting list there.

DD 17 has volunteered at a sn play scheme and has been getting work doing respite care for some of the children. She is on her 3rd dbs and hasnt had to pay for any of them. Hopefully the play scheme will pay for weekends and holidays once she is 18.

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hunibuni · 06/07/2015 20:18

Thank god DS isn't the only one! He finally got a few hours volunteering in a charity shop so hopefully it will be enough for experience. We live in a Uni town so a lot of the jobs are taken by students. He'll be 18 in a few days so will be going round the pubs and restaurants to see if they have bar work.

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19lottie82 · 06/07/2015 20:19

What about macdonalds? They are often looking for staff, and they are flexible re hours / shifts.

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AngularMurky · 06/07/2015 20:29

It's shit for young people today. The jobs we had when we were younger are now taken up by older men and women who have been made redundant

Rubbish! Those jobs are being taken by EU migrants not baby boomers!

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Loraline · 06/07/2015 20:36

My almost 18 year old dbil has been going through this. Tried supermarkets but they wanted till experience (in my day local supermarkets were where you got that experience) and they could get older workers in who had it. He volunteered on Saturdays for a year in a charity shop to get till experience but they still didn't want him because he couldn't sell alcohol. He's been struggling to find anything at all. He's now got a zero hours contract at a factory so hopefully he'll get some shifts over the summer.

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googoodolly · 06/07/2015 20:38

I thoroughly disagree, Angular. I work retail and there are LOTS of people in their sixties/seventies who are still working since they can no longer make people retire at a certain age. They're reliable, won't ring in sick with a hangover, are good at their jobs, punctual etc. so there is no "reason" to get rid of them in favour of someone who will probably leave to go off to university in a matter of months/years.

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TheHouseOnBellSt · 06/07/2015 20:39

Could he contact a shit load of tradesmen and ask for work? Painters and decorators for eg

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