Husband failed interview for own job, panicking!

I hate people saying they’re angry at other people not achieving. I missed out (not really, she gave me a soul destroying list of how I wasn’t suited) on a well paying job and was relieved and happy when I found a much lower paying job that suits me more. Dh was more than a little bitter that it meant we weren’t on what he thought he would be and I was pretty pissed off that all talk of my job was bitterness with no congratulations that I’d found a job after searching for so long. If you love him be supportive (I don’t mean financially, I mean be there for him)

Government departments - DWP, MoD, Home Office, Cabinet Office etc.

This is really quite common. Having knowledge of “both sides” makes you a valuable resource really and a very attractive hire!

There was fascinating thread by a woman who zoomed up the civil service ranks.

How? She dipped in and out. Civil service, private sector, civil service, private sector. She was always picked for posts because both thought they were getting something special. She never stuck around much more than two years. Was fasc how both panels thought they had hit the jackpot

@UpsetAtInterview
I don’t agree with anyone giving you a hard time here. I’m completely understand your frustration. It’s about him working hard to make his contribution - and he didn’t, and that will cost the livelihood of you family, which is unfair and unbecoming behaviour, especially when you have put in the huge effort you have.

I can stand the big baby sulking after things like this happen, but just let him commiserate for a bit. The CivilServuce is going through it at the moment - so recruitment might be sparse. However, if he has 4 year permanency, he’ll go into redeployment. He’ll be offered other jobs via redeployment OR he’ll go apply for others in the CS.
He’ll gave access to FTCs in CS jobs online, so I suggest he dusts himself off and gets straight to work if he wants to stay in the game. Use the next six weeks for applications and interviews. He will be entitled to time for that.

I work in the civil service and already have a prepared bank of answers for most of the questions which come up. I no longer need to spend hours racking my brains for STAR examples.

The issue at the moment is there are very few jobs coming up and the scores that are needed are extremely high. I can tweak my answers to make sure they cover as much as possible but I can't claim to have done something I haven't done.

The last interview I had I was told that my experience was great and my answers were well structured, but someone else got a higher score than me. My husband told me there would be another job to apply for soon and that I should take comfort in the positive feedback, then made me a drink and asked what I fancied for lunch.

@saltinesandcoffeecups he didn't blow anything off. He went to the interview and answered the questions to the best of his ability and experience. OP has made assumptions about how seriously she thinks he took it.

He's not spent the last 6 months lying on the sofa turning down jobs he thinks are beneath him, he's been unsuccessful at an interview and instead of being supportive he's being made to feel like it's all his fault.

It may well be a case of they have 4 permanent jobs and 8 fixed term contractors to fill them. So they will pick the 4 who do the best in the interview or the 4 they like the best and fudge the interview scores

Absolutely, interviewing for your own job every year or whatever, it's a sign of a shitty workplace. Either they want him or they dont, it's so bad we accept it's ok to be on fixed term contracts permanently (no pun intended) and people should just roll with it.

OP, I think your husband needed that to be able to look for better jobs with companies that look out for their employees.

I do find it ridiculous that someone who has already proven themselves (by still being in the contract job 4 year's later) has to interview. This didn't happen year’s ago. I got some great jobs by being contract first then permanent with no more than a query as to whether I’d like to go permanent. Why is everything so complicated nowadays with jobs?

I just saw it was fixed term but I assume they could have got rid if incompetent before then.

I think the employer already knew who they wanted for the position even before interviews. Four years fixed term is very odd.

Again, a load of shit.

All an employer has to do to avoid this is have objective justification. They have 2 clear ones here:

1. Project Work
2. Covering maternity leaves

You seem to be putting a lot of the blame for this situation down to him not trying for this interview. But he failed it previously, when presumably that wasn't the case?

Maybe this is a sign that it's not right for him, and time to move one? Perhaps he isn't cut out for the role, or they don't like him, or whatever.

This might be exactly what he needs to find something better.

That’s not how civil service interviews work. You have to prepare.

So you don’t think being gainfully employed is an obligation to your family? That’s a weird take but ok.

Everyone will go through periods of joblessness in their career, but the obligation bit comes from doing everything you can to stay employed and provide for your family. The OP’s husband did not do this when he blew off the interview. He didn’t even try!

@UpsetAtInterview ughhh… I get the frustration at your husband and the situation and also get the frustration of not being able to say the obvious to him and having to be supportive of of his dumbass self. Hang in there.

What is the civil service? I’ve never understood!

Are you saying he's been with the samecompany for over 4 years?

I know you feel angry but I'm sure he feels shitty enough without being guilt tripped. He needs support, not telling off - he's a grown up and can take responsibility for his own mistakes. Or I'd hope he can!

Civil service or not the law still applies. If he finishes his contract he has the right to be treated as a permanent employee. That means they can make him redundant but they cant just terminate the contract. HR may not have woken up to this or it may be the interview panel were told you cant keep him on more than 4 years, missing that it is 4 years or more.

You can feel angry at him for not doing more prep but you need to point out the law to him. ACAS advice line https://www.acas.org.uk/contact

"Blame culture attitude", what kind of waffle-speak is that? If you mean she's blaming him, yeah, I think she is. But it seems it might well have been partly his fault so blame is not entirely inappropriate.

She hasn't been saying any of this to him (yet) so why are people dumping on her?
Half my family including DH are Civil Service. If he's eligible to apply for internal jobs under the terms of his branch/arm's length organisation/ whatever it is he should be in with a shot at finding SOMETHING next. The interviews/reapplications are never just formalities. There are strict rules about fair competition. He should have known that honestly. I don't think refusing to go back or deliberately underperforming are great ideas because chances are he may need to work for the CS again depending on what he does.

I've read all your posts OP, just not everyone elses.

I was in a similar position, also civil service and on short term contracts. I had to interview for the role I'd already been doing 2yrs. Rather than just sending in a CV, I had to complete an application form with very specific details instructions about experience, why I fit each of the job specs etc. I thought I prepped and did a reasonable interview. i did get the job, but my boss was rather scathing about how I completed the application. She said that if she hadn't know me, I wouldn't have even got an interview! She also said my interview wasn't great.

Despite getting the role, I felt deflated and pretty shit about it all. Just saying that even with prep etc, some people just aren't at interviews.

If his productivity as well as enthusiasm went down over the years, It happens with a lot of employees, they get worn down and need a change
I personally change companies every few years as I need a change

What she said is "He didn't take the prep seriously and was blindsided in the interview."

He'd been doing the job for quite some time; it's not unreasonable that he assumed the questions would be ones he already knew the answers to. I probably wouldn't do a huge amount of prep for an interview for my own job either.

OP is blaming this guy for factors which might well be entirely out of his control, and is now finding that even his own wife isn't on his side.

@UpsetAtInterview YANBU but as you know you now need to move forward.

Give him the full long weekend to get over it then he needs to be pragmatic and start applying for jobs.

Given your update on his job the easiest is to apply for CS and NHS jobs. I would also be asking his HR which agencies the CS/NHS currently use and get on their books.

These are the websites
https://www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/index.cgi

https://www.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate

The civil service interview process is based on behaviours and you have to answer in the STAR formula with an example. Each answer is scored based on how well it exhibits the behaviour the question relates to.

Your performance in your current role and how friendly you are aren’t relevant, although they could bias the scoring as people could be less or more generous with their scores.