To be utterly fed up?

[milkteef]

DP and I are both unemployed. I have been unemployed for just over a year and DP for a year and a half. We both send our CV's to every job we're qualified for on the job centre website, have signed up to all the local agencies, looked for jobs 15 miles away on Google etc and nothing comes of it. In the past two months we have put CV's into every shop we can think of, hard copies in shops and email copies for advertised jobs. Over 100 jobs between us in two months and only 3 rejections, no correspondance from the others at all.

We don't have a car as we can't afford one but a lot of jobs require you to have your own transport in the description. I don't see how we can afford a car without first getting a job to pay for said car.

I am fed up. I keep trying but I feel like crap. Money is all gone on bills the day after pay day. We've been turned downfor cleaning jobs a few months ago as we have no experience or are overqualified. I've even applied for a 10 hour a week job which will leave us £10 up a week 10 miles away with £3 bus fare just to feel productive.

I know the job market is a bit crap right now but I didn't realise it was this bad :(

I agree. My DH is currently job hunting (luckily I am in work) and it is utterly shit out there.

That is really depressing, I feel for you.

Have you looked carefully at your CV - is it the very best it could be? I was unemployed for a while and wasn't getting any interviews but once I gave my CV a serious overhaul I started getting interviews and then a job.

Is each CV tailored to the specific job? I know it's a massive pain but I've recruited before for work and it was amazing how many people didn't bother changing their CVs to reflect what the job required.

Are you following up your CV deliveries with another visit/phone call?

Apologies if these are stating the bleeding obvious, just trying to be helpful.

Poor you. That sounds very tough. You are doing your absolute best so please don't beat yourself up.

Where do you live, roughly? Is the job market particularly bad there? Could you look for a job a bit further afield and move if you got it? Or is that totally unrealistic?(would be for me).

Could you start a small business from home?

How about retraining for something at college?

I have tailor made CV's and followed them up. Will check my CV over.

The job market here is not appalling. There are a lot of shops and big chains here and Cardiff isn't too far away by bus but we're not getting any joy from Cardiff either. We can't move at all. In rented house we love, reception has just started in a brilliant school up the road and no money.

I'm in college one night per week retraining. Still struggling with the cost of that.

It all seems so deeply shit.

You have my sympathies. Job hunting is soul destroying!

Now this might seem a bit 'out there' but have you (or anyone else in this situation) considered apprenticeships? That is how I got into employment - I got a customer service apprenticeship with my local council, in a library. I now have a permanent FT contract.

Pay is lower but don't automatically rule it out - my council actually pays a decent wage to apprentices so it is worth looking around. The age limit isn't as low as it was, there are plenty of middle aged apprentices, it's no longer just for young people. You can't do it if you have a degree though.

I don't mean to sound all evangelical about it but TBH I would be nowhere if it wasn't for the apprenticeship I did - I was in a similar situation, overqualified for some jobs due to A levels, no experience and no degree to get into other jobs, it was awful.

Milkteef I'm in a Wales too and there are SO many people going for jobs it's just unreal. I'm trying to find part time work and have been told there are sometimes 300 applicants for one position.

Have you tried secretarial agencies in Cardiff, even done temp office work will freshen your CV.

Have you got retail experience at all? I might know of something but would ideally have retail experience and/or an outdoor pursuits enthusiast.

I would regularly talk to friends with jobs as well. Knowing someone is sometimes the key.

What are you retraining in? Can you do a bit of work experience in that field? That sometimes leads to paid work.

I have one temporary position from 2006 that was retail. From 2006-2008 I worked in a Lloyds TSB call centre which gave me customer service experience. I left when I was 8 months pregnant and didn't take maternity so there was no job to go back to under the contract I was on. There's a few jobs going there now but my credit rating is very very poor so they won't even look at me. The last I checked for those positions there were 100+ applicants.

I'm with most agencies here and Cardiff but no temp work has been offered and so far, no apprenticeships. All apprenticeships here are £2.60 an hour and I know it sounds bad but if I'm losing housing benefit etc the job needs to pay. With my last full time job I was £15 up a week without bills etc. I know the fulfillment of a job and a purpose is a great thing but it struggles to make an impact when I'm spending 38 hours a week elsewhere, paying for childcare and not getting anything in return.

Have you thought about care agencies? While you don't have transport, there will always be clusters of jobs that are walkable. Any care homes nearby? Apologies if care work isn't your thing, a lot of people do not feel they could do it, but it is my fall back plan.

Really hope you both have some luck very soon x

I'm retraining in Therapeutic Counselling. I do have a voluntary position for 2 hours a week but until I am Level 4 qualified no organisation will look at me. I have another 18 months to go.

I have thought about setting up my own cheap student counselling business charging £10 an hour instead of the going rate of £40 but I don't have the money for a premisis, insurances etc. I can't do it from home because of the children and can't go to people's houses for safety reasons etc. My only hope of a paid job is to qualify then go on to a postgrad and hope an organisation takes me on or use all my student loans etc to pay for insurance and find a private, cheap room with security or someone waiting for me outside to set up my own little business.

I just keep telling myself that it will be worth it even if counselling just strengthens my customer service skills or gets me into a job with social services etc. It's more than I have with just A-Levels.

I would and could do care work but absolutely every job opportunity on the job centre website states you must have a full clean driving license and own transport. I hope something will come up in an actual care home or just in one area so I can rely on my legs and a bus soon.

Are you with an agency for caring jobs specifically? I think that's an easier way to get care home work. Or ask directly at local care homes.

No not with a specific agency. Will have to pop in with a hard copy x

This sort of role would be good for you with your therapy experience, maybe? I think I would sign up with some social care specific agencies.

Which way out of Cardiff are you? Are you Valleys, Vale or Caerphilly?
New Directions are quite helpful
Theres jobs advertised on Gumtree as well, worth a look?
Anything on your CV will look better than months of unemployment.
Lots of places will be taking on Christmas staff soon, theres nearly always extra hours available, especially in the 24-7 supermarkets
Ubfortunately Job centre staff just dont have the time to give people the time they need

How come Lloyds did not pay you maternity leave if you'd been there two years? Good luck with the search, it is hard. Often contacts are the best way to get a job, friends, family etc.

How about e bay selling? Find a niche market and sell then at least you will be earning something and it will make you less fed up.
I've seen people post on here who are recruitment people. Can one of those people check your cv. But maybe change the thread title so they notice.

On another note, are your bills the lowest they can be? Could you save money chaining your diet/ washing powder/ heating temperature? Look at the money saving expert website etc...

Is there any way you could offer the cheap student counselling by contacting The Student Union of Cardiff Uni? It's certainly possible a room could be found for you in the Union building. Just another thought to throw in the pot. It must be really bloody hard but well done you for sticking with the training.

Could you offer an ironing service (people would have to drop and collect), but maybe you could look at what rates are being charged, see if you can better them as no car. Leafleting in areas nearby where you think it might be worth trying.

I didn't get maternity under the contract I was on or so they told me. I was young and pregnant and DP's wage would support us so I never questioned it as I didn't want my job back. Basically it was probably my own stupidity.

I can't counsel at a university unless I have all the relevant insurances and am a level 4. Where I am now is voluntary but has me covered.

If anyone is willing to look over my CV, that would be brilliant. Careers Wales looked at my admin, cleaner and customer service CV's snd said they looked good so the only other thing I can think of is that there is nothing but college and freelance work for the past four years. My experience is 'old'. I do put that my counselling skills have developed my customer service skills and how.

I applied for a further five new jobs yesterday. I hope they get back to me, even with a rejection. I know everyone's busy but I like to feel acknowledged.