Employers are the issue - not people

[Orangeandgold]

Is it me, or is nobody talking about the role that companies/employers play when it comes to the number of people that are out of work or struggling to work or earn enough to cover life costs. I’m not just referring to stagnant wages and NI but…

1. The massive reduction in entry level jobs. I train many young people and a lot of them have to work for free for a while or take on part time jobs whilst “hustling” on the side to get into the careers they wish
2. Nepotism and favouritism - This has forever existed but it hasn’t gone away. I must say on paper I could be a statistic (in terms or working class background/race etc) but I got my foot in the door and worked up - but I have found everything else (promotions, moving jobs) is really about connections or having a niche but highly desired skill (that I’m not mad about) - which is fine for someone like me that has learned how to graft - but isn’t for many who might struggle to adapt
3. Work culture - again - I’ve adapted - but when I look back you really need a thick skin for certain work places or you need to fit the culture - and if you don’t - it’s hard. And if you don’t because of your needs/ability/ND it is even harder
4. Moving within jobs is hard - so many people now get stuck in their jobs when actually there should be better career paths and support. I know people in toxic work places that have been promised promotions or more pay - nothing happens - or the fact that it’s much easier to join another company because people internally can become horrible if you want to progress - but you need to build the above first
5. Work schemes only work if you can do all the above - again, entry level schemes are great for getting the foot in the door- but sadly I have witnessed people are more likely to keep a job for being liked (or very needed) and companies not being flexible to accommodate needs (despite having budgets to accommodate after hours drinking culture and large parties) - I’ve seen people not get a job offer despite being brilliant and it’s usually because they don’t quite fit in - yet are skilled and are nice people but maybe have traits some find annoying (e.g. being over friendly/being direct etc)

Maybe some of these issues are private sector issues. I have had lovely jobs over the years but I’ve also seen people loose their jobs, struggle to get in or struggle to move onto the next opportunity for reasons that I can only call prejudice or discrimination (often very hard to prove)

This is aimed at corporations that have the means to pay for adjustments and support for staff - not necessarily small businesses that probably don’t have the resources.

Unreasonable - Corporations are not the problem
Reasonable - Yep, they are an issue!

One of the big ones is lack of full-time jobs and professional level part-time jobs.
Employers are almost encouraged to have two part-timers rather than one full time member of staff.

Very difficult for young people to get full-time jobs, so many jobs are supermarket part-time or pubs..

If your a mum and want flexible working it's very difficult to get that too.

Certain jobs are completely under valued for instance carers for both elderly and nursery.

my advice is for people with disabilities to hide them during the interview stage where they can, and once they have the job lay down your reasonable adjustments and if refused go to a tribunal.

A big part of the problem is that technology (not just AI, but other automation) is removing a lot of the low-skill, high-effort manual effort work that used to be entry level roles. People in the past weren't more benevolent when it came to training opportunities, they had work that needed doing.

Now you have to be much more skilled to be able to be useful in a lot of jobs, which raises the bar for entry.

Needing less "manual" work also means that people skills become vastly much more important interactions between people make up a much bigger proportion of the work that needs to be done.

Agreed @Needspaceforlego

Lack of full-time low level or unskilled jobs (allowing people to earn a living wage) and professional level part-time jobs (allowing skilled workers to continue to contribute to the economy after children / ill health/whatever) is a HUGE issue.