Unable to progress in public sector job. Dejected and Frustrated

[Floogal]

For context, I am in my early 40s and work for the local authority as a cleaner ( I won't mention what authority or the capacity of the institution to prevent outing). I would like to advance to do the management program or even move onto doing administrative work. In the latest internal magazine there were a few articles written by some of the managers about career progression and training opportunities. And how the local authority supports anyone who wants to develop. Yet, I am worried my age, and the fact I am doing a post that many consider 'menial' will prejudice my chances.
However, the main hurdle is more practical. Due to the fact I am a cleaner (don't have any business being in the offices and simply don't have time most days), I have very restricted and sporadic access to the IT system. I am only really allowed on to do overtime claims. I haven't been able to check my emails for months at a time and getting onto the intranet is virtually impossible. How can employees (at the bottom) progress if they have virtually no access to the computers? I am feeling frustrated and dejected, so any advice will be appreciated. Also success stories would give me a boost

Could you do a basic intro to computer work say at night college or at your local library? Doing cleaning is jolly exertive and a serious job so don't put yourself down.

I went for an assessment day open to anybody recently at a county council for a phone based role and only a handful (no not joking) turned up, at least 3 being in their forties so don't write yourself off. 🙂they said the role was high turnover but a lot go for it to use it as a lynch pad.

What do you need access to the pc for? Most public libraries have pc's to use

hi, on a practical note, you should be able to access your work emails from home/on your phone - you shouldn't ONLY be able to access them from a computer 'on site'. I work for a university in the offices, and I can access emails etc when not there. If there isn't any clear guidance on how to do that, your supervisor/head of dept should be able to tell you, or your IT department (if you have one) who you could perhaps call? But definitely go for it - you will have lots of useful, transferable skills already!

@butteriesplease because I need to access the intranet as well as email. Got outlook on my phone but still can't access my work email

What are the barriers to you being able to access the intranet? Is there a spare PC you can use? If not, what do you need to do to allow you access?

Yes there are spare PCs, but as I mentioned, I'm usually too busy to access it during the shift. Also, my supervisor (as well as the admin staff) would object to me using the computer during work hours, as it will be perceived I have no business using it. As mentioned I am only allowed on to do my overtime requests. That's it! I actually put an anonymous note in the suggestion box that cleaning and caring staff should be allowed to have fair access to the IT system. Fingers crossed 🤞

call IT and ask if it is possible ro get work emails on your own phone?

Unfortunately I agree that there is no business reason for you to access the PC in your working hours, especially for training that is not directly related to your current position. What they should be doing is assisting you with IT access on your lunch break and after hours.

Can you stay after your shift to use it?

What do you need to access the intranet for?

Ask for a meeting with HR to discuss?

To do the courses and workshops 😊

I work in a role that is sometimes contracted out so although I am paid by the council I dont have direct access to the intranet. The head of our service "helpfully" copies across anything she thinks might be useful.

It's set me thinking though -

** Are there internal council jobs? I think most council jobs are advertised on their website - absolutely apply.

** I cant access internal training either. I hadn't really thought about that before!

Also both council and nhs have "bank" admin staff - I would contact them (from your home email) and ask about applying.

Worth a try I suppose

Also your local adult education will have free courses - try going through them (often still the council but accessible to all).

There willl absolutely be free computer skills classes if you want to skill up.

Also there are a range of free level 2 distance learning courses which you do at your own pace online through a range of providers if you wanted to upskill. These are great too.

I think the internal ones are designed to be done on work time which jobs like yours and mine dont really work for.

I'm thinking you can get there but a different way.

"Worth a try I suppose"

Well it's the obvious solution. Of course you'd need to put in extra hours after your shift to do the training. You can't just not clean and sit on the computer doing courses all day 😅

Could you do some sort of evening class. Is the ECDL still a qualification? I did that many years ago and it was well thought of at the time

How about contacting HR and saying that you would like to arrange informal mentoring (or formal if they have such a thing) with a manager in an admin position, for e.g. monthly conversations about how you can make a career move. Ask if they can find someone to do that with you. Get IT to sort email on your phone - or ask HR to do that for you.

This course is funded by the government and online. https://freecoursesinengland.co.uk/principles-of-business-administration/

Surely you’d have to do any courses outside of your paid time anyway?

Can’t you ask your supervisor if you can go on to check for emails before your shift starts, during a break or when it ends?

Just want to encourage you - I work in local government and we have taken on 2 of our former cleaners into our department. Not library assistant but that sort of thing. They had worked with us for some time, had been vocal about being interested in progressing, and so we as managers kept them in the loop and signposted when we were recruiting for entry level positions. Slightly different in that they didn’t need work computer access or the intranet. But I agree with pp that you should ask to use a PC after your shift to do necessary training/job searching. Good luck!

Newname- are all positions advertised publicly?

Any courses which are not required for your current job will normally have to be done in your own time.
I'm also public sector. I couldn't just decide I wanted to know more about a different area of work and expect my employer to let me do that during my working day.

Your best bet is to stay at end of your shift and access the intranet then.

Well that would definitely be worth a try. Doubt I'd get away with it though 😂

Speak to your line manager about dedicated time to access the intranet and support in progressing. You shouldn’t have to work over time to access the intranet and read the organisation’s news that is deliberately shared to make everyone feel part of the team.