Helping Young People Find Work
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Hi everyone,
I'm pulling together a guide for the money.co.uk newsletter next week on helping young people with little work experience find work.
As you probably know this is a big issue in the UK at the moment with over a million people aged 16-24 out of work looking for a job.
So, I've come to ask for your help - what do you think young people need to do to land a job in this tough job market?
What are your job hunting, interview and CV writing tips that you think anyone looking for a job should follow?
Thanks for your help! Martin :-)
Responses (12)
In Merthyr Tydfil there are 'Bridges into Work' schemes. Young people attend courses that last for about 15 weeks, 60 hours of study for a qualification. I am sure this is not unique! I like the sound of this. It echoes commitment and regular attendance. Any other areas doing similar?
Anything that helps to get young people into work would certainly get my support, Martin.
Mr F wasn't a young person at the time, but I'm sure his experience would be relevant to anyone of any age. When we got married, he gave up a job that he absolutely hated. I was still working so I said I would support him until he found something.
Once we got back from our honeymoon, he got up with me every day and 'went to work'. In other words, he treated looking for work as a full-time job. Once I'd gone to work, he went into our office and spent an eight hour day networking, updating and sending out CV's and applying for jobs.
After about six months despair was beginning to set in, then he suddenly got several job offers at the same time and has been gainfully employed in decent jobs for 22 years now.
To sum up, work at it, and don't give up.
Additionally, if you can afford it, get professional help with your CV. As someone who has been responsible for employing people I would just say that so many of them go straight into the bin!
Thanks Feline, some really useful points there, I agree that being pro-active and keeping positive are vital, even when you're struggling to find anything.
What an outstanding way to get a job! Mr. F. had it taped then, for the future. I cannot see many young people taking that course of action today.
Well, if we can help them a bit, greydo, via the Forum, bring it on!
First and foremost a completely honest C.V. is essential as bosses are now checking up on qualifications and also it needs someone to make it look professional with NO spelling errors which seem to be ever present on anything that comes through the post and an ill written letter is dreadful.
A very neat and tidy attire worn for the interview. For an office job or similar a nice suit, shirt and tie and POLISHED shoes makes a good impression. Reading about the Company you are going to see also comes in handy when they start talking about the job you are being interviewed for and an input always looks good.
Shaking the Interviewer's hand as you go in is a good start and politeness of conversation goes a long way. Don't ramble on for ever as they will have lost interest. They don't want to know what you had for breakfast and last night's supper. Keep the conversation to a minimal.
When they ask what you have been doing don't tell them every detail. Pick out all the interesting points in your past occupations don't for goodness sake bore them again.
Leave the interview with a shake of the hand and a thank you for seeing you.
p.s. Don't go with dirty finger nails make sure they are nicely trimmed etc.
Briliant stuff, Sabre, which reminds me of something I'd forgotten. On the day after the interview, email them to thank them for the meeting and just remind them why you're the best person for the job.
One of my lovely friends when she interviews for secretaries, office workers (using the word processor) etc. always sets them a list of spellings which will be used regularly and there are very few who ever succeed in getting them right.
i.e. sincerely, necessary, necessitate, successful, absolutely, received, possession, occasionally etc. etc.
Interesting to see how people react under that pressure Sabre, I guess the spellings are irrelevant given we've now got spellcheck, but I DO get frustrated with people who can't spell!!
A lot of people still don't know how to type a letter Jazzj and don't use the spell checks. I wish you could see some of the letters I've received and how many spelling mistakes were in them.
Spellchecks are not all they're cracked up to be.
Years ago, when I had cause to complain about my new car blowing up on the M2, my Vauxhall Astra became a Vaginal Ashtray....
Oh, Feline, am in absolute agony here, I'm going to think of that every time I see an Astra now... :-)
Sorry to hear you're in pain, fruits... hehehe
Oh feline, how on earth did I miss this one yesterday!!!! Love it, will never look at an Astra in the same light again!!!
Hi Martin,
This is a combined topic that I am more than willing to pass on my tips but it is is so huge a combined topic that I may need to email to you. I await your response.
I am horrified at the protests against Tesco for offering work experience to young unemployed. I see it as very useful experience not 'slave labour' and offering some return for the 'work seekers' benefit being paid out of the public purse.
Having said that, I would suggest the following. I think that it is always good to go to an interview with something proactive to report. Saturday and holiday jobs, volunteer work or even helping elderly neighbours with gardening or shopping would count in my book. If you have a hobby that you enjoy it could be worth making a CD or DVD showing your passion be it a sport or perhaps doing up a car. It shows committment and that is what an employer likes to see.
A practice interview can be helpful as it makes you think about your strengths and why you will be a valuable addition to the business. Show your interest in exactly what is involved in the job rather than asking about holidays and overtime pay. I agree with Sabre that appearance is very important and many interviewers make up their minds very quickly when they first meet an applicant. I think it's best to be slightly too smart rather than not smart enough. This applies regardless of whether the job is in a garage (where overalls are going to be worn) or a trendy ad agency where the team is likely to wear smart casual clothes.
Better stop before I write an essay!
Some great tips here already Martin. I can only add (and sound like my late Mother) Sit up straight, look the interviewer directly in the eye, don't shuffle, yes clean finger nails as Sabre suggested and for goodness sake wear clean/polished shoes. First appearances do count.
I was employed for a couple of years as a 'hirer, firer and trainer' for a very large and well known retail company, and, to be honest, a lot of the time it was the first impressions that let that age group down.
1. CVs and application forms badly misspelled and with questions badly answered or with sections just left blank.
2. Turning up to interview looking scruffy or inappropriately dressed.
3. Not answering appropriately when greeted on arrival and at the end of the interview, eg responding to a 'Good morning' with a 'Hi' or to a 'Thank you for coming, goodbye' with a 'Cheers!' or worse, a 'Yeah, see ya!'
4. Slouching in the seat, and constantly checking their watch or mobile during interview.
5. Looking bored or all round the room when you're outlining the duties of the job to them.
6. Just nodding or shaking their head in response to any questions, rather than giving you an actual verbal reply.
7. Only asking about days off, holidays, etc rather than asking about the job itself.
8. When asked about their hobbies and interests, only coming up with 'Facebook' or 'going out drinking with my friends'.
9. If they've had a previous job, moaning about all the things they didn't like about it, or the people they didn't like'.
10. Never looking you in the eye, not even once!
11. Telling you that they don't really want the job, but their mum said they had to get one!
Believe me, I am not making any of that up! :-)
Fruitcake - This just shows how badly prepared some young people are for entering the workforce. If they don't understand the requirements of an employer or how to behave at an interview then how ever are they going to get a job? Parents and schools should be ashamed if this is what we are producing as the future of our country.
Oh yes and leave the chewing gum at home. I absolutely hate anyone who is eating whilst serving me whether it's their lunch or chewing gum.
Well, Sidesalad, it was by no means all young people who behaved like this at the interview stage, but those who didn't, stood out, and generally were the ones who were offered employment.
My teenagers are taught how to write a CV at school, and have practice interviews, and develop their skills by a weeks work experience most years. They have to find their own work experience, by ringing/writing to places they're interested in and attend interviews, and the experience is invaluable
We really have forgotten self-employment in this debate- there is hardly a mention of this in school. You don't even need an interview!
Very true greydo. I wonder how many people of this age group have the necessary skills and self-confidence to do this? I'm only aware of one lad from our school who set up his own business as pc support, and has done very well!
Hi guys, thank you for all your tips and suggestions, they are really useful and I think many job seekers not just those under 25 would do well to heed your advice!
Hi all, thank you again for all your tips and suggestions, I decided to open this up to job seekers of all ages, you can take a look at the finished guide here! http://www.money.co.uk/article/1008462-how-to-find-a-job.htm
Be prepared to get more than one bus!
When I worked in the jobcentre that was a common reason for not applying for a job! People seem to be under the wrong illusion that they are going to get a job that you can get up and roll out of bed into - and this is not just the 'young' people either.
When my OH (finally) got the courage (well... made redundant as the pub closed!) to leave the pub industry that he had worked in since he left school and pursue working in IT, which he had always wanted to do, the only vacancies were miles away. And when I say miles, I mean he would walk to the bus station, get a bus to the train station, get a train to Manchester, walk to a different Manchester train station, get another train out of Manchester, get on a bus, and then still had a 10/15 min walk to his office!!!!
He didn't do it because the money was great, or because it was his ideal job, or because it was the easy option. He took the job because it would give him some experience to get a better job that he more wanted to do, that would hopefully be better paid. And it paid off, as he was only there 6 months in the end! But sadly now he is being made redundant at the end of April :(
Part of the problem is that people are looking and expecting to find their ideal job, but just aren't willing to travel. It is a proven fact that if you are already employed, it is easier to find another job. So it doesn't matter particularly what job you take - just get any to start off with!
Good advice, yummymummy, sorry about your OH's redundancy though, but with his great attitude he'll hopefully find something else soon!
Gosh that was a long journey yummy and well done to him. He sounds a very positive person so hopefully he will get another job before long.
Well done to him, yummy. I'd defo employ him if I were still in the employing people market!
Thanks :) It's a bit of a pain as I am just getting sorted with my Childminding business, so we though finally money would be ok (after my contract at the jobcentre ended as they didn't need the staff cos unemployment was falling!!!! That was in June - hmmm maybe not?!?!?)
He's got an interview on Monday - right near where he used to do that horrendous commute to, but this time he he can now drive (although we would have to buy him a car!) So fingers, toes and anything else you can manage to cross for good luck please!!! Xx
All crossed as we speak, yummy!
Yes double crossed from me too yummymummy
Well done him yummymummy, sounds like my first job..bus walk train tube walk!
Good luck for the interview, hope he gets the job! :-)
Hi, my son, who has learning difficulties, has worked since leaving school at 15, he is now 29, my point being, that while on a government scheme to help him find work, he was offered a job as a bin man, on a trial placement for 3months, not in reciept of any wage, but able to keep his benefits, and if suitable after this period, he might have been retained, we refused, why? because why should he work with people who are paid from 7.30am til 4.430pm for a days work -rightly-and because he has learnining difficulties he does not? Whats to say that after the initial three months they would not pick up some other person and continue to do the same.....he found his own job, and has worked continually since, albeit a cleaning job, at which he starts at 6am every day.......if you want to work, there are jobs out there, but they might not be what you want to do...but my son does not want to live on benefits.......
Pauline, your son's a credit to you, wish there were more with his dself-respect around!!
Exactly Pauline - there are jobs out there - not necessarily people's dream jobs. Well done to your son for having the self-respect to not want to live on benefits and doing something about it! Hopefully it will stand him in better stead to progress - either within the cleaning industry if that's what he wants, or to something he would prefer to do :)
Well, if they're 16-24, blonde and cute it's probably worth noting that self employment from home doesn't count as prostitution so long as it's not taken on the streets.
And sharing with a friend is fine too, though sharing with more than one friend constitutes a brothel ;-)
And there goes the tone of the thread,,,,,,,,,,,,
Interesting its only the blondes you see in that role!
That's only because he knows he couldn't handle a fiery redhead!
Obviously, redheads would be running the whole operation...
Hmmm..not sure I see myself running a brothel...........
Really, Jazz?! Any woman could run a brothel...it's the female equivalent of holding a p*** up in a brewery!!
10 out of 10 for fast thinking, G-Man!
Lol fruity, you know I didn't mean intellectually incapable!!! I'm a sensitive innocent soul....not cut out for that sort of role :)
I'd rather be running it, than be one of the items for sale! :-)
Fair point!!
Fruits, it's for rent, not for sale.
It's not like brothels sell marriage...
LOL, fruits and Jazz.!
I don't know about you, Jazz, but I know fruits has had an academic career, unlike mine which was in business.
But if I decided to set up a brothel I'd trust both of you to run it,over the blokes, who probably couldn't be trusted to run the proverbial in the brewery, or to run the brothel without sampling the goods........
Really looking forward to the responses to this, girls!
.
Well, you're renting the time of the provider I suppose, G-Man, but you're also buying the product (sex), which is a brilliant marketing concept, because you can keep selling the exact same product over and over again to different customers...try doing that with a tin of beans!
I've spent a lot less time in the field of academia than I have in retail, Feline, and I run my own business, so not a total beginner on the business side of things. ;-)
Love it, fruits!
Excellent, I've never been in retail, but am multilingual and good at delivering training session................?
So much for 'sensitive and innocent' then, Jazz... ;-)
Jesus fruits, what do you think I'm training people in??? Lol
Jazz, are you really saying that you're a cunning linguist ?
Now I would have expected Snoops to come out with that!!! Lol
Nah, Jazz - defo a Sisters' comment!
I'll sit out the back and analyse the market trends
Assumed you were offering your services to the brothel management, Jazz...multilingual and good at delivering training...yep, very useful on both counts! I tried so hard not to make the 'cunning linguist' comment... :-0
They'd all be tasting and feeling and using the product for sale I reckon sisters. Reading a lot of their postings in the last week I can't quite make up my mind who is nearest the gutter whilst us nice innocent young ladies sit quietly using our computers and talking about interesting subjects and then suddenly the old thread appears again.
By the way Snoops, any luck with the pussy??
I daren't ask what your business is fruity?
Oh, fruits, I tried too, but not hard enough......
Lol, Feline!
Sabre, it's not one that pays as well as running a brothel, I can assure you... ;-)
Isn't it second hand goods..................?
Maybe it's time for a change Fruity. If all the sisters of mercy came to work for you you would make a fortune. All our year's of experience would be in abundance and sometimes the mature lady is quite a bonus.
p.s. I think Jazzj is mixing your business up with the charity work you do. Or maybe it's me whose got it wrong.
Oh heck yes, I was referring to the charity, not implying anything else!!!
I don't have a great deal of experience I'm afraid..is that a disadvantage or a bonus.............?
Lol!! No, I only do the Oxfam work for half the week at most and it's unpaid voluntary work!
All brothel work would involve second-hand goods, and no, that's not what I do the other half of the week either...sorry to disappoint you all! :-)
Lol fruits :)
Anybody noticed that the guys are keeping very quiet?
Particularly at the mention of cunning linguists.......
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