Mis judged by employer's

[raynor 10]

I'm having at rant today ! So I apologise.... For the last month I've been applying for jobs as a support worker to working in a warehouse and don't seem to get the jobs ? I've even tried to get a cleaning job and still no luck, all because I've been a stay at home mom to 3 kids for the last 13 yrs now my kids are at full time school. I sooo want to work but no one will give me a chance ... You get looked down on if your on benefits and you still get looked down on from employers so its a no win situation ..employers seem to think your just a bum but anyone who's a stay at home parent will tell you its not as easy as you think!! anyone got any ideas what to do

[Bludragonfly 10]

Sorry you're having difficulty finding a job.

 

I'd suggest two things you could consider doing:

 

- Volunteering - will give you something you can put onto your CV and after a while you will have someone to give you a reference. You can search for volunteering opportunities at http://www.do-it.org.uk/

 

- CV - are you making the most of your skills and experience via your CV? Do you know anyone who has to interview people as part of their job? If so get them to look at your CV - they'll be used to seeing good or bad ones. Alternatively you can ask about work clubs at the library and see if you can get any help from there

 

Good luck

[LeMaquis 10]

Employers look for experience and qualifications. You seem to be lacking in both, at least in recent times. You're competing against a lot of people with up to date skills.

 

If you're signing on for JSA then you qualify for certain training courses after (I think) 6 months. Doing one of those could help.

 

Otherwise you have to sell yourself based on what you're good at. Think about what you can do best and then emphasise your best points.

 

And a month's not a long time to be looking for work. I've waited longer than that between interview and job offer, over 6 months in one case.

[JonBladesman 10]

I'm having at rant today ! So I apologise.... For the last month I've been applying for jobs as a support worker to working in a warehouse and don't seem to get the jobs ? I've even tried to get a cleaning job and still no luck, all because I've been a stay at home mom to 3 kids for the last 13 yrs now my kids are at full time school. I sooo want to work but no one will give me a chance ... You get looked down on if your on benefits and you still get looked down on from employers so its a no win situation ..employers seem to think your just a bum but anyone who's a stay at home parent will tell you its not as easy as you think!! anyone got any ideas what to do

 

Sorry you having this problem at the moment.

 

Sadly most companies want qualifications for this and qualifications for that. The key is to find out exactly what they are looking for. Get them to be very specific and then do everything you can to match their needs.

 

Lots of people were/are on benefits at some point in their lives and to me it should show potential employees that there's a willingness to come off them and find work. It's very challenging out there, so the key is to find your USP (Unique selling point)

 

Are there any courses you could go on... get some kind of qualification. I know it sounds like taking a step back, but sometimes you need to do this to take 10 steps forward.

 

There are certain questions you can ask them so that you'll hit a nerve with them... in a good way of course, but it depends on who you ask and how confident you are in asking. I could go on but I don't want to go on too much on a public forum, so please fee free to PM me for more info.

 

Finally there's always a work for free on a trial basis such as a week or month... as an employer, you can't get much more committed than that. I know it's sounds somewhat unconventional and even impractical, but in this day an age... people have to think differently in getting work. To me you'd come across doing what it takes and that's invaluable.

 

If you want more info please feel free to PM me.

[Jace 10]

You're Unique selling points would be that you have held a Senior Management role for Thirteen years, and that you have Excellent Multitasking Skill's with a "Can Do Attitude", and that you can "Cope Under Pressure" within a Very Demanding and Changing Environment.

[JonBladesman 10]

You're Unique selling points would be that you have held a Senior Management role for Thirteen years, and that you have Excellent Multitasking Skill's with a "Can Do Attitude", and that you can "Cope Under Pressure" within a Very Demanding and Changing Environment.

 

Brilliant... your hired

[RonJeremy 10]

Perhaps some employers look at your spelling and grammar and decide against employing you on that basis.

Just a thought.

[Mister M 1,625]

Keep at it raynor! I admire your tenacity in seeking work. Like others have said, it is tough out there.

However, if you're going for support work the best advice I can give is decide which client group you'd like to support & find voluntary work that will assist you in getting support work in the area of your choice. Also consider a college course, something like an NVQ in Health and Social Care, or NVQ in Childcare would definitely show that you're serious and interested enough. You've also undoubtedly developed many skills in the bringing up of your children that would be ideal for support work. You're not a bum!

[Obelix 11]

still no luck, all because I've been a stay at home mom to 3 kids for the last 13 yrs

 

If I'm looking for an employee and I've got two people, one of whom has not worked for 13 years and one whose got a lot of recent employment guess which I'm going to pick? That's simple common sense. Yes I know it's sucky but thats the way it's always been and always will be.

 

So how do you fix it? Experience - get some, which I admit isn't easy. But anything counts that shows you are prepared to put effort in and TBH volunteering shows a very motivated individual that stands you in good stead.

 

So you've had kids and raised them - volunteer for the Scouts or Guides. Do some work in charity shops for counter services. Does the village hall need a caretaker and cleaner? What about help for the elderly - Age concern are often looking for people to help them with meal services, library runs etc.

 

What are your IT skills like? Volunteer to teach silver surfers how to use a computer - libraries often need help like this. Also shows you have good IT skills.

 

Good luck and hope you find something soon.

[mumkin 10]

Perhaps some employers look at your spelling and grammar and decide against employing you on that basis.

Just a thought.

 

There's always one **** in a hen house isn't there.

[RonJeremy 10]

There's always one **** in a hen house isn't there.

I know, but she's trying. Seriously though, some employers do look at things like that, I'm one of them, and if the initial contact is badly spelled and has howling grammatical errors, then I move straight on to the next candidate.

The truth hurts sometimes, but I'm happy to help her by pointing out a failing, if it helps her to get a job.

[Obelix 11]

There's always one **** in a hen house isn't there.

 

It's a valid point to make, depending on the job in question although he could have worded it a little better.