People returning to work after a long break

red_devil

. Been having this discussion with someone and wanted to bring it to the boards?

Do you think there is enough recognition for people who have had a break from work due to caring for children or maybe adults and are signing on.

The emphasis always seems to be on giving a job to the person who has had the most experience and usually someone who is already in work!

Does anyone else feel that the government does not recognise this and more should be done for returners to work! I am not sure what they could do though as they dont give out the jobs they rely on an employer.

How do you get experience if you cant get any! I think alot of people go onto JSA from Income support when their children grow up simply because they cant get work as they have been out of the loop! They think they will return to work but actually its not easy especially if you have no special skills or experience.

While they have been busy caring other people have stayed in work and are getting the jobs. Catch 22.

The jobcentre often dont take into account either just how long someone has been out of work ,they count it from when they sign on but in actual fact its alot longer when you think of the years on income support maybe as a single parent! A person who is counted as say being unemployed for a year has probably not worked for longer as they were looking after someone and single.

Any thoughts! Im sure there will be some! Anyone from the jobcentre.

red_devil

anyone I thought this would get some replies

nzmegs

I think employers are taking "career breaks" into account more and more. Application forms will often ask you to mention what sort of skills you aquired while not working - such as studying, looking after childre, running a household budget. All these things are worthwhile. But if all you can say is that you watched telly then it is unlikely you will be taken seriously. A break from work should be seen as an opportunity to learn new things then it isn't a problem when you decide to return.

homeaway

the best way back into work if you have taken a break is to register with a temporary agency. It is much easier to get temp work and therefore experience than a permanent job. If you do good job then you might be hired on a permanent basis. Even if you dont get offered a permanent position you will get that valuable experience which puts you in a better postion.

Bennifred

I returned to work after 19 years as a stay-at-home Mum. When I was applying for jobs it didn't occur to me that I should receive any special favours over people already in employment - surely the best person for the position should be offered it?
Is it not the responsibility of the individual to make sure they have acquired whatever skills are necessary (experience doesn't necessarily mean in that job) - why rely on the Government for everything?

Absinthe_Fairy

Got to agree with the OP here. My mam trained as a teacher but didn't land a teaching job, she worked for seven years at the National Children's Home instead. She left full-time work to have me and my brother, doing random part-time jobs in supermarkets and similar to earn a bit of money. When we were teenagers she tried to apply for jobs in nurseries (she'd worked with young kids at the NCH and did some supply teaching with Reception class) but they ignored her experience and qualifications because she didn't have the relevant NVQ! :mad: She got really disheartened and lost all her confidence and now works as a kitchen assistant in a school.

Looking back, she wishes she'd been able to go part-time but there wasn't really the option then.

If I ever have kids, there's no way I'm leaving work completely! I'd go part-time but that's it!

red_devil

i still think there alot of single parents on Is who then go on to JSA! They havent worked cos they are looking after their children they suddenly try to get back into work and realise its not that easy!

I think you need to keep your hand in so to speak but thats not always easy!

Hermia

red_devil wrote: »

The emphasis always seems to be on giving a job to the person who has had the most experience and usually someone who is already in work!

I think that is true, but I also think it is quite understandable. Recruitment is incredibly expensive and if someone is in work and has had a lot of experience you are in a better position to judge whether they can do the job. If someone is in work you know that they are going to be up-to-date with the latest technology etc. You also know that their references are going to be a fairly accurate reflection of what they are currently like.

I had some health problems in my twenties and was not able to work for a couple of years. I did have a struggle getting a job when I was better, but I knew that I was going to have to work harder than everyone else to prove I could do it. So, I did an IT course at my local college (which was quite cheap because I was not working) and tried to get myself up-to-date by reading everything I could about the jobs I was applying for.

You have to accept that you are really going to need to work hard to prove yourself. I have done my fair share of interviewing and get frustrated at the returning-to-work mums who just sit in the interview chair like a lemon and keep saying that they don't know about x or haven't done y because they have been at home with the kids for years.

Any mum returning to work (or indeed anyone returning to work for whatever reason) needs to take every opportunity to get some experience. See if there are any cheap courses available (my local college has very cheap courses for mums returning to work). Volunteer to help at your child's school or get on the PTA (my friend is a school governor and she said that has really impressed employers). If your hubby or sister or friend has some useful work-related skill get them to teach you it. Go to the library and take out lots of books about the sort of jobs you are applying for. Volunteer in a charity shop. You just need to be a bit creative and look at your knowledge and experience from an interviewer's point of view.

red_devil

Hermia wrote: »

I think that is true, but I also think it is quite understandable. Recruitment is incredibly expensive and if someone is in work and has had a lot of experience you are in a better position to judge whether they can do the job. If someone is in work you know that they are going to be up-to-date with the latest technology etc. You also know that their references are going to be a fairly accurate reflection of what they are currently like.

yes i agree you cant blame the employer but their dosent seem to be any recognition from the jobcentre that this could be an obstacle. When you sign you are treated as if you have only been out of work from your signing on date when in actual fact you may have been on Income Support bringing up children. Their should be a link up.

You have to accept that you are really going to need to work hard to prove yourself. I have done my fair share of interviewing and get frustrated at the returning-to-work mums who just sit in the interview chair like a lemon and keep saying that they don't know about x or haven't done y because they have been at home with the kids for years.


Voluntary work and courses while a good idea arent always the answer. Employers still seem to want people who are in work and just because you have done a course still dosent mean you will get the job. I have known of a case where someone did voluntary work on a reception then went for a paid job at a college and was told the voluntary work wasnt enough! Its very competitive out there and I feel that people who are not in paid work are at a disadvantage. Everyone knows that its easier to get a job while you have one! You cannot get any experience either if you cant get any!

Situation needs addressing really!

LittleSnowBear

I have had a similar problem I was out of work due to illness for four years and I am having a nightmare getting just a parttime job to find my uni studies now due to no recent work experience, its not like I don't want to work!:mad:

Hermia

yes i agree you cant blame the employer but their dosent seem to be any recognition from the jobcentre that this could be an obstacle.

To be honest I don't think you should have high expectations for the job centre! I was treated like scum because I had a degree and then they threatened to stop my JSA because I refused to apply for a job vacancy they offered me (it was three junctions down the motorway and there was no way to get there via public transport).

Voluntary work and courses while a good idea arent always the answer. Employers still seem to want people who are in work and just because you have done a course still dosent mean you will get the job.

I don't agree with that. I mean, of course it won't guarantee that you get the job. In the same way as having 20 years of experience and a PhD won't guarantee that someone will get a job. It will give you the edge over someone who has absolutely nothing on their CV though. Where I used to work we took on huge numbers of part-timers. We would interview lots of school-leavers, mums and people who were returning to work after an absence. Some would just sit there with nothing to say or show for themselves, but others would be able to chat about their voluntary work or the adult education course they had done. It did give them the edge. It shows us that that person has some get-up-and-go and is willing to put the work in and it gives the applicant some concrete examples to use when answering questions. A lot of the time you will still lose out to the more experienced person, but not always. Sometimes there is no experienced applicant, sometimes the more experienced applicant is a complete twit and sometimes they just like what you have to say.