Desperate for ANY job.

Williamf1989

Hi there.

Let me start by saying i have been job seeking for 6 months now.
At first i thought i would get a new job reasonably fast because i consider my self a clever person, lots of common sense, punctual, reliable etc etc.

I am 23 and I left school with 9 A*-C GCSE's.
From there i started to study MCITP but after a few months soon realised it was not for me.

At this point in time, I started to work my uncle for hes own double glazing business. I started at the age of 18 not knowing a thing about windows, doors, conservatories, guttering etc but after just short of five years can do it all pretty much myself.


Last year me and my partner were blessed with my daughter, we were renting a lovely 2 bed house (from my uncle) and life was good, i had money in my pocket and i could provide for my family.

Last December i had an argument with my Boss (uncle) over something very trivial and he decided that i he doesnt want me working for him anymore. I was fire 3 days before Christmas, wasnt given my last set of wages or any severance pay and decided he wanted the car i bought with my previous christmas bonus back.

At first me and my family thought it would blow over so i gave him the car back assuming that i would get it back pretty soon but it didnt stop there. After not paying me any wages he sent a friend round to tell me he wants full rent from now on ( we were paying £700 a month ) because i was earning £1100 a month i could not afford the £1040 he usually charged tenants. Things were getting nasty, he was sending stroppy texts to me and my partner and i did not want to argue with my uncle. We "surrendered" the tenancy and moved out within the two weeks which he ask.

It has gotten worse since then, im still unable to find a job and im starting to lose all hope that ill find one, i dont have many qualifications (none) apart from GCSE's and have only come across 2 or 3 installer roles since which all required you to have your own van and tools.

I had it in my head that i would start up as a self employed double glazing repairman however i dont have the funds to do so, also being 23 i feel people are reluctant to take me seriously.

My partner who has been very supportive throughout is now feeling the pressure, we have no money coming in apart from jsa and tax credits, we have bills from our old house which im unable to pay, my mobile phone contract has accumalted silly costs, i have an unpaid credit card which is escalating, all things that couldnt be payed because of unexpectingly losing my job. Our families are not in a position to help otherwise we know they would.

It is driving me and my partner apart, i have never felt so low, she is convinced im suffering from some sort of depression.

I do not no what the hell to do and i dont know where to turn, i had no idea finding ANY job would be so daunting and hard. Every position requires experience or enough qualifications to fly to the moon.

piglet25

I feel so sorry for the way your uncle has treated you, and I am surprised that it didn't blow over with him being family I can understand how down hearted you must feel, especially with a little one and the onus being on you to find a job which will not only pay the bills but also the debts, its no wonder your partner wonders if you are suffering from depression.
There are so few jobs out there now but you WILL find one, it may take a few kicks in the teeth first, but try to apply for jobs outside your area of knowledge too, and take a chance on some which you may look at and think you have no hope. I would be chasing up my unpaid pay too, and also if the car was purchased with your bonus it should be your car.
I wish you all the best of luck and I know its hard but keep your chin up because it WILL happen xx

Williamf1989

piglet25 wrote: »

I feel so sorry for the way your uncle has treated you, and I am surprised that it didn't blow over with him being family I can understand how down hearted you must feel, especially with a little one and the onus being on you to find a job which will not only pay the bills but also the debts, its no wonder your partner wonders if you are suffering from depression.
There are so few jobs out there now but you WILL find one, it may take a few kicks in the teeth first, but try to apply for jobs outside your area of knowledge too, and take a chance on some which you may look at and think you have no hope. I would be chasing up my unpaid pay too, and also if the car was purchased with your bonus it should be your car.
I wish you all the best of luck and I know its hard but keep your chin up because it WILL happen xx

I have been applying for any job i can find which do not require a specific qualification etc. My biggest problem is actually finding these sorts of jobs.. Where do you look for jobs which do not require a degree or qualification ? I cannot seem to find any "unskilled" positions advertised either. Another problem is when asked why i left my last job i dont really know what to say, have told people that the company closed down but they rang them up and realised that was a lie. I dont particualy want to tell employers i was fire for arguing with the boss (which wasnt the case) honestly the reason was because he came to pick me up one morning and got there early and wanted to come in, but the house was a mess and i didnt want him coming in, this put him in a mood and then he insulted me, so i sarcasticaly just started to agree with him, he dropped me home and i havent seen him since.

Its hes loss at the end of the day, hes lost a friend, nephew, hes nephews partner and hes great niece.

As for the car, i know, it was bought with a nice bonus (£3000 to be exact and the sale of my old car) It was in my name, the receipt was in my name and the V5 was registered to me, after following it
up some more i was told it would be down to a court to decide who should keep the car, and tbh as much as i loved it i did not want to agro, its only a car afterall
My uncle also has disowned hes brother (my dad) 6 months prior to this aswell for no apparent reason and we just want to wash our hands with him. We have always known hes been a very "strange" individual and has fallen out with all hes family now apart from hes partner.

Cutzee

So sorry to read you've had such a tough time of it. I don't know what to say about getting any job as I became unemployed on Friday so I will more than likely be in a similar position to you job wise at some point in the not too distant future. From what I can gather it's a tough market out there now with so many more applicants to compete with. Have you been applying for any job over the last six months? Have you received feedback as to why you are not getting the jobs? I know when I have looked at any job, there are some that do not require qualifications or experience/full training provided (for example I recently saw a position in a bar/pub on my local Gumtree for a trainee assistant manager).

I also wanted to comment on your credit card/mobile phone and whether you had contacted the National Debtline (charity) to help you on that side of things?

As for the depression, many of us have been there, myself included. The GP is a starting point (for medication or talking therapies/CBT). There are numerous self-help websites for tips on how to try and manage your depression http://www.mind.org.uk/mental_health_a-z/7980_understanding_depression. I think one of the main points for me is self-care.

I'm not much help I know, but didn't want to read and not comment

Williamf1989

Cutzee wrote: »

So sorry to read you've had such a tough time of it. I don't know what to say about getting any job as I became unemployed on Friday so I will more than likely be in a similar position to you job wise at some point in the not too distant future. From what I can gather it's a tough market out there now with so many more applicants to compete with. Have you been applying for any job over the last six months? Have you received feedback as to why you are not getting the jobs? I know when I have looked at any job, there are some that do not require qualifications or experience/full training provided (for example I recently saw a position in a bar/pub for a trainee assistant manager).

I also wanted to comment on your credit card/mobile phone and whether you had contacted the National Debtline (charity) to help you on that side of things?

As for the depression, many of us have been there, myself included. The GP is a starting point (for medication or talking therapies/CBT). There are numerous self-help websites for tips on how to try and manage your depression http://www.mind.org.uk/mental_health_a-z/7980_understanding_depression. I think one of the main points for me is self-care.

I'm not much help I know, but didn't want to read and not comment

More help then you realise , i had not herd of the National Debtline before.

I must have applied for (without exagerating) 300 jobs? Ive been on 2 interviews. They offered me the job proving i could get my self a car before id be due to start which i was unable to do.

Apart from those two and afew to tell me the positions are no longer available i have had no feedback or response.

At the Job centre they have a careers guy, he says there is nothing wrong with my Cv and that im not going wrong there, ive shown him the covering letters i write and he said there is nothing wrong with them either. I put the lack of response down to the fact that there is most probably lots of "over qualified" people now applying for the type of roles that i am who obviously seem more desirable.

I must say i wouldnt mind working in the Job centre. They must have the easiest job ive ever seen, when ever i go there they are chatting away about last nights eastenders and apart from the careers guy they are absolutely no help what so ever, all they do is talk down to me and are very rude, something i find quite
astonishing seeing as my adviser is as thick as a plank of wood and i think to myself if she can get a job then why the hell cant i. They have told me last week that i am to attend a mini cab driving course. A god damn mini cab driving course??? Im all for training to help me become employable but thats ridiculous.

zugzwang

Nothing wrong with minicabs.

Is there anyone in the family who could speak to your uncle for you? Arguments aside he hasn't paid what you are legally due.

National Debtline is good or you can go and see CAB about credit card debt. They can advise you about options -perhaps you can get the debt frozen.

References sound like a problem with your former employer behaving vindictively. A college course or this minicab course might help with getting you a new start and solve the reference problem.

saterkey

Try keeping a list of favourites that you check daily
universities
colleges
nhs
councils
charities
job centre
temping agencies
general local job sites
express and star or local papers to you.
etc
maybe temping is the way to go, sometimes that's a way into a job
try packing warehouse jobs maybe
porters in hospitals
take an admin course, quite a few men work as administrators
get your cs card iirc so you can do tradesmen warehouse jobs
take forklist truck training if job centre offer it
supermarket or driving jobs
pub jobs
go onto specific sites a lot don't put into the job centre ie charity crisis has a few going but depends where your based.
My partner joined a temping agency and had offered him a porters job in a hospital within a few weeks.
try postal delivery depots
try citizens advice website lots of jobs going depending on experience.
try council for bin men, etc
cant think of anything else at the mo.
good luck

Cutzee

Are you expected to provide your own mini-cab then once qualified? How are you expected to do that if you already don't have the funds to purchase a van/car?

I have just applied for Jobseekers online today so have the joy of experiencing the Jobcentre soon - am awaiting my interview with an advisor where I look forward to hearing about the previous night's episode of Eastenders!

I actually wouldn't mind a driving job but would be worried about safety. I certainly wouldn't be doing the nightshift (female).

I regularly look on Gumtree, a local listings site and websites like Reed and the Jobcentre's website, my local university's jobs page and any other local big employers I can think of. Usually, the response is none - which I assume to mean either the position has been filled (then remove your ad please!) or they do not like my CV or questions I ask about the post. Even positions I've applied for where I have matched ALL the selection criteria I don't get an interview for! !!!!!!?!

Try and keep in your mind that it isn't you. It's the state of the current economic climate and job market. I know it's hard but don't give up and try not to take it to heart

piglet25

I looked everywhere when applying for jobs, I looked on the dreaded universal jobmatch, the local authority website, the nhs jobs website, local shops, large company websites, locally based charity websites asking people to keep their eyes open for me, lots of things. I have just been employed last week, after searching since November last year :O
If your uncle is such an idiot, then why give him your car? because thats effectively what you have done. It was your bonus you had earned, so take him to court for the car or the value of it, and that might ease the situation financially for a short time. As for the reference, if you reach interview stage then maybe explain that he is a former relation with an axe to grind? and offer a number of alternative people for them to contact on the form. I always put my reason for leaving as 'personal commitments' and I have never once been asked what they were xx

Cutzee

Temping is a good way to resolve your reference problems but if I were you and were asked about references I would just be honest in terms of you were employed by a family member and you had to leave due to personal (?) differences. And get a couple of good character references to the ready from other people who can comment on your attributes - quick to learn, hard-working, punctual, reliable etc.

MrHR

I know how you feel! I was made redundant and got rejection after rejection in the end out of desperation I took a general assistant job so that I was at least work while trying to get m career back on track - Please don't give up! It's tough out there but something WILL come up!

I'm sure it's not what you are looking for but lots of retails companies are recruiting at the moment, Maybe worth applying while you continue your job search for what you really want to do?

Tesco (883 vacancies online at the moment!)
Also Asda, Sainsburys, Whittards, Body Shop, Primark etc,

Good luck!