Permanent contract to FTC - worth it?

esj13

I have been in my current role at work for 4 years, and recently a new area manager has taken up post and is implementing changes that are affecting staff in the way of workload and changes to hours.
Morale is very low and people are leaving regularly and the workload is only increasing.

Today I have been offered a job working for the council, which is a wonderful opportunity for me, for which I am very excited.
However, it is on a 12 month FTC.
When I asked about this in the interview, I was told that they are simply unable to offer permanent contracts at this time due to management restructuring in the council and possible redundancies, whereby they would want to preserve existing employees relationships and possibly move someone into the role who was already working for the council in a permanent basis.
This isn't a guaranteed outcome, but at the same time, extension or permanency is not guaranteed, either.

Considering current working conditions and pay, this seems like a fairly sensible gamble to take, and at worst, I would find myself without a job after a year, but I plan to keep ahead of any possible changes with the manager and act on these, such as beginning to look for permanent work during the course of the contract around the 6 month mark?

I'm feeling like I would rather have the extra experience and pay for 12 months to help me feel happier and continue to progress in my work life over the next year at least.

I was just wondering what other people's opinions and experiences are of this sort of thing?

[Deleted User]

Never very good sorry.

In my experience while these companies and organisations harp on about the wonders of there being other opportunities and able to apply for other roles it didn't pan out that way.

The very best I ever got was a line manager back off the sick trying to make themselves feel better by saying they thought they might have a job when I was last FTC which ended couple of months earlier then expected.

I'd tried the county council in early 2017 for £8.07 p/h miles away from where I was living when on first day, I always remember the Manager saying it was ok to walk away if the job didn't live up to expectations or we felt it simply wasn't us. It was the most non committal speech I ever heard. I was probably very lucky that my ex employer who still had the same contract at the time could take me back on.

Personally in the end, I found temporary jobs and situations just fuelled anxiety.

Marcon

Wonderful opportunity? Excited? The things in life you regret most are the ones you don't do. Go for it if you're confident you can find a job elsewhere when the contract ends (and do work on the assumption that it will).

esj13

Deleted%20User wrote: »

Never very good sorry.

In my experience while these companies and organisations harp on about the wonders of there being other opportunities and able to apply for other roles it didn't pan out that way.

The very best I ever got was a line manager back off the sick trying to make themselves feel better by saying they thought they might have a job when I was last FTC which ended couple of months earlier then expected.

I'd tried the county council in early 2017 for £8.07 p/h miles away from where I was living when on first day, I always remember the Manager saying it was ok to walk away if the job didn't live up to expectations or we felt it simply wasn't us. It was the most non committal speech I ever heard. I was probably very lucky that my ex employer who still had the same contract at the time could take me back on.

Personally in the end, I found temporary jobs and situations just fuelled anxiety.

I can see your point of view and appreciate your experience hasn't been a positive one.
My current role started as a FTC, and has since been made permanent. But like I say, the working conditions are worse than the prospect of staying, and who wants to be miserable 8 hours a day five days a week, with changes they cannot control and management who don't consider staff opinion and welfare?

I currently work in supported housing, doing a mixture of general support and housing management.
I want to move into Housing Management full-time and step away from support, as, without sounding heartless, the support side of the current role is tedious. There are residents who do not wish to engage and management asking why they are not engaging and generally making it feel like a staff problem, rather than supporting us to enforce tenancy terms.

I have absolutely no issues obtaining interviews for new jobs, but have had problems securing a role at interview due to my current level of experience in HM due to my wide ranging duties being more general than housing specific.
I really prepared for this interview and managed to impress them, which is something I'll be making note of for future interviews.
This new role is entirely Housing Management and more likely to give me the experience I need to make it easier for me to secure a full-time job at the end of it.
This is how I have calculated the risk and return on this venture.
And being happy for 12 months and gaining better specialised experience is better than staying in a job where I am miserable for the foreseeable future?

I hope that makes sense!

Marcon wrote: »

Wonderful opportunity? Excited? The things in life you regret most are the ones you don't do. Go for it if you're confident you can find a job elsewhere when the contract ends (and do work on the assumption that it will).

As said above, I am confident that I will find and apply for new opportunities and I am good at getting interviews. I just usually let myself down in interviews.
But having taken on feedback and preparing more thoroughly, I managed to bag this one.

I had a good feeling about it as I was advised that Interviews were taking place all day and they then asked about my notice period and possibility of remaining holidays to take as it is a new scheme and they want me to help start the tenancy sign-up process to get ahead of targets.

Doshwaster

In some ways a FTC can be more secure than a "permanent" one. If they are offering a 12 month contract then that usually means there is a budget for one while someone on a permanent contract could be let go tomorrow.

There is also a good chance that FTC get renewed at the end of the term but if they aren't then at least you know where you are.

sammyjammy

Go for it, nothing worse than being miserable at work, we spend a lot of time there!

TELLIT01

At least the council staff you spoke to were honest, rather than hanging out carrots by saying there is a probability of an extension or permanent job at the end.

If you are willing to have the uncertainty, as it seems you are, then I would certainly say that 12 months in a job you may enjoy is better than staying in a job where you are miserable.

getmore4less

As long as you have continuity of service you get redundancy if they don't renew and you can't find another council job.

Andy_L

getmore4less wrote: »

As long as you have continuity of service you get redundancy if they don't renew and you can't find another council job.

I don't think the OP currently works for the council so he would only have 12 months service at the end of the FTC so his redundancy package is going to be (almost?) nothing

Doshwaster

Andy_L wrote: »

I don't think the OP currently works for the council so he would only have 12 months service at the end of the FTC so his redundancy package is going to be (almost?) nothing

There would be no redundancy entitlement at the end of a 12 month FTC at all.

A 12 month FTC doesn't guarantee work for 12 months so
before signing make sure you check what the notice periods are from both sides.

Some more advice here: https://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=4587

General_Grant

esj13 wrote: »

I have been in my current role at work for 4 years, and recently a new area manager has taken up post and is implementing changes that are affecting staff in the way of workload and changes to hours.
Morale is very low and people are leaving regularly and the workload is only increasing.

Today I have been offered a job working for the council, which is a wonderful opportunity for me, for which I am very excited.
However, it is on a 12 month FTC.
When I asked about this in the interview, I was told that they are simply unable to offer permanent contracts at this time due to management restructuring in the council and possible redundancies, whereby they would want to preserve existing employees relationships and possibly move someone into the role who was already working for the council in a permanent basis.
This isn't a guaranteed outcome, but at the same time, extension or permanency is not guaranteed, either.

Considering current working conditions and pay, this seems like a fairly sensible gamble to take, and at worst, I would find myself without a job after a year, but I plan to keep ahead of any possible changes with the manager and act on these, such as beginning to look for permanent work during the course of the contract around the 6 month mark?

I'm feeling like I would rather have the extra experience and pay for 12 months to help me feel happier and continue to progress in my work life over the next year at least.

I was just wondering what other people's opinions and experiences are of this sort of thing?

If you think the opportunity is going to provide you with enjoyable work and that the experience will improve your CV, then definitely I would go for it.

Because the contract is a 12-month FT one, which could be terminated before the expiry of that period as well as possibly be extended or converted to permanent, the extra pay itself may not last for a year - but it would mean that for your next job you would be negotiating from a position of having earned the higher rate.