All we ever seem to see and hear at the moment is how many unemployed people there are, how bad youth unemployment is, should we expect the unemployed to work as slave labour etc etc.
Unemployment is a huge problem, especially at a time of severe cutbacks in government spending. This is having the effect of throwing thousands more onto the unemployment register, with the resulting drop in economic activity which in turn results in yet more job losses.
So what happens to those who have never had a job or only had one for a short time or who go from one dead-end part-time post to another with unemployed periods in between? They sign on at the local job centre. And what happens then? Well, as far as I can see, not much. You fill in forms, get an appointment and get sent off to tote your CV round local businesses. You may get offered help to improve the CV and you may get tips on how best to interview but do job centres really do anything to help folk get a proper job?
If you have one of those increasingly popular (with employers) 0 hours contracts (ie casual work by another name) you may need to sign on if you have weeks with fewer that 16 hours or even 0 hours. You will find the system so organised that between reporting to the centre and your actual interview you get more hours in work so you never actually sign on so you don't get any money for the week or so when you had no paid hours. Not a happy situation to be in.
The idea at the moment is to send these undeserving ones on unpaid work experience. For some it does result in a job but for most it is a demoralising experience, and one which, should they decide they have had enough and quit, may cost them 2 week's allowance. If these placements had proper training it might be acceptable but for many, including unemployed graduates, the work is little better than floor sweeping and shelf stacking. It has to be asked whether some businesses are using these work placements as a constant stream of free labour instead of employing the staff they really need. Questions are being asked and many firms are pulling out of the scheme. Tesco has changed the way it offers these placements. It now offers a choice of staying on benefit or receiving a small wage with a job at the end of a satisfactory placement, So it can be done.
And what of all those who can't be offered a Tesco placement? This is my solution.
Everyone who signs on is assessed on spoken English. Whether UK English is their first language or not this needs assessing. It doesn't matter how folk speak to family or friends they need a reasonable level of fairly standard English in the workplace, whatever the job. If a signee has a very marked accent, whether Pakistani, broad Irish, broad Scots, Liverpudlian, Japanese or whatever and if they are not readily comprehensible they need help. This isn't racist or bigoted it's just common sense. If someone says 'init' every couple of words they need help to adapt a more standard speech for the workplace.
Can the person read fluently? We live in a literate world and if you can't read or you read badly then you are severly hadicapped when it comes to getting a job. So if signees have poor reading skills they should get literacy classes.
Assess written English Ditto. If you can't spell common words and fill in a form you are severely limited. Job centres should provide appropriate classes.
Can they add up? Again if you can't cope with basic arithmetic, money and measurements there are almost no jobs for which you can successfully apply so you need lessons to fill this gap.
Do you get the picture? Our politicians deplore the fact that many youngsters are leaving school ill equipped with the basics but no-one seems to want to plug this gap to help folk get jobs. It wouldn't cost very much. Instead of over-paid consultants employed via their own companies, thus avoiding income tax, you contract properly qualified teachers, pay them the going rate (far less than any consultant) and since they will pay income tax the government will recoup some of the cost anyway.
Once people have the basics, and they could be required to attend classes with a good will or lose benefit, then you can look at other skills they need to get and keep a job. Can they operate a simple office programme on a computer? Almost every job now has some element requiring computer skills. Teach them these basics. It's a no-brainer.
Basic Food Hygiene can be taught and assessed in a couple of days. Likewise NEBOSH health and safety qualifications. If you put claimants who need help through basic courses like these they will have much improved self esteem, not to mention a much improved CV. they will become employable.
At the moment job centres do little or nothing to help unqualified people get qualified. There is no reason why staff from libraries and the local college cannot come and meet groups to tell them what is available in their centres and encourage them to come and try things out. Remember, most long -term unemployed people have low self-esteem, no confidence and may not even know where the library or college is. They haven't the confidence to enrol for an electrician's course or a plasterer's course. Surely job centres should be helping folk into work in whatever way they can, and this should include helping them to find the right training course.
My son has been in and out of work for 10 years. In his experience the one thing which would have helped him into work would have been to learn to drive. He asked about learning to drive so he would be more employable and was told it would not even be considered. This sort of training is never offered. Why not? It would be much more practical than the 'polish up you CV' route. If you cannot drive then half the available jobs are closed to you.
How much does it cost to train as a forklift truck operator? More than someone on benefit can pay. Likewise the HGV qualification. If we are serious about reducing unemployment we must put our money (probably not very much money) where our mouth is. Or do we just want a huge pool of undeserving poor at the bottom of the heap so we can keep the trade unions in check?
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