White collar jobs for white collar workers
Peter Hoskin 10:26am
A fascinating double page spread in today's Times, setting out the Government's plans to get help unemployed white-collar workers get back into work. Apparently, ministers are worried that job centres just won't be able to deal with the swathe of former bankers, solicitors and accountants that will be passing through their doors, and the idea is to introduce new, 12-week courses so that these people can "refresh their skills". It's a striking sign of where we're at. Catering for the C2s may no longer mean promising lower taxes or, say, improved education for their children, as it did in 1997. It may simply mean safeguarding their jobs, or maintaining their employability.
But will it work? I, for one, have my doubts. The track record with these kinds of schemes is that they're costly and - particularly in the case of the already well-qualified - may not make the attendees all that much more employable. The government will cast this as them doing "everything they can". But I worry that this could come at the cost of help for less well-off people, who generally come off worse in the long-run during a downturn. Beyond some notable exceptions - including Nick Clegg, Frank Field and Jon Cruddas - there's too little being said about low-income groups.
P.S. News in after I typed this out on the Tube: unemployment has hit 1.97 million, a 12-year high.
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Witterings From Witney
February 11th, 2009 11:18am Report this commentThey are not '[new' courses - I went on one back in 93 - Jobcentre admitted it got me off the unemployment returns!
If no change then they are a total waste of time, money and effort; but hey it creates jobs for a load of unemployed 'teachers'!
Fergus Pickering
February 11th, 2009 11:24am Report this commentUndoubtedly another waste of money. What will they DO in the twelve weeks, pray? Who will teach them what they didn't know already? Another loser from the one-eyed Scottish idiot.
Chris
February 11th, 2009 11:26am Report this commentI've been unemployed, although it was a long time ago, and I've known plenty of people over the years who have lost their jobs and gone through periods of unemployment. I have never known the job centres provide and real help for anyone. The general consensus appears to be that they are completely and utterly useless. Presumably they cost many millions to run. You have to wonder why we spend the money.
Chuck Unsworth
February 11th, 2009 11:41am Report this comment'Refresh their skills'? What, like:
Burger flipping?
Call centre jockey?
Benefit Claiming?
So, what 'skills' are currently in demand, then?
Simon
February 11th, 2009 11:52am Report this commentThe legal and financial services industries have enjoyed the fat cow years, now come the lean. This has happened before of course in other areas of industry; most notably industrial manufacture. As then, so now; there can be little hope of remployment for those unwilling to change career.
Simon
February 11th, 2009 12:07pm Report this commentThe legal and financial services industries have enjoyed the fat cow years, now come the lean. This has happened before of course in other areas of industry; most notably industrial manufacture. As then, so now; there can be little hope of remployment for those unwilling to change career.
Chuck Unsworth
February 11th, 2009 12:25pm Report this comment@ Simon
I'm interested in 'change of career'. Are there two million (and rising) vacancies in the UK? I'm sure these people would be prepared to 'retrain' Would you care care to mention where the jobs are?
Rhoda Klapp
February 11th, 2009 12:30pm Report this commentThe job centres are measured on long term unemployment. They don't like you to go over six months and get on the longterm list. It's their target to get you off that list. They do it by giving you a course. Any course, doesn't matter whether there's any demand for the skill, or indeed whether the course makes you attractive to an employer. Before the six months is near, you can't get the course, or any training no matter how useful to you. Once you go on the course, the clock is reset. When you inevitably come back on the dole after the course is finished, you are at zero, and they won't do anything for you. Except perhaps suggest that all this is causing you stress, which could get you off onto the incapacity benefit, which is a result for them, and has no time-related target. I agree with Chris, they are completely and utterly useless.
Chris Gilmour
February 11th, 2009 1:14pm Report this commentWouldn't it be far more effective to encourage white-collar workers to start new businesses and then have the possibility of employing more people themselves.
Liz Brown
February 11th, 2009 1:15pm Report this commentwhy is it, that unemployment is now standing at 1.97 million, there are still "50,000" job vacancies? this figure never rises nor does it diminish - gormless really does take us for fuiles...........
Wily Trout
February 11th, 2009 1:21pm Report this commentDeprivation and regeneration funding is still being poured into ex-mining communities. Will we now see millions spent in Alton, Harpenden and the like?
KB
February 11th, 2009 3:24pm Report this commentThe point here is that it's not just the C2s (we saw what the government think of them when they went on strike last week), it's the ABC1s.
HJ
February 11th, 2009 5:05pm Report this commentThe point of the courses is simple - while you're on the course you're 'in training' and therefore don't count as unemployed. That's the point - to massage the unemployment figures.
I was put on such a JobCentre course for 'executives' a few years ago. It assumed that your problem was simply that your job seeking skills needed improving. Almost everyone on the course had a science or engineering degree and we all pointed out that these industries had shrunk so much in the last few years that the jobs weren't there - what we needed was advice in switching to different careers. Needless to say, they hadn't a clue how to help us.
Simon
February 12th, 2009 12:04pm Report this comment@ Chuck
I completely agree with the thinking behind your questions. As things stand, the jobs are not there. Perhaps those who govern might turn their attention to developing and supporting new sectors of industry? Beyond that it'll be down to the individual to be entrepreneurial. It's bleak.
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