I have a friend who's been unemployed for a long time, anyway he was telling me how he feels trapped in the 'system' as he calls it and that it is getting worse as from July 1, 2015 everyone on the dole will be forced to do a WFD activity.
He's been doing a CAP activity at a certain charity shop which he hates as he feels it isn't taking him anywhere as all he does is manual labor and he doesn't get along with his fellow 'wfd-slaves' (lazy c***s, as he calls them) as they are so LAZY all they do is smoke, drink coffee in the staff room and 'pretend to work' while he does all the heavy lifting jobs there.
He wants to work and does apply for jobs but since he's been unemployed so long there are massive gaps in his resume (he's shown it to me) and frankly he gets depressed at the thought of spending the rest of his life stuck in that hell-hole doing menial shitty tasks, he really wants to break the cycle but doesn't know where to start, he's with Max Employment which doesn't help him at all, he wants to work but he's got no recent job experience or current education/training to make a success of his life.
He's thinking of studying but the people at Max will not give him any training to escape the welfare cycle he's stuck in, not even an RSA/RCG course, only their 'in-house' useless courses.
I told him to go to TAFE and switch from Newstart to Austudy, at least that mob will stop bothering him and also as he gets some new qualifications he's got a better chance of getting off the dole, but I'm not really sure what he can do.
How can my friend break the welfare cycle?
Getting out of The Welfare Cycle?
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It's called an apprentice/traineeship.
Great so after 3 or more years you can actually earn a wage and support yourself. That's ok if you're in your teens or early 20's and still living with the parents. Otherwise not such a good deal.
He needs to be prepared to take anything, and if there's nothing convenient then move. There's nothing wrong with moving for work, you can always make new friends and if you're so attached to family that you can't move to improve your life then maybe you have other issues.
If he has a license and a decent enough car he should try Uber
a friend of mine is apparently doing well driving people aroundI find it difficult to get jobs, because I am in my 5th year of university. I mostly just stick to cafe/restaurant jobs, because retail stores don't want to employ me. It's depressing sometimes when I can't find work. :(
I got turned down at Kmart, because they said I probably wouldn't stay with the company for long since I am nearly finished university.I hear you. I am half way through a Bachelor of Education degree and got turned down for a job which entailed counting items on shelves. The reason - you're over qualified! I have a couple of other certificates and on my CV I listed my qualifications and experience. I think to get any simple part time job I probably need to make my CV as basic as possible. Good luck in your quest.
I created a "basic" resume to get a temporary manual job whilst waiting for my real job to start. basically cut out all tertiary education, altered some previous jobs, removed working overseas component (4 years), realigned my skills and abilities to that temp position. it worked.
This is pretty spot on, I'm back studying Computer Science, worked in IT and have travelled a lot but wouldn't put any of that on a CV for hospitality or probably retail… If they think you're not going to stay very long you've got no chance. It works both ways.
To the OP, I think TAFE is probably the best option really for the long term. Very few employers are realistically going to employ a long term unemployed person, especially for anything other than casual work. With that said if he can try and find some casual work and network is probably the best chance - at least to have something in his CV and for menial jobs it can be very much who you know.
So sad to see all the self-righteous having a dig, for some people it's not as easy to find work for many reasons. I couldn't imagine living on the dole with $250 a week, at least not in Melbourne or Sydney, I realise you cheaper rent in the outskirts but that wouldn't even cover my rent let alone bills and living costs. To save enough to then pay for a truck license etc. wouldn't be exactly easy. For those who say he should just start his own business - have you ever done this? It's not free and easy as you may think the outlay for business registration/public liability insurance/equipment etc is well beyond someone living week to week.
i totally agree. In this market you need one resume for the more 'basic' level jobs and one that talks up your skills & qualifications. I was in a situation recently where my resume scared off the employer because they thought I was too highly experienced for the job but I really felt I would have had a lot to offer.
The thing I find interesting with these popular forum threads, is the OP generally just posts then leaves (like this OP for example). Posted on the 18/6, hasn't been seen since to put their $0.02 in.
Just something I've noticed :)
I noticed too. It happens a bit. Usually to get a reaction. Kind a works too.
Don't worry, me and my friend have been reading all the comments, he's thankful for them.
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If he wants training, maybe ask a company if they can pay for his training in lieu of a reduced wage.. or propose something that gives them a win-win. I work in IT, and initiative and desire count for a lot when recruiting someone. I feel for your friend, as his confidence levels might have taken a battering over the years. He needs to do something he really likes, even if it is working for free. cafes/barrista training.. kitchen hand->chef…are all good starting points. He also needs a plan..e.g. to save money to do some training like forklift driving. And he needs to network a lot. Is he part of any community group? church? football club? etc.. there are always opportunities that come out of friends/networks.