Got Moxie!

True stories from the Job Network

The following stories were all either experienced or witnessed by me…

True Story 1: Helping women return to the workforce

In a group orientation in a leading Job Network provider, we were told we had to make three cold calls from the Yellow Pages every time we were there or face a breach recommendation. One participant, a fifty-something woman re-entering the workforce after raising a family, got flustered. She wanted to do whatever possible to get a job but wanted some guidance on how to approach employers. Should she target companies she already recognised? What would she say if an employer asked about her work history, given that she had not worked for an employer for thirty years? The employment consultant snapped “I’m not here to answer every little question or hold your hand. Just call them and ask for a job”! This employment consultant was also too impatient to show the woman how to use the computer, so two clients did it.

 

True Story 2: The right person for the right job

I saw a job advertised on jobsearch.gov.au, placed only an hour before I saw it, by a Job Network provider I didn’t belong to. They gave no details of the employer, but the job looked good and just right for me, so I rang them. I spoke to an officious and frosty woman, who demanded to know if I was a Job Network member and had a job ID. Yes I did. She asked me if I was registered with her Job Network provider. I said no, I wasn’t, but I was with another provider and very keen to apply for the job. She said, “Well, the job requires editing skills, so it probably won’t be right for you”. I said I had edited a magazine, two theses and multiple business publications. She was silent for a while. I filled the silence by asking about the employer. She said, “Well, I can’t tell you anything or everyone’s going to go swamping them with phone calls”. I asked if I could send my resume. Sighing theatrically, she answered, “I suppose so. You’re definitely not our client?” I emailed my resume. Half an hour later, I got an email saying the job had been filled.

 

True Story 3: Don’t mess with us

Amazingly, this all happened in one morning at a major JN provider which has managed to avoid this week’s funding cuts. Obviously at the time the staff had been told to put a boot up the bludgers’ bums, because two Employment Consultants (ECs) did the rounds of the ten clients who were there, dispensing stern words (in tandem) to all.

First, the fiftysomething man who, as a result of three knee surgeries, told them he preferred not to do any heavy labouring.

EC 1: “You shouldn’t discount any type of work just because you don’t feel like it. I have a feeling that you’re using the excuse of a sore knee to avoid work”.

Man: “I have a medical certificate. I’ve had three surgeries in the last couple of years”.

EC 2: “It really does sound like you’re leaning on this knee stuff to avoid participating. Have you read Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life? She’s really clear on how so-called physical symptoms are actually emotional problems”.

Man: “No, I haven’t heard of her, but it sounds interesting. Have you got anything about that here?”

EC 1 (angrily): “We’re an employment services provider, not a lending library. I suggest you go to the library and get your own copy”.

 

Second, another fiftysomething man who had had no luck with the Yellow Pages or the Internet.

EC 1: “(Company X) down in Brisbane has jobs sometimes. Here’s the address. You’ve got a car, right? Well, hop in it and take your resume down to them. They might have something”.

Man: “So they have jobs going now? Why don’t I ring them”?

EC 1: “No, but it never hurts to go see them. Don’t ring them; it’s much better for them to see their applicants”.

Man: “It’s an hour away and I don’t even have enough petrol money. I’m not going all the way down there with no money for a job that doesn’t exist. That’s ridiculous!”

EC 1: “You’ve got no excuse. We reimburse transport costs. In some instances, with receipts. I think maybe you’re refusing to comply with your mutual obligation requirements. Let’s go to my office right now and ring Centrelink and say you don’t want your payment since you’re not a sincere jobhunter”.

EC 2: “Yes, they’d be really interested to hear that!”

 

Thirdly, a twentysomething man looking through newspaper ads and minding his own business.

EC 1: “Yes, I know you, and I hear you’ve got a lot to say about us. I was standing behind you at Centrelink the other day and I heard you complaining to the lady at the counter about us. I suppose you didn’t think we’d find out about that, did you? Well, actions have consequences, you know.”

EC 3: (previously hiding behind computer in the corner): “I’m pretty sure that’s a breach. I think the rest of you can learn something from this”.

Me (really sick of it all by now): “Excuse me, but I think service users actually have a right to complain about their Job Network provider. I don’t think anything in the employment contract says they can’t”.

EC 1: “We’ll be the judge of what’s appropriate or otherwise.”

EC 3: “I think it’s time to check this young lady’s job contacts for the day, isn’t it?”

 

What about you?

Got any true stories from the Job Network?

 

 

Carolyn Ride is a writer, editor and one of the many ‘customers’ of the Job Network who .

Related posts:

1. Dismantle the Job Network
2. Good karma job hunting: Connecting with the hidden job market

© 2009 weston culture.