Jobsbridge, Internships, and how the Scheme could be improved.

nowayjosie

leeroybrown wrote: »

The department of social protection is paying the extra €50.

From what I've seen of Jobsbridge the state would be better off without it. A large section of the jobs are essentially free work for employers. A lot of those positions could be economically sound paid positions if the state wasn't bending over backwards.

Your right - I have phoned FAS Head Office in Dublin on several occasions to report employers who are taking on these unfortunate individuals who are desperate for work. FAS say they are aware of greedy employers who are breaking the rules and they acknowledge there has been complaints from the general public but unfortunately there has not been enough complaints for FAS to do anything about it. :mad:

ABajaninCork

Just a suggestion. It's better to put complaints in writing. Phone calls can be disputed. Records of phone conversations can be 'lost'. The people you speak to can deny all knowledge of the call. It happens.

Paper trails are better. It's much more difficult to ignore or deny a letter or an e-mail.

nowayjosie

Shalashaska wrote: »

You are correct, Niles.

I shall add my 2c about the Job Bridge scheme. I did a FÁS WPP (different name – same game) some months ago and I am still with them now as a paid employee, thus working out positively for me. Whilst the scheme is noble in its intentions to get fresh graduates the opportunity to get experience, it is clearly reducing the potential for paid job creation, especially at entry-level.

However, I think that the employer should have to pay a small supplement (€100-€150 per week) instead of the DSP giving out an extra €50 a week per intern from the ever-strained public purse.

OP: You seem to know a lot about this company (who seem genuine in their intentions of giving an opportunity to grads).[/QUOT

I am delighted everything went well for your regarding your WPP - you are obviously very good at what you do to be kept on and given paid employment but also I think you were lucky to get into an organisation who were going to give the job to the right person in this case YOU as you must have really impressed them and congrats on that - but as you are aware - some of the organisations have genuine vacancies and are using people and have no intention of keeping anyone. They just re-apply to FAS for more freebies. Rumour has it that it happens more in some towns than others - could this be true I don't know TBH but I'm so sorry for all the young people who print off CV's etc... and wait on a reply and for what - mostly no reply or a "NO" for an answer.

sligoface

imo, jobbridge is the most backwards scheme ever created to try and combat unemployment. the people on the schemes are still paid by the state and are highly likely to remain unemployed after their internship ends. fas is a joke as well,the only people it provides jobs for are people teaching/administrating/feeding the jobseekers.
here in sligo, if you go on the fas website, most of the vacancy ads are for internships and it's obviously taking away from real jobs being provided. one of the ads i saw recently was for a laundrette. 'the intern will learn how to wash and iron clothes' is what it basically said though they tried to dress it up with bigger words. what a joke!

i completed a fas course in web design in january. i knew the course wasn't worth crap but i did well in it and learned how to make basic web pages with html/css. it seemed the next logical step would be to try and find one of these internships. there was one going here in sligo at a web design company, which I really wanted, as there are not many web design companies in this town.
Here is what happened when i applied:
1)They replied and asked for an online portfolio of websites i created. Unfortunately, due to the way FAS is set up, there is a firewall which prevents you uploading any data, so you never even learn how to actually put a page up. Also, we ended up making only 2 half-professional looking sites the whole time, due to the time wasting nature of the course which was taught at a snails pace and included whole days of useless manual handling training (for a computer course!) CV/interview training (our training consisted of a few handouts from the 70s or 80s with tips like 'Don't smoke during your job interview unless invited to do so' and 'Be sure to shower and wear deoderant'.
However, I managed to upload the two sites I made.
After I sent the first one, they asked for more samples, so I sent the second one, and explained that this was all I had as I was new to web design. Thinking to myself: If I had a whole professional portfolio of kick-butt websites why would I be going for an unpaid internship?!
After sending the link to the second site, NO REPLY.
Obviously, they wanted a pro designer for free.
I feel FAS completely failed me, the course was a waste of 17 weeks, it could not even prepare me for an unpaid internship, and the Jobbridge scheme is just free labor for employers.

nowayjosie

sligoface wrote: »

imo, jobbridge is the most backwards scheme ever created to try and combat unemployment. the people on the schemes are still paid by the state and are highly likely to remain unemployed after their internship ends. fas is a joke as well,the only people it provides jobs for are people teaching/administrating/feeding the jobseekers.
here in sligo, if you go on the fas website, most of the vacancy ads are for internships and it's obviously taking away from real jobs being provided. one of the ads i saw recently was for a laundrette. 'the intern will learn how to wash and iron clothes' is what it basically said though they tried to dress it up with bigger words. what a joke!

i completed a fas course in web design in january. i knew the course wasn't worth crap but i did well in it and learned how to make basic web pages with html/css. it seemed the next logical step would be to try and find one of these internships. there was one going here in sligo at a web design company, which I really wanted, as there are not many web design companies in this town.
Here is what happened when i applied:
1)They replied and asked for an online portfolio of websites i created. Unfortunately, due to the way FAS is set up, there is a firewall which prevents you uploading any data, so you never even learn how to actually put a page up. Also, we ended up making only 2 half-professional looking sites the whole time, due to the time wasting nature of the course which was taught at a snails pace and included whole days of useless manual handling training (for a computer course!) CV/interview training (our training consisted of a few handouts from the 70s or 80s with tips like 'Don't smoke during your job interview unless invited to do so' and 'Be sure to shower and wear deoderant'.
However, I managed to upload the two sites I made.
After I sent the first one, they asked for more samples, so I sent the second one, and explained that this was all I had as I was new to web design. Thinking to myself: If I had a whole professional portfolio of kick-butt websites why would I be going for an unpaid internship?!
After sending the link to the second site, NO REPLY.
Obviously, they wanted a pro designer for free.
I feel FAS completely failed me, the course was a waste of 17 weeks, it could not even prepare me for an unpaid internship, and the Jobbridge scheme is just free labor for employers.

Sligoface I feel really sorry for you - you sound only young, I'm shoving on and I'll tell you something what you just said there is appalling, and I can well believe it, this is probably happening to lots of our brightest young people in Ireland today. When are the Government going to scrap this bull**** scheme! sorry for the language.

Boofle

Boofle wrote: »

I am about to begin an internship in a company but this isn't a true 'internship'. . . I am going to be trained up and then the woman who is training me is going on maternity leave! I considered not taking the internship when I was introduced to the lady who I will be replacing and realised she was about 8 months pregnant!

I deliberated about whether or not to take up this 'internship' but I have decided that although the company is being ridiculously greedy and actually going against everything Jobbridge is supposed to be about - I will get 6 months experience out of it and I am going crazy not working. :eek:

I agree with other posters that the employers could at least pay the paltry €50 to the intern! And in any case €50 isn't going to go very far -once I have paid for transport to and from work, lunches, work clothes etc - just the regular costs of working.

Update! . . . . . I started the internship this week and I am enjoying it so far. It is great to be back in "work mode". I was so fed up sitting around all day being unemployed.

Yes it's unbelievably irritating to think that I am being used to cover a maternity leave and it should actually be a paid position, but the lady training me in is very nice and I will be getting great experience. So all in all Jobbridge has definitely been abused by some unscrupulous employers but it can be beneficial in some aspects.

Xenophile

Boofle wrote: »

Update! . . . . . I started the internship this week and I am enjoying it so far. It is great to be back in "work mode". I was so fed up sitting around all day being unemployed.

Yes it's unbelievably irritating to think that I am being used to cover a maternity leave and it should actually be a paid position, but the lady training me in is very nice and I will be getting great experience. So all in all Jobbridge has definitely been abused by some unscrupulous employers but it can be beneficial in some aspects.

With your attitude you deserve to be successful.

nowayjosie

Boofle wrote: »

Update! . . . . . I started the internship this week and I am enjoying it so far. It is great to be back in "work mode". I was so fed up sitting around all day being unemployed.

Yes it's unbelievably irritating to think that I am being used to cover a maternity leave and it should actually be a paid position, but the lady training me in is very nice and I will be getting great experience. So all in all Jobbridge has definitely been abused by some unscrupulous employers but it can be beneficial in some aspects.

Boofle although your employer is unscrupulous and is abusing the system - I wish you the very best and I hope your successful in everything you turn your hand to - however your employer and the lady who your covering when she goes on maternity leave and anyone else in the company who knows whats going on should report your employer. I know you were going round the bend being unemployed - from the sounds of your posts you'd be an asset to any employer but its unfortunate you cant get paid, sorry now I'm just annoyed that a person with such initiative could be over looked its just typical. I hope you learn as much as possible Boofle good on ya :D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Boofle

nowayjosie wrote: »

Boofle although your employer is unscrupulous and is abusing the system - I wish you the very best and I hope your successful in everything you turn your hand to - however your employer and the lady who your covering when she goes on maternity leave and anyone else in the company who knows whats going on should report your employer. I know you were going round the bend being unemployed - from the sounds of your posts you'd be an asset to any employer but its unfortunate you cant get paid, sorry now I'm just annoyed that a person with such initiative could be over looked its just typical. I hope you learn as much as possible Boofle good on ya :D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Thank you for your kind words nowayjosie!