work experience?? Am i being taken advantage??

emmag92

Im 21, im doing a hairdressing course its a full year long, 2 days college and 2 days work experience a week. my hours are 10am to 5pm on both work and college days. College is okay sometimes but very early on in the course i felt something isn't right. everyday on wk experience im just constantly washing cleaning and sometimes don't get a break ive lately had to eat lunch in my car so im not pestered while im eating to do something. i feel my boss clearly doesn't give a **** about me i think half of the girls see me as a lap dog, im even running down town to get lunches or whatever im asked to do and my the boss for her own personal interests, non relating to hairdressing what's so ever!! and what really annoyed me ive been asked by my boss to clean toilets after college hours, ive been asked to pick up fag butts and chiper bags from the previous weekend messes during college break!! (salon is beside pub) Lately even in college hours students are being asked by the boss and other stylist to help them with washing clients, when we should be in class??? i don't think any of this fair and ive recently received a facebook msg and it was practically a written warning and wk expo is part of the course, Ive never received any sort of a verbal warning and i had a doctors note to cover my absence they had no reason to believe i wasn't ill. I then had to remove this girl and block her because i feel that is totally inappropriate way to approach me. and whats even worse this course is costing 5000k which still hasnt been fully paid for, im approching the end of this course and i feel its not worth it. i done this course so i can quickly get into a job and gain good skills and knowledge, overall i think this course is more an easy way of getting young people in to work for free and also get a lovely cheque at the end of too!!!! thanks for reading!! any advice????

A_Sober_Paddy

emmag92 wrote: »

Im 21, im doing a hairdressing course its a full year long, 2 days college and 2 days work experience a week. my hours are 10am to 5pm on both work and college days. College is okay sometimes but very early on in the course i felt something isn't right. everyday on wk experience im just constantly washing cleaning and sometimes don't get a break ive lately had to eat lunch in my car so im not pestered while im eating to do something. i feel my boss clearly doesn't give a **** about me i think half of the girls see me as a lap dog, im even running down town to get lunches or whatever im asked to do and my the boss for her own personal interests, non relating to hairdressing what's so ever!! and what really annoyed me ive been asked by my boss to clean toilets after college hours, ive been asked to pick up fag butts and chiper bags from the previous weekend messes during college break!! (salon is beside pub) Lately even in college hours students are being asked by the boss and other stylist to help them with washing clients, when we should be in class??? i don't think any of this fair and ive recently received a facebook msg and it was practically a written warning and wk expo is part of the course, Ive never received any sort of a verbal warning and i had a doctors note to cover my absence they had no reason to believe i wasn't ill. I then had to remove this girl and block her because i feel that is totally inappropriate way to approach me. and whats even worse this course is costing 5000k which still hasnt been fully paid for, im approching the end of this course and i feel its not worth it. i done this course so i can quickly get into a job and gain good skills and knowledge, overall i think this course is more an easy way of getting young people in to work for free and also get a lovely cheque at the end of too!!!! thanks for reading!! any advice????

Just a quick one...Is this in Limerick?

emmag92

No midlands

MagicMarker

That's a lot of money to pay to clean up after people.

Are you actually learning anything?

emmag92

Thats exactly what im thinking and we get not a penny for any of this and ive to travel and pay petrol to get there too!!! Ive learnt a little but like im planning on immigrating for a better life and work as a hairdresser but i dont feel comforable cutting or nothing?? how am i meant to cop like??? stress!! and another thing i cant say anything or give out because i need references???

Agent_99

How long have you been training ?

emmag92

Agent_99 wrote: »

How long have you been training ?

Nearly a year now, just a few more weeks and I'm done!

KwackerJack

Heard so many stories from friend just like this.

Some have qualifications yet admit they haven't learned half of what they should.

Money scam and cheap labour!

There must be a training body you can contact??

emmag92

KwackerJack wrote: »

Heard so many stories from friend just like this.

Some have qualifications yet admit they haven't learned half of what they should.

Money scam and cheap labour!

There must be a training body you can contact??

And there's more students that's already started now and they still haven't even finished with us yet!!! So they'll fill in when we're gone! Grr!! I need to find out who I could talk to about this I can't let this go!! I've tried googling but found nothing!!!

CuriousG

I have been in hairdressing for two years, completed a course and worked in a salon (paid and unpaid) and I still get treated like this.

It won't change until you complete your training, it is s*** and it makes you feel like crap.

For some reason, that is just the industry in itself. It sounds harsh, but if you don't put up with it now, you never will. I find it hard to put up with as I have as much knowledge as some of the staff yet still have to scrub the floor etc. Someone has to do it, and especially on work experience, whether you are capable or not, you will only get to wash up, clean the salon, clean outside, scrub the toilet etc.

Are you being taken advantage of? Yes.

Will it change? No.

Is it fair? No.

But there isn't much we can do, especially as work is so scarce in the area now.


Your best bet is to go to a local salon with only one or two chairs and not much staff, I learned the most in these types of places rather than huge establishments. It isn't the high glamorous life, but it's the only place you'll be allowed to do much.

People get into hairdressing and think it is fun, glamorous and great. It's usually the opposite of all three, and trust me, you have it very easy with those hours. On my unpaid experience I had to work till nine some nights, after all the other staff had left. It sucks.

I have learned the hard way, making a hobby into a career is not all you crack it up to be...

Good luck, and just try cope it out if you really do want to stick to it for life. I loved it and now just despise doing it as a career because of all the bitchiness/snobbishness of any other staff. They literally think you're a slave, whether they're the boss or not.

Moonbeam

who are the awarding body?

CuriousG

Also, just to say, any teacher/organisation etc WILL tell you to suck it up, this is how the majority of salons run things, and you literally have to crawl from the floor up to get anywhere at all.

Kevhog1988

Any apprenticeship is the same.... I spent the first 3 months of mine sweeping, carrying and going to the shop for qualified lads. Its a natural progression.. as soon as i was a 2nd year and we got new 1st years we all made them do the small menial jobs and we learnt how to wire. I know what its like to get the phonecalls at stupid o clock too.. ive often been rang at 10pm on a saturday night and asked to be maybe 100 miles at 7 am the next morning.

stevenmu

That mostly sounds fairly normal for work experience tbh. The sh1t work needs to be done, and the person on work experience is the one who does it.

A few things do seem out of order, contacting you on facebook is way out of line, and expecting you to work when you should be in college isn't right either.

Is your work experience organised through the college that you are doing the course in? It might be worth bringing your issues to the course director there and seeing what they think.

MagicMarker

theemigrant wrote: »

Any apprenticeship is the same.... I spent the first 3 months of mine sweeping, carrying and going to the shop for qualified lads. Its a natural progression.. as soon as i was a 2nd year and we got new 1st years we all made them do the small menial jobs and we learnt how to wire. I know what its like to get the phonecalls at stupid o clock too.. ive often been rang at 10pm on a saturday night and asked to be maybe 100 miles at 7 am the next morning.

Your apprenticeship was 4 years long and you were paid for it.

If I pay €5k for a 1 year course then I want the vast majority of my time to be spent learning, not cleaning, although I'd expect some cleaning, due to the nature of the work.

JustAThought

Tbh it's the way things in hairdressing seem To be done since the 80's... Yiu've nearly finished now - I would strongly suggest you don't ruin all the effort yiuve out in by alienating them
Now - they will be your only reference for your next job/ training & they can still really ruin things for you. Don't let all your trouble be in vain - bear it out , and when you ate in a position to make things earlier for others - do so. If you have no qualification at the end if it I'd be asking bug questions then.

For now, given that there are new " apprentices" in, can you say to your boss I'd really appreciate the opportunity to get guidance on x or y, or to observe x or y, or whatever you'd like to try. Use the fact that the pressure is slightly off to leverage to your advantage.

Above all, win by being the best yih can despite adversity and unfairness ; qualify & leave all that far behind .

Best of luck.

Geomy

Some day you won't mind sweeping a floor, buying lunch for colleagues,doing menial jobs etc

Im a successful gardener and believe you me there's days I bring bottles of fresh water to my colleagues, because it's being nice, and some day's I prefer to be bringing out the rubbish, cutting back laurel for the florist, wheelbarrowing topsoil and manure... rather than doing topiary of box hedging shaped like chickens and squirrels....

Enjoyment rather than endurance, you'll understand when you're older :-)

JustAThought

Im sure you're paid for your gardening job. That's the point - exploitation .

CuriousG

JustAThought wrote: »

Im sure you're paid for your gardening job. That's the point - exploitation .

I agree, when you're working for free and you aren't in secure employment it is a lot less easy to put up with.


It is really crap

the_syco

emmag92 wrote: »

college hours

As Moonbeam asked, who is the awarding body?

Bad feeling that it's some makey uppy college by the saloon, tbh.

gifted

Suck it up for a few more weeks, get your reference off your boss then drop a bag of live mice in the salon on your last day, scream your head off when you see them so it attracts notice from the customers and leave