Tony Blair claptrap

[rendelharris]

Doesn't surprise me in the least. I daresay America will start having the same problems when they find they're running short of crop pickers. There was a myth peddled by the Brexshitters that these people were over here stealing "our" jobs, when if fact way more often than not they were doing the jobs "we" didn't want to do.

[JoeLeg]

Seabag Wrote:

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> The restaurant industry is struggling to recruit

> already here in London.

Yes, very much so! As if suffering from years of decline in skills as a result of the destruction of the old (very good) City and Guilds apprenticeship schemes, and the subsequent mismanagement by governments from both parties of skilled training programs (as in, we don't really have them any more), we now have trouble recruiting in general. Before we could be reasonably certain of getting good people from abroad, but now there's a sense that potential applicants don't want to commit to a job that (they worry) might not be there in two years.

It's affecting the upper echelons of fine dining more so at the moment, but the rest of us are starting to feel it too. When we advertise a post we just aren't seeing the same quantities of applications that we used to.

[Loz]

ianr Wrote:

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> > Stumbled across this from 3 months ago. It's a

> long one, and it's quite depressing. But

> interesting.

>

> "The ruthlessly effective rebranding of Europe?s

> new far right

> Across the continent, rightwing populist parties

> have seized control of the political conversation.

> How have they done it? By stealing the language,

> causes and voters of the traditional left"

Well, I've always though the far-right and the far-left had more in common than either of them would like to admit.

[Seabag]

JoeLeg Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Seabag Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

>

> > The restaurant industry is struggling to

> recruit

> > already here in London.

>

>

> Yes, very much so! As if suffering from years of

> decline in skills as a result of the destruction

> of the old (very good) City and Guilds

> apprenticeship schemes, and the subsequent

> mismanagement by governments from both parties of

> skilled training programs (as in, we don't really

> have them any more), we now have trouble

> recruiting in general. Before we could be

> reasonably certain of getting good people from

> abroad, but now there's a sense that potential

> applicants don't want to commit to a job that

> (they worry) might not be there in two years.

>

> It's affecting the upper echelons of fine dining

> more so at the moment, but the rest of us are

> starting to feel it too. When we advertise a post

> we just aren't seeing the same quantities of

> applications that we used to.

In my observation, I see applicants interviewing restaurants now. And the quality of skills aren't there as before. As you say, a decline in C&G has led to this.

Plus the colleges I speak to often aren't keeping up with the required skills either

For instance, Grill Chefs are in high demand, specially with 'fire' skills, but last time I spoke to Westminster College there wasn't any way that the students could get 'hands on' with this. So we rely on Chef's from South America and elsewhere to have these skills already.

I feel the problem will deepen, though we're actively looking to set up training modules to help our existing clients with their staff development.

Maybe this is the grand plan to get the skill levels up in the U.K. But looking at the lack of details of the 'Exit Eu' plan, I doubt it.

[JoeLeg]

I'd agree that - again, especially at the higher end - it's as much the applicant interviewing the restaurant as the other way around. Part of that is because over the last ten years chefs have simply refused to work the insane hours for pitiful pay that the fine dining world offers, especially when they can go to an agency, and make a lot more getting sent into exactly that same kitchen because they can't find good staff. It's a corner that the top end of the industry painted itself into and is now having to work hard and adapt to get out of. It's certainly an applicants market at the moment - two people I know were recently able to slide into higher paying roles with better prospects than they had before with ease, and that's fairly typical. There's simply not a lot of competition for jobs.

For most of us though, we're looking at people who don't want to work a lot of weekends, or who want more money than the role generally pays. "Millennials", as they're being called, have a bad reputation, but not all of their grievances are unfounded. However, there is no escaping the fact that many entry-level positions are low-skilled because you need those entry skills upon which to build the higher ones which will bring you success. And so the problem continues.

I'm really surprised to hear Westminster College is having trouble turning out chefs with required skills. They were usually on the ball. A lot of the other colleges are pretty useless frankly, where chef skills are concerned at least.

There's only one way to address it, and that's to bring back a good apprenticeship training system. Perhaps they intend to do that, and that's what they mean by it taking years. Many industry's would benefit immensely from it.

Not going to hold my breath though, and as I get tired of saying, it's a change in mentality that's needed.

[titch juicy]

Otta Wrote:

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> This bit

>

> "Brexit was just the start. Europe?s new far right

> is poised to transform the continent?s political

> landscape ? either by winning elections or simply

> by pulling a besieged political centre so far in

> its direction that its ideas become the new

> normal. And when that happens, groups that would

> never have contemplated voting for a far-right

> party 10 years ago ? the young, gay people, Jews,

> feminists ? may join the working-class voters who

> have already abandoned parties of the left to

> become the new backbone of the populist right."

>

>

> The bit in bold is how I feel things have been

> going in this country in recent times. The

> government seem to have left the centre behind

> them, and if you're centre left, you're labelled a

> "lefty loony" as if you're a far left nutcase.

I'm not so sure about this to be honest.

Germany, who has the strongest and fastest growing economy in Europe and probably the strongest political opposition is going the other way. The CDU is very much small c conservatism and the main opposition, and possible successors to government, the SDP is left-wing and very very popular amongst the younger voters.

[Otta]

Loz Wrote:

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> Well, I've always though the far-right and the

> far-left had more in common than either of them

> would like to admit.

Yep. If 12 o clock is centre, 3 o clock is right wing, 9 o clock is left wing... The nutters from both sides meet at 6 o clock.

[Seabag]

Otta Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Loz Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

>

> > Well, I've always though the far-right and the

> > far-left had more in common than either of them

> > would like to admit.

>

>

>

> Yep. If 12 o clock is centre, 3 o clock is right

> wing, 9 o clock is left wing... The nutters from

> both sides meet at 6 o clock.

The bar usually opens at 6.00

[red devil]

Seabag Wrote:

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> The bar usually opens at 6.00

Unhappy hour...

[????]

Otts - you already know what I'm going to say but....

UKIP are a spent force in his country IMO - and they aren't a fascist party anyway, just an incompetent one trick pony. The conservatives are a 150 + year most politically successful party in the world - we are not on the edge of a creep into fascism.

Immigration - so I don't get shot down can I state that I don't give a monkey's about immigration - I tend towards liberalism even libertarian-ism on this issue. But, the 'liberal' narrative that mixes up concerns with immigration with dislike of immigrants is a complete and utter pile of crap, long mixed up in in the whole immigration debate by the worthy and the good. A poll last weekend showed that 95% of the Population support the right of existing EU residents to remain here; the greatest mixing/marriage/relationships/living cheek to cheek between immigrants and more established populations has long been in working class areas not leafy suburbs where the worthy and the good tend to live and pour scorn on the white working class and their supposed bigotry; Brexit is not a facist or anti-immigrant vote however much the majority of you genuinely believe it is - and I know you do - because immigration and immigrants aren't the same thing....

BTW How about Labour shortage will actually result in an increase in wages for traditionally piss poor paid occupations - though our next latte or hipster burger or cleaner's rates or Farmer's Market vegetables may go up a few pence....

[JoeLeg]

???? - you and me may know that immigration and immigrants are not the same thing, but I respectfully suggest that a lot of people out there don't see a difference. There's an awful lot of anti-immigrant feeling in this country, and it mostly comes from poor white communities which desperately need help but also need to recognise that IF immigrants are taking their jobs, it's usually because immigrants do them better. This is not to ignore cash on hand workers, gang masters and out and out human traffickers, but the overall impact of the criminally controlled job market on actual employment is negligible. We need governments who invest in the education of communities and create conditions for thriving local economies to help these communities to recover, and we have to remember that economic migrants don't go where there are no jobs that they can get.

"BTW How about Labour shortage will actually result in an increase in wages for traditionally piss poor paid occupations - though our next latte or hipster burger or cleaner's rates or Farmer's Market vegetables may go up a few pence..."

Well now this is an excellent point. But I'll tell you now we're talk oh about increases of more than a few pence. Much more. Hey, if people are willing to pay more then we'll happily pay more. But you're talking about increase of around 10%-20%. It will make eating/drinking out pretty expensive, possibly sending places out of business and losing jobs. Or it might stimulate growth and be really good for everyone. We won't know until we try.

[jaywalker]

For me, exactly right JoeLeg. The ruling metaphor of the new certainty: contain it and we will be better off. Hoard, secrete, make precious, defend. Weird, like everyone read the canon of Mercantilism but never had time for Keynes.

Hey you inward looking people: switch the metaphor!