Temping/contract work

[urbanpixie]

Hello

Is anyone out there looking for work at the moment? Are any of you temping?

I am thinking about quitting my job as a PA in an investment bank (I hate it beyond belief) and looking for admin temp work but was advised by a recruitment consultant earlier this month that there was nothing out there and not to hand my notice in until I had found something else, the thing is - finding something else is nearly impossible while I am working here.

So - handing in my notice and looking for temp work yay or nay?

[Jah Lush]

Yay! If you hate it that much get out and do what you want. Life's too short to be stuck in a boring job.

[womanofdulwich]

I htink it depends how much reserve funds you have. Its true there is very little well paid work out there. Always easier to get a job when you have a job already. Can you take some holiday instead? I think you need to factor in at least 3 months of not working. Pretty unlikely to earn as much as you do now- assuming you have not had to take a pay cut already- you might be looking at a 25-35% pay cut.

[urbanpixie]

I could probably last a month or so with no pay coming in but don't want to end up in a situation where I have left my job and am now unemployed with nothing in the pipeline.

Have been looking for another perm job for months now and feel like I am banging my head against a brick wall mainly due to the recruitment consultants.

I don't have any holiday to take, and a holiday isn't going to cut it - I need to get out of here and away from these people.

[the-e-dealer]

With Record unemployment at the moment I would say it is very unwise to deliberately make yourself unemployed.

[HAL9000]

Sounds like you should count yourself lucky to have a job and an income. I would stick it out until a better job came along otherwise you may end up long-term unemployed and demoralised while just scraping by on benefits.

Just my two cents' worth.

[urbanpixie]

Honestly, its not "lucky" to be working here. It's really bad and starting to affect my health.

I'd literally do anything, including taking a big pay drop to get out of here.

I just don't seem to be getting anywhere by going to recruitment agencies and it seems to be the only way to find a job in London?

[Bluerevolution]

If you have a job stick with it-u/e for nearly 2 years and it's soul destroying

[maxxi]

I think if it was really as unbearable as you say there'd be no question and you would already have quit. The fact you are still there and asking the question means you already realise how difficult life would be if you did - leaving aside the fact that benefit would be hard to come by if you deliberately made yourself unemployed.

Recruitment consultants would only help you swap one job you hate for another similar job that you may hate equally within a month. Look outside your profession. Do something else, even if it means starting at lower pay.

[the-e-dealer]

If its making you sick you may have a case against them. See a Dr.

[urbanpixie]

maxxi Wrote:

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

> I think if it was really as unbearable as you say

> there'd be no question and you would already have

> quit. The fact you are still there and asking the

> question means you already realise how difficult

> life would be if you did - leaving aside the fact

> that benefit would be hard to come by if you

> deliberately made yourself unemployed.

>

> Recruitment consultants would only help you swap

> one job you hate for another similar job that you

> may hate equally within a month. Look outside your

> profession. Do something else, even if it means

> starting at lower pay.

hmm, its not as easy as that - as much as I hate it I have got rent and bills to pay so I need to have money coming in which is why I don't just walk.

I havent got a clue what else I would do.

I'm going to have to just stick it out here until I get something else by the sounds of it :(

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

What about extreme budgeting/scrimping for 3-4 months to build up a Flee Fund which will give you more options? If you know you have an exit date, it might be more bearable.

[angiepangie]

I have several friends temping and at the moment it is very hard. The pay is very low even for better positions and I would definitely recommend having more than one month covered for bills/ rent etc. why don't you look into doing a couple of evening courses/ seminars in a job area that you'd like to get into to gain a qualification and give you an indication of what it would be like.

[Guest]

How about having an off-the-record chat with your HR contact to find out whether it might be possible to move to floating/temp work elsewhere in the bank or perhaps a support role in the back office? (I assume from your post you're a front office PA, which I know can come with a horrible amount of pressure and stress.) You might find that by reducing your own sense of obligation to them and working in a variety of areas it may feel more bearable until the market picks up and you can move elsewhere. It could be seen in a positive light if you make a good business case, such as saying you are considering studying part time to further your career and need to lighten your commitments but that you'd like to continue working with them.

Worth a shot; as the others are saying, the market's dreadful and there are people out there taking 50% paycuts and still not getting much work (I certainly picked the wrong time to go freelance - mind you, I'm vastly healthier and nearly sane again, so it's not all bad).

[RosieH]

Yeah, hate to add to the voices of doom, but I quit my permanent job 3 1/2 years ago due to the stress and daily hatred I felt for it. After my four months notice period, I had a nice lie in, and woke up to the Today programme telling me it was the worst jobs market in 40 years.

Since then it's been up and down - some great contracts, some periods of unemployment, and it's leaner out there at the moment than it has been in the past 3 1/2 years. My last two contracts have been cut unexpectedly short, and because of the nature of the contracts, no more notice than a week. And the benefits system seems particularly geared at the moment to screw you over - you could find yourself without that safety net for a good long while (over 2 months in my case).

I think PGC's idea of a flee-fund is a great one. You'll be amazed how much the cloud lifts once you know you're out of there (the last 4 months I worked in my permanent job were the best, because things mattered less, I could have fun at work and even leave on time). The stuff that you hate, you can shrug off with a song in your heart and a dance in your step.

[KidKruger]

Maybe you can tell your firm you want to leave and ask them for a reduced notice period (2 weeks ?) while you look for a contract and they look for a replacement ? It's free to ask.

I don't know about PA work availability.

There's plenty of PMO work if you want City/bank/finance work within projects/programmes. That may qualify as the 'admin' work you mentioned ? People with strong MS office skills, understanding of project structure and deliverables, basic project management appreciation and reporting/MI experience generally qualify for PMO contracts, without getting into products or specific business-areas.

[the-e-dealer]

Please don't resign without another job. This is isn't a Blip we have record unemployment and its not getting any better it is getting worse.

It sounds like you must get out of the job but the depression and misery you will feel after 2 years on the dole will make you even more ill.

[LadyDeliah]

You could use your flee fund to start your own small business.

[the-e-dealer]

LD I think OP was complaining of stress starting their own business would make matters worse!

Failure rates of businesses in the UK include:

Manufacturing - 11%

Marketing services - 8.9%

Personal services (includes hairdressers, beauticians) - 8.1%

Private hire transport - 7.5%

Retail - 6.9%

IT services - 6.3%

Financial services - 6.3%

Printing - 5.6%

Building & construction - 5%

Media & Entertainment - 2.5%

Recruitment and other professional services - 2.1%

[HAL9000]

@the-e-dealer

Without context or a link to the source those figures make little sense. They seem too optimistic to me.

[the-e-dealer]

Its worse for small businesses I cant help smiling about when Alan Sugar was appointed "Small business Tzar" or similar.

At the first meeting of small businesses he told them to stop whinging and get on with it. Job didn't last long.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

In the ED Business Section there is an administrator's job going. Probably a huge salary cut for you but would be off-set by localness and bunch of hoary plumbers.

[Townleygreen]

>>but would be off-set by localness and bunch of hoary plumbers.

What???????????????????????????????????????

[HAL9000]

That was my reaction, too. It turns out the said administrator's job is at a plumbing and heating company.

[zeban]

Hi urbanpixie, go to the doctor and talk to them about you feeling you are getting ill. They could prescribe you anti depressants if they find you clinically depressed or anti anxieties, which although not really solving the problem of getting out of your job, might make your depression/anxiety easier to cope with and therefore might make you coping with the job easier. Do not be afraid of trying these if the doctor recommends them. they can be life savers for many people.

It can also be something that you could sit down and dicuss with your manager. perhap they could help to reduce the stress you're under- if it's either that and you going on sick leave then really they should be willing to give some leeway, especially if your doctor has made such recommendations.