Job Hunting

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Jobs Fair in Hull

A Jobs Fair to be held on 25 May 12 at the Octagon Conference Suite, Walker Street , Hull, 1100 – 1600 for all Service personnel, ex-Service personnel, their families, widow(er)s and carers from the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force, Merchant Navy, Reservists and Veterans.

Recruit for Spouses

The Not-For-Profit organisation Recruit for Spouses is a website designed specifically to recruit the spouses of Service men and women. Created by Heledd Kendrick, herself an Army spouse, it was launched in January this year, and in the last three months the company has seen a surge in registrations with over 3,000 unique visitors to the website.

Heledd realised there was a desperate need for wives and partners to be supported throughout their working life whilst married to someone in the Armed Forces.

“It’s becoming increasingly difficult in this current climate to find long term work, particularly if you’re the partner of someone in the military. For us it’s about working with the right companies who can support a spouse either part time or full time. We’ve found that CV writing is a key part of this process and we’re delighted to have recruited a spouse who was formerly the recruitment manager at BMW”.

Thanks to a start-up grant last year from the Royal British Legion’s Women’s section, Recruit for Spouses has been able to engage with companies such as BT, Siemens and Amazon. However Recruit for Spouses is also looking at working with small and medium sized businesses who acknowledge the difficulties faced by this unique group of Service wives.

“We are really keen to engage with more small local companies, in particular those who are supporting the Military covenant. We have already worked with a few small businesses who have found our pool of talented skilled workers really useful to tap into, as from what I can see Military spouses prove to be thoroughly resourceful and extremely dependable”

Recruit for Spouses also practices what it preaches, and now has a team of 8 Service spouses based in the UK and Germany who bring their various areas of expertise to the venture allowing it to grow. The central tenet however remains extant – ensuring that spouses of members of the Armed Forces have the opportunity to be gainfully employed by socially responsible employers who recognise and value the contribution and sacrifices made by the service spouse community. If you would like more information please visit www.recruitforspouses.co.uk

Please note:

Families Employment Advisory Team (FEAT) recommends that those seeking employment should not upload personal details to this site while they are resident in Northern Ireland, as they have no way of ensuring the security of this data.

In addition, this method of registering CV’s for future employment is contrary to Fair Employment legislation in Northern Ireland.

FEAT's recommendation is that anyone seeking employment in Northern Ireland should use the existing Families Employment Advisory Team facility, whose details are available through AFF NI.

If appropriate, anyone who tells FEAT they are leaving Northern Ireland will be told about Recruit for Spouses Ltd as a way of increasing their future employment opportunities.

JobCentre Plus - An update from Nick Owen, Jobcentre Plus Armed Forces Advocate

An article from Quest Magazine

Nick Owen, Jobcentre Plus Armed Forces Advocate gives an update on new initiatives to provide more support to members of our Armed Forces, their families and veterans looking to find jobs, access training and benefits.

It can be difficult for partners of Service personnel to get a job or access services such as childcare or training. Short periods of employment or gaps on the CV can be misinterpreted as a lack of commitment. Service leavers also face their own challenges adapting to civilian employment.

Jobcentre Plus strongly believes that currently serving and ex-service personnel and their families should not face any disadvantage as a result of serving their country, which means improving access to state benefits and employment programmes.

To read the full article see page 9 of the August 2010 Quest Magazine.

“Get the Job You Really Want” by James Caan

AFF is always looking for tips and advice to assist military families in finding employment. The article below was recently printed in The Daily Telegraph and contains some useful guidance that may help you in your job search from the well known Dragon’s Den James Caan who knows his stuff – having built a phenomenally strong business in recruitment over many years:

“Searching for a new job can be a daunting task. It's hard to know how to distinguish yourself from other candidates and it can be disheartening when you apply for jobs but receive nothing back. Add to this the tough jobs market following the recession and you must make every effort to stand out from the crowd. Follow James Caan's tips for finding a new job and you should find your search becomes a little easier.

Like a good business plan, ensure your CV is interesting without giving too much away to clinch that all important interview.
Define your skills - especially IT skills that you use on a regular basis in your existing role. Disclose to potential employers how your skills will benefit the company, moreover how your skills will contribute to making the company more efficient and effective.
Like any good business, follow the rule of finding a need and filling it.
Channel all of your efforts towards finding a company which will actually have a job right for you.
Utilise every possible route of finding a job: direct applications, digital job boards, recruitment agencies, personal contacts. Furthermore, focus on reaching & impressing the decision maker (the person who is going to offer you the job you want)
Having the perfect CV doesn’t prove you can do the job. To prove you are the right person for the job be proactive and ask questions about the company, perhaps offer to do a work placement to show your enthusiasm to earn a role in the company
BE PREPARED! Research into the company and use all the information you gather to provide the raw material for asking questions and raising discussion points. Take note of relevant market trends and the company’s competitors.
Tailor your CV to the position. Ensure the key skills specified on your CV are relevant to the role.
Image is integral to success. Do not take any risks with personal presentation. Research the company’s style and if necessary adapt your look.
Remember, the company you are applying to may well be researching you, so ensure social networking sites and blogs reflect you in the best possible way.

James Caan is an experienced entrepreneur and a Dragon's Den member. His book, Get The Job You Really Want, was published on January 6, 2011 by Portfolio Penguin, £12.99.

Women Like Us - Specialising in part time recruitment in and around London

Women Like Us are a social enterprise aiming to give everyone the choice to fit work around the needs of their family. They operate across London

Reach women at their natural meeting place – the school gates
Give practical support to bring women confidently back into work
Run a recruitment service that specialises in part-time jobs
Work with employers to design part-time jobs that benefit their business
Help to grow the part-time job market, by spreading the message that flexible working makes good business sense.

For more information please visit www.womenlikeus.org.uk. Please note: AFF does not accept responsibility for any transactions that take place and is not responsible for the content and reliability of external websites.

RFEA Job Fairs & Recruitment Open Days

The Regular Forces Employment Association (RFEA) compile a list to provide up to date information on Job Fairs and Recruitment Open Days around the world, where spouses are welcome to attend, (please call the contact number listed to advise of your attendance for security and numbers). The list also includes a complete list of recruitment websites for your industry. Click here to download the latest list.

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