Nice work — if you can get it

Photo: ANTHONY MILLER

Manager John Fountain outside Oldham Jobcentre in Union Street, Oldham

Oldham Works: The Chronicle campaign to support Oldham and its people

While Oldham is currently bucking the upward trend in unemployment, the borough has not been immune from the effects of the credit crunch

Redundancies at Mobilis, Woolworths, Oldham Council and several other employers mean more people are using Oldham Jobcentre for the first time. For others it may be years since they signed on.

Oldham’s jobless total in June fell by 36 on the previous month to 6,750, a rate of 5.1 per cent, while nationally the claimant count rose by 23,800 to 1.56 million. However, Oldham’s underlying rate is still higher than the North-West total (4.6 per cent) and the national average (4.1 per cent)

The Oldham figure is a long way from the historic high of April, 1993 — when 11,358 local people claimed Jobseekers’ Allowance — but it still means thousands of customers for Oldham’s Jobcentre.

At a worrying time, in an unfamiliar environment, what should they expect?

Over 2,300 people use the Jobcentre in Union Street every day, and manager John Fountain and his staff say that anyone who has not been there for a long time can forget the old image of queues and scraps of card on the wall — Jobcentres are 21st century places.

Anyone unfortunate enough to lose their jobs will find touch-screen computer terminals with details of over 400,000 jobs here, nationally and in Europe.

In June, there were 444 unfilled vacancies in Oldham, and Jobcentre Plus received 1,110 vacancies during the month.

Instant print-outs can be taken away, free phones are available to call employers and the offices are modern, light and airy, with one-to-one booths to talk to advisers, or interview rooms for use by potential employers.

And John stressed that as well as people signing on to the service, people also leave with jobs.

He said: “In June 1,400 people joined the unemployment register, but 1,405 left the register.

“And a third of all vacancies locally will be advertised here.”

An initial contact with the new claims’ contact centre, Freephone 0800-055 6688, starts the wheels in motion for entitlements to Job Seekers’ Allowance, or other benefits.

A first appointment is fixed to see a Jobcentre adviser, normally within three days of the call.

Idris Ali is a personal adviser and he says they also work with many partners such as Highways to Opportunity, Work Solutions at the Honeywell Centre, and Inspire and Independence, to find people jobs, as well as discussing skills, advising on CVs and putting people in touch with potential employers.

The jobs’ database can also be accessed by phone (0845-606 0234), from 8am to 8pm, or the Internet, and the touch-screen terminals in the centre are available every day for people to drop in and use.

Motivating people, giving them confidence, pointing people to new ways of looking for jobs, discussing transferable skills, keeping a positive outlook are all part of the adviser’s role, said Idris.

John Fountain added: “We are very busy, and there are jobs out there.

“At the annual jobs fair at Oldham Sports Centre, we had 23 employers all actively recruiting for a range of sectors, in warehousing, distribution, retail and more skilled engineering jobs.

“There were 1,800 people who attended, higher than last year when it was 1,400.”

With 150 staff on three floors, the Jobcentre is the second largest in an arc from Stockport to Bolton, and is always busy.

Some employers use the Jobcentre as their only source for new recruits, holding interviews in the town centre office.

John Lees, North-West press officer for the Department for Work and Pensions, said: “Jobcentres are the country’s largest recruitment agency. We match quality people to quality vacancies, and everything we do for employers is free.”


Top tips for jobseekers

1. Check the Jobcentre Plus website at www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk

2. Make sure you have an up to date CV, with information on your skills, abilities and experience.

3. Get online — almost eight out of 10 companies now advertise their vacancies on the Internet.

4. Find out all possible vacancy sources — local and national newspapers, or Sky or Virgin Media customers can go to DirectGov on digital TV.

5. Register with local recruitment agencies.

6. Ask friends and family to look out for jobs — they may hear about vacancies where they work, not even get advertised.

7. Don’ be shy about going along to jobs fairs and other recruitment events.

8. Think about approaching local companies yourself to ask if they have any vacancies matching your skills.

9. Be open minded — don’t rule out taking a temporary job for experience, or self-employment.

10. Don’t assume you will automatically be worse off if you take a lower-paid job. You may qualify for in-work benefits that boost your income


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We will do our best to feature your company and give it it publicity it deserves in a bid to be successful.

Just let us know — we’ll do the rest . . .