Bad brown

There is a great trend for those who are already highly skilled to be working with employers - who so value their skills and experience - that they will go out of their way to ensure those are kept up to date and relevant.

But work your way further down the greasy ladder of employment, until you reach the heady world of the temp, agency workers and employment agencies; where your current skill-set, reasonable ability to work (or at least shuffle papers around and click the mouse button a couple of times per hour) is all that matters.

It is is up to you, to ensure your skills are better than just up-to-date.  To, as week follows week, keep abreast of developments, new legislation, protocols that are produced in any arena of work, but especially in any area where computers play a very big part.

If however, you are unemployed and poor, then your ability to improve your employability decreases at an exponentially marked level. 

The job centres are really only concerned that you can read/write/apply for a job (any job), forgetting that having this lowest common line in the sand is damaging in the long term, to the economy, the unemployed person whilst bolstering the how much can we get away with paying mentality. 

Case in point been tjk parent of tk maxx, of the losing millions (45.7) of customers banking details and making the uk government look competent in comparison, company based in the us. Yes this company pays a bit more than the minimum wage for its uk staff. But the staff forego overtime pay, easily working an extra 4+hrs over allotted scheduling per week. Breaks are short. Cancelable at short notice, as the one off goods are priced up for consumers to whip off the shelves.

But back to the point.

Colleges, which used to have subsidised courses for those who where unemployed - but keen to re-enter employment by re-skilling - now find they have to scrap particular courses under the current governments "re-balancing" of educational need towards those in the 16-20 year old age bracket. With those over the upper age, considered over the hill and past it!

In today's environment, webdesign, plumbing, engineering, are a few courses of note that would be beneficial to potential employers and to those seeking work. With the added bonus of improving the unemployeds earning potential, way beyond that of the idle giro payout; thrown in. 

But the Wisdom of Brown seems to be striking again. As those very same courses have been favourably targeted towards the under 21's whilst those over 20 are forced to consider different courses or learn by themselves as the courses are no longer subsidised, or even worse, have been cut altogether.  Sort of when Mrs Thatcher made away with the milk and deprived many growing children (from deprived backgrounds) of a valuable source of daily calcium and nutrients.

Invariably as this carries on, it will mean temp/part-time workers will have to create and fund their own learning map.  Which is as it should be, as generally they're financially on par, or better off, in the particular employment situation they currently inhabit than their full-time slave to the boss colleagues.

During my webering (web wondering), bumped across this carton from Paul Toner on his ruebritannia site. Excellent work.

A whole heap, of Chancellors doings

Well the first budget brought into existence by Alistair Darling is a roasted horse chestnuts load of landfill waste. Which will be made ever higher by his inaction.

I imbibe the odd drink and smoke way to much. So yes it's a crap budget for me. More taken out, as ever.

With 'stability' the new watchword replacing 'prudence'; they both appear like pantomime dames. All show but laddered and leaking stockings going as far as the eyes can see.

Can't wait until the next one. When things in the country really do start going downhill.

But on a good note, he's returned to using the old budgetary case that the old chancellor jettisoned. Good to see we're firmly heading back to good old tradition... Oh well boom and bust, here we come!

Boeings lcd

It's always 'interesting' watching, listening to the wranglings and hearty outpourings over the so-called loss of national standings (aka Boeing, McCain et all). But globalisation's been going on for centuries. It's just in this day and age the time to source part b from across the globe, only takes a couple of weeks and not years.

No country wants to have itself swamped, every country wants to protect its citizens employment base, unless of course the employment base gets to uppity; then a dose of unemployment (especially with the potential loss of their homes), would show them who's boss.

But with the global race downward towards the lowest common denominator of price continuing apace, more people on the ground level at home are losing jobs (which are transferred elsewhere), whilst the eating heads of big business complain they aren't making as much profit as they could due to been uncompetitive and having to worry about labour costs.

Amazing how, at the end of the day, when billions are made in net profits, it's usually the directors who see the greatest benefit, whilst the lowly employee gets a 1.49% rise in salary and has to thank his or hers, lucky stars they are still employed for another month.

But then, barring a slip up, it will either be China or India who will take technology to the next level and there the companies can still tread roughshod over the rights of the many.