Families must accept partial blame for recession?

[Shadowcat]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

Another problem for me these days is affording to put petrol in the car to get to work as Mr's business lurches from bad to worse. I get quite down about it because the consequences of not being able to afford to get there are too awful to think about. I know people are having time off sick because they can't afford petrol and local jobs are rare where we live, especially to the 35+ age group.

[labman]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

Speaking as a small business owner, we have advertised for over a month now for lots of people to go out selling for our business, we are offerring a small weekly retainer plus commission, with a promise of a permanant full time position with a good salary/car etc for anyone who proves themselves, how many replies have we had....... two, amazing eh considering there are so many people out there unemployed.
Another thing is we were considering taking on another person in our office, but we are loath to take on anyone of 'breeding' age because of the minefield of maternity/paternity benefits etc.
So all in all pretty successfull eh, can't get people to work doing our sales because everyone is better off on benefits it seems, otherwise we would have had shed loads of applications and we don't want anyone who's likely to go off and have kids.

I'm just trying to work out how you have managed to word your advert. I know the problem, and it is a very real one financially for any business, especially a small one. How you word your advert to avoid it I don't know. Could one say good skills in social intercourse but ONLY social intercourse?

Why can't common sense prevail and you be allowed just to say, 'We can't afford you if you get pregnant!'

[Hurricane Puffrose]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

serious suggestion Sapphy,
Contact Saga and ask to be put in contact with over 40s looking for work! least you cant be done for ageisum

[Sapphire]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I'm just trying to work out how you have managed to word your advert. I know the problem, and it is a very real one financially for any business, especially a small one. How you word your advert to avoid it I don't know. Could one say good skills in social intercourse but ONLY social intercourse?

Why can't common sense prevail and you be allowed just to say, 'We can't afford you if you get pregnant!'

We explored the possibilities of advertising in the local papers (small advert around £500) or going via agencies (approx cost £1200 per person taken on), so we decided to advertise on the Jobcentre site, you go in via Business Link, fill in the appropriate boxes, word you're advert and then press send, you then get emails from them telling you that you have to re-word the ad with a load of disclaimers etc that basically take up at least a third of your 850 characters you are allowed, plus they then tell you there's this law, that law and god knows whatever else law you have to abide by.
I actually know of one of our friends who advertised for a lady in their office who annouced a few months later that she was pregnant, by that time she was entitled to maternity leave/benefit etc and when we worked it out she must have known that she was pregnant when she was interviewd and offered the job, yet our friend could do nothing about it and was lumbered with having to find someone to cover whilst off, there's the cost of the cover, the training and of course time off to attend god knows whatever clinics there are nowadays, and then the lady doesn't have to decide whether or not she wants to return until a little while before she's due back, all these things can slaughter a small business, there should be some form of protection from situations like this.

Back on topic though.....

[labman]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I agree with you Sapphy - the end of my post may have been tongue in cheek, but the start was 100% serious. What is even more ridiculous is that as an employer you would be idiotic not to factor this type of thing into the equation, yet you then find yourself finding a politically acceptable reason for not appointing what may otherwise have been a strong candidate.

I realise fully this is not PC, but I don't need to be any more. It is a genuine problem for people wanting a family and people wanting to return to work after having a family, but it is just as much of a problem for an employer.

[Hurricane Puffrose]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

thats the problem i have.. they see 34 and 3 kids and think oooh how long till shes up the duff again!

I must say that, on topic as they say, ive re-read his article and have one question...

hes worth Xmillion pound, lives in the lap of luxury and all that, when was the last time he stood in the queue in Asdas saying please go through please go through at the machines?

[meellis]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I still have a business but I am on my own now due to bankruptcy. I did what most of you are talking about got lots of work, good customer base, invested in tools, staff and vehicles. I still remember the run up to Xmas a few years ago. Full order book for the following year, all my major investments out of the way I was looking at starting to re-coupe all of my time and efforts. Then snow for the 2-week run up to xmas, the time off for xmas and then snow for 2-weeks after xmas. Paid my staff to stay at home as I asked them to, did not want the responsibility of them being in an accident. Cash flow stopped and no banks wanting to help. Cash flow became a debt problem and the debt monsters were let loose on me and as they say the rest is history. One of my friends said I don't know why anyone would start a business so I said either people have to start businesses to employ the likes of you or we all have to start businesses to employ ourselves. I have to be realistic though, there are too many people so we have to manufacture pointless jobs to keep them off of the dole ques. Paying for these jobs is costing us all dearly but they have to be there. People would think I would be bitter about the finance industry, I am about the way it is run but credit is needed by everybody for everything so stopping this or making it harder is no good. As for the dole ques they have to be there because there are a lot of ministers, bankers, lawyers and financial watchdogs I want to see join them. The bright part of my day though has been is wales mans confession. I thought I was responsible for the UK woes but obviously now I am only responsible for the woes in the rest of Europe and America and I can live with that guilt.

[labman]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I actually fundamentally disagree that credit is needed by every one for everything. :beagle:credit is needed by businesses without a doubt, but it is only needed for personal finances for those wanting to buy a house and other exceptional circumstances.

I thought I needed credit until I simply could not afford to have it. I'm happier without it, and what we can't afford, we do without. Yes, it's a pain at times, but we manage. There's something rather cosy and comfortable about knowing that you actually own everything you have, even if it is not much.

[meellis]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

It does depend on what the credit is for but you did say for those wanting to buy a house and other exceptional circumstances. If you needed to £20,000 tomorrow to send a relative to america for a life saving operation you would certainly consider credit. Unusual circumstances but not totally un-realistic. That is one of the few reasons why credit needs to be available but selling your soul to buy the latest TV is maybe beyond the call.

[wales01man]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

Jack russel
SO you started it in europe thats why the UK economy fell apart it was not just me then?
As for you very good thought on business and credit my downfall was not borrowing money it was only lent because to the lenders the future there when it turned sour for many the banks shyed away and left us i offered to run the business for 6 months on a shoestring and putting our house up as security my wfe although not part of the business agreed to that they said no and asked for overdraft/loans to be repaid even explaining that i could not do that the plug was pulled the internet business website was handed to my major supplier to pay of the debt to them i paid everone else off with my own money then the company was dissolved the bank got and never will get a penny the debts from the non ltd co. are still there but now 3 plus years later i have not paid any lost our house because we put it all int businesses hoping to pull through did not now we are where we are,
For some government millionaire to blame everone else its an insult to those of us who tried anf failed when the financial system they were controlling failed

[Shadowcat]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I see meellis as more of a proud upstanding and handsome German Shepherd as opposed to a Jack Russell.

[meellis]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

Cheers for the comment Shadow but I am unsure if the Germans would like it after I have owned up to causing all the problems in europe. I would like to be a bulldog but unfortunately the german sheperd is a far better looking dog and if treated right as a great temperament

[meellis]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

Well, thinking of it, I am glad I didn't decide I want to be a british bulldog. If I was to bring the thread full circle I would imagine the minister would probably class himself as a bulldog and I would probably be correct. Before I say any more I am a dog lover, but I have found the bulldog to be arrogant, ignorant, fat and lazy so as they say if the cap fits and all that.

[Shadowcat]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I see the minister more as one of Paris Hilton's chihuahuas. Diamonte collar, more than one home, the best food, scared if it has to walk through a working class area and only really happy when sitting on someone's lap being stroked.

[labman]

Re: Families must accept partial blame for recession?

I think the minister has made a fundamental mistake here. He has made the assumption that it was in part household borrowing which led to the implosion of the banks. That would probably be true if, and it's a big if, banks were not able to write any losses made on consumer debt off against tax, thus leaving them able to sell them on to DCA's, thus creating not only jobs, but a whole industry of Debt Collection, while still leaving the bank having lost not one penny.

By far the bulk of a bank's profit comes from investing our money, yes - ours! If they invested this wisely, I suspect the problem could have been avoided, but avarice got the better of them and a lack of sensible investment accompanied by ridiculous bonuses played a much greater part than you or I not being able to repay a few thousand on a loan. Common sense states that if you have a significant role in a bank which makes a loss, there is no way on this planet yu should be paid a bonus. How can you be when your company has made a loss?

I do think we need to be careful about comments made about millionaires though. I know quite a few, and I assure you they have worked, and continue to work exceptionally hard for their money and they are very well grounded. It is the minority who lose touch with what life is like for those on a lower wage who become snobby and up themselves, often those who have inherited the wealth and been born with a silver spoon in their mouth.