Recruiting in these current times you would think would be a doddle. Our town is awash with redundancies and layoffs and businesses closing. With some trepidation, I put two jobs on line with Employer Direct, one for a line manager and one for a junior cabinet maker.  Am often asked why I don’t use employment agencies. Reasons for this are simple. Firstly, most of our shop floor staff have to have such specialist in-house training that we are not looking for very specific skill sets; more a general familiarity with – for example – woodwork, and most people without high qualifications do still rely on the Job Centre so it’s pointless to pay fees. 

Secondly, coming from a recruitment agency background myself originally, I don’t particularly rate the agencies I have tried locally and am aware that it is mutual. They have come across too many people who have not been able to hack it with us and tend to have a poor view of us as a company from these people who do not like to face up their own inadequacies. The reality is we are a business of whom our customers demand very high standards and so in turn we do the same from our staff, and those who cannot deliver are found out very quickly. The line manager’s position has so far produced little results and most of them from people far afield which seems a little impractical. Sure enough, however, the woodworker one produces several on the hour. Many ignore our request for experience and others range right up to hugely senior people with a wealth of cabinet making experience, absolutely desperate for a job. But pne of my favourites is the letter that commences by asking us to change the job title from trainee cabinet maker to “improver joiner” as this would suit him better. I read on…  

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