State of the Market

[sadkingbilly]

I was out for a month during Covid so you being out for 17 is definitely a you and your skills problem - namely that they weren't in demand for that period.

I'm 52 so suspect ageism will kick in at some point but I'd day that 80% of my work in the last eight years has come from my wider network of people I have worked with / for in the past so perhaps this is a bit less relevant.

Back to rates again - 50% of £0 is £0 - my point is, if you need an income something is better than nothing. Sitting on the sidelines moaning that the glory days are gone won't pay the bills.

being an arrogant, entitled twat who thinks they're too good to work below £x/day probably doesn't help either.
like you say, anything's better than heehaw.

[Snooky]

Just watched an interview with a senior Indian minister in Mumbai talking about the UK as our PM is currently there and how the highest number of those leaving are now in the UK, how wonderful it is for Indians lifting themselves out of poverty and now middle class in the UK was his line.

Back patting and how great it is for India; yeah mate but the flip side is it is not good for the UK we are going down the tubes due to cheap labour being imported.

New Visas are not part of the discussions, according to Starmer
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9wdzryk477o

My local Primark is a prime example it is 99% staffed by Indians. It is very noticeable no getting away from it.

Indians who have come over on work visas or British-born brown people? How do you know, did you ask them?

[fatJock]

I was out for 17 months over covid then back in the game for 3.5 years. I don't think it's anything to do with 'me, my skills', just for most people, getting noticed in a world where there are hundreds of applicants, suitable or not, for every role within hours, and AI vetting CV's and auto-rejecting them based on some algorithm. Then there's ageism. I've only had two or three face-to-face (zoom) interviews in almost 6 years now but even so, when that zoom session starts and there's a bunch of 30 year old kids on my screen, looking at me almost double their age, certainly a similar age to their father, I have to ask myself.."would I want to work with my own father?!". So, whilst I can't even get a sniff of an interview at the moment, even if I were, well, you get the picture.

As for the market I operate, yes that's changed. The old world was London banking/finance but that was a while back now, in fact its over 10 years since I left my last such contract at a very well known asset management firm, and the chances of cracking that market again are miniscule. Out of the 'magic circle' way too long. I do have a good contracting friend who's gone back to a bank he previously had a couple of stints at. His rate is north of £ 800 inside. Now something like that would be worth considering, but for me not so, not that I could get back in there mind. Nah, personal circumstances, age, life, etc. means that ship has sailed. Away from that sector I'm seeing inside day rates lucky to get over half that mark, as I've posted recently.

I was out for a month during Covid so you being out for 17 is definitely a you and your skills problem - namely that they weren't in demand for that period.

I'm 52 so suspect ageism will kick in at some point but I'd day that 80% of my work in the last eight years has come from my wider network of people I have worked with / for in the past so perhaps this is a bit less relevant.

Back to rates again - 50% of £0 is £0 - my point is, if you need an income something is better than nothing. Sitting on the sidelines moaning that the glory days are gone won't pay the bills.

[SussexSeagull]

The thing that no one wants to consider is that no government of any persuasion can sort this out as places like India and Chins have risen and taken their piece of the pie.

Plus for the last few hundred years this countries prosperity was built on international alliances. Up until World War 2 it was the British Empire and more recently the EU. We haven't got that anymore.

[sadkingbilly]

Agree malvolio, and they have more experienced people and Reform don't.

Farage will be the next PM; hopefully he has time to get some experienced operators to support him who have real life experience and some nous.

[sadkingbilly]

what's a Primark??

[SussexSeagull]

3 years on the bench, just take anything surely that has to be better than nothing.

Have you done any work SchumiStars at all?

Yodel deliveries,shelf stacking anything to not run down savings.

Getting such work isn't as easy as it was. Your local Tesco is going to employ an 18 year old to stack shelves ahead of a 50 something with dodgy knees who will leave when something better appears.

[Cookielove]

Agree malvolio, and they have more experienced people and Reform don't.

Farage will be the next PM; hopefully he has time to get some experienced operators to support him who have real life experience and some nous.

[Cookielove]

Just watched an interview with a senior Indian minister in Mumbai talking about the UK as our PM is currently there and how the highest number of those leaving are now in the UK, how wonderful it is for Indians lifting themselves out of poverty and now middle class in the UK was his line.

Back patting and how great it is for India; yeah mate but the flip side is it is not good for the UK we are going down the tubes due to cheap labour being imported.

It is not is just in the IT sector so many other jobs coffee shops, Primark, McD's youngsters can't get a shop while they study/at school as so much competition and once they get in they tend to only employ their own. My local Primark is a prime example it is 99% staffed by Indians. It is very noticeable no getting away from it.

[malvolio]

....

Tory conference and Badenoch talking tough but too little too late...the are following Reform's policies. Deportations, no benefits or housing if you haven't paid in...scrap stamp duty. Their goose may well be cooked though as no one trusts them now as they failed when in office....she did a good speech though on balance.

The difference, she is saying how they will do it, as opposed to Nigel saying what they want to do. Still won't work, of course, since people are firmly decided the Tories are dead and nobody wants Labour and we all vote for the leader with the most appeal, not the one that might actually be good at the job. Hands up those who remeber Nick Clegg and is promises...

Farage will be PM, let's hope he has enough wit to acquire some experienced politicians to drive his agenda.