Officially off the bench!

[herman_g]

Longest bench time ever in 19 years contracting - 5 full months yesterday.

Met some real good fellow bench-warmers here in this period!

Despite pimp CV collection/spamming exercises ( not to mention deep-sea fishing expeditions ) not a single interview in April, May or June.

Total client disrespect in July ( for example a canceled interview as I waited at reception after travelling all day to their site in a heat wave by tube/train in a suit ) - although 2 interviews in 1 week.

August was normal - dead - but will miss young Italian women frolicking on the beach wearing very little.

September comes - 3 interviews in one week and two pieces of paper put in front of me ( one after the long and dreaded bank vetting process )!!

One 3 month gig, one 6 month. 6 months pays a little less but I am back in the Ci'y!!!

Good luck to all those remaining on the bench - may you get yourselves off very very soon.

[Clippy]

Congrats.

[thunderlizard]

A long summer off. Perfick.

[jim2406]

well done!

[herman_g]

It's been not bad...

April 3 - finished contract in Budapest
April 4 - loaded up the car and drove to Athens with the gf
April 6 - took ferry to my home in Rhodes
---alot of fun, sun and beach---
Sept 5 - toasting the new gig
Sept 7-12 - 2 ferries to Italy and nice slow drive to London including several coffee shop hours in Maastricht Netherlands on the way!

[Archangel]

Bloody Greeks, come over here taking our jobs

Well done, still tumbleweed for me after 3 months.

[DS23]

boomtime!

[herman_g]

Actually, Canadian of British Ancestry coming to take all the jobs - but I do make a point of driving the market up as much as possible in my host country ( contrary to our friends from the sub-continent )!

[stillooking]

I've also been 5 months on the bench, it wasn't as pleasant sounding as yr experience, I worked very hard to find something. Just got something a week or so ago, don't think it'll last and the location is difficult for me.

But, what's concerning me though is in the future that clients and agencies are judging us heavily on gaps in work/contracts.I'm getting a real victim complex

[herman_g]

The gap thing was, surprisingly, of very little concern to anybody I spoke with.

If it was the least concern, I just mentioned the fact my last UK gig was at Lloyds who were bringing in planeloads of Wipro TCS and Cognizant workers.

Recruiters with lost revenue due to 30,000 ICT's were perfectly understanding of the supply/demand effect of that.