Just how long is 'The Bench'?

[norrahe]

How about this...

We all know those cute little computer symbols called 'emoticons,' where:

means a smile and

is a frown.

Sometimes these are represented by

:-)

:-(

Well, how about some 'ASSICONS?'
Here goes:


(_!_) a regular ass


(__!__) a fat ass


(!) a tight ass


(_*_) an ass hole


{_!_} a swishy ass


(_o_) an ass that's been around


(_x_) kiss my ass


(_X_) leave my ass alone


(_zzz_) a tired ass


(_E=mc2_) a smart ass


(_$_) Money coming out of his ass


(_?_) Dumb Ass

Where is the one for an ass that has been benched?

[d000hg]

Having once not worked for nearly 12 months back in the 2001 / 02 downturn, 6 months really isnt that bad!

I can't imagine many other industries where 6 months without work "isn't that bad". Imagine a builder/plumber/tradesman having no work at all for 6 months...
I still find this bench thing a bit weird... how a skilled expert can not find any work for 6+ months is just weird. I know it's naive, but are long-term benchees typically happy to take work further afield at crappy rates - does professional pride play its part or is it a case of there are flat-out no roles in your area of expertise?

[RichardCranium]

I know it's naive, but are long-term benchees typically happy to take work further afield at crappy rates - does professional pride play its part or is it a case of there are flat-out no roles in your area of expertise?

I am a qualified and experienced IT project manager, predominantly public sector systems implementation projects. My techie skills are very rusty and what I used as a developer no longer exists, so there is no point me looking at developer roles. I do have a specialist niche business area.

I am applying for PM roles, BA roles and project support roles. I have a CV for each of these, which I then frequently tailor for specific job ads. I also apply for occasional other roles where I think I might stand a chance.

I am considering anything paying >25% of my last rate if it is very local, > 55% of my last rate if it involves commuting and >66% if my last rate if it involves relocation and >90% if it is in London.

Because of my wife's commitments, I have slightly restricted myself geographically to anywhere in England, South Wales or Scotland up to Glasgow/Edinburgh.

My niche business area is dead quiet; I have seen perhaps 6 roles in 9 months, only about two of which I could apply for.

The public sector is not recruiting (except for the NHS which is a closed shop).

The private sector is not terribly interested in public sector PMs, but I apply anyway. However, most of the private sector roles are in banking/insurance which is another closed shop.

There are thousands (probably tens of thousands) of PRINCE2 qualified people out there who can blag their way into project management roles.


So there are few roles to go for, lots of people going for them, and the government is still cheerfully allowing Intra Company Transfers to be used to bring in IT people from outside the EU to do the few roles that do come up.

HTH

[nomadd]

I can't imagine many other industries where 6 months without work "isn't that bad". Imagine a builder/plumber/tradesman having no work at all for 6 months...
I still find this bench thing a bit weird... how a skilled expert can not find any work for 6+ months is just weird. I know it's naive, but are long-term benchees typically happy to take work further afield at crappy rates - does professional pride play its part or is it a case of there are flat-out no roles in your area of expertise?

Nope. I'm still the same moaning git I always was when it comes to contracts.

If I can't find something with decent rates of pay, less than 1 hour commute (by motorcycle), and an interesting project with nice people to work on, then I just turn the roles down - even when I'm offered them after the interview.

Hence I tend to find myself "on the bench" for 3-6 months at a time, every year or two. Mind you, it's been like that for 10 years for me now, so I've got used to it. I absolutely love the Spring and Summer months "off work", so I guess that's why I carry on contracting: it offers me the flexibility to live my life the way I want. I tried to explain all this to a permie at work on Thursday, but he just didn't get it. Oh well.

EDIT: And let's be honest, if you work hard keeping your techie skills and business skills up-to-date (which I do), then the rates of pay in contracting more than compensate for the "bench time." The problem is - and this'll start a flame-war - too many people on this forum try to dictate the market; I never have, in 21 years of contracting. I've always scanned Jobserve and before that the trade rags to see what's hot and what's not. I don't try to tell the market what I do and then expect it to have a role for me as a contractor; I just look at what the market wants and do that instead. My current role is as a "lowly Java programmer" in an IB: it's what the market wants. And it's now paying a lot more than the Architect work I'd been doing for the prior 10 years - which has virtually zero contract roles available. As I say, as long as you don't try to dictate the market, you'll always be OK as a contractor. NB. And that includes location: I live in London - even though I'm a Northern guy - as that's where the contracts are; again, don't try to dictate the market. OK, I'll get off my high horse, now.

[DieScum]

I just look at what the market wants and do that instead.

How do you find reskilling and getting experience to fit the market? I do security and infrastructure work. But if all the advertisements are for Radia and my experience is solely in SCCM it's hard to adapt to that market change.

[nomadd]

How do you find reskilling and getting experience to fit the market? I do security and infrastructure work. But if all the advertisements are for Radia and my experience is solely in SCCM it's hard to adapt to that market change.

Then either get (pay!) for some SCCM training or broaden your skillset to something else. ..Just like I've had to do for the last 21 years. Changing your skillset won't happen overnight: you have to think and plan well ahead. Contracting has always been that way.

Ask yourself what other areas you could - and already should - have moved into? TBH, you've already started answering that question in your reply above.

It's taken me the best part of 3 years of self-study and piece-by-piece job selection to get me to where I am now. And that includes refusing renewals on a couple of contracts as I could see they were running me into a dead-end if I continued with them. And I'd dare say my skillset was already considerably wider/deeper than yours before I started that transition. In other words, it ain't easy to be a long-term contractor, you've got to constantly work at it (and I've been doing just that - free of charge - all day today at home on my own PC.)

The point I'm trying to make - in reply to the genuine question posted above my earlier post in this thread - is simply that there is no point running a business trying to sell stuff people don't want. Unless you want to sit "on the bench" for years, that is...

[DieScum]

All sensible stuff Nomadd.

The key thing there is thinking and planning well ahead.

I read your original comment as being a bit more immediate. As in anyone could just change course and be a lowly java programmer at an IB if thats what pays well. Obviously you can't just click your fingers and make that happen.

I think you really have to enjoy it to keep up that constant learning and skill building. What you been working on today?

I'm not a programmer but I learned java and smalltalk at uni so can bash out some C# nowadays. Published a little C# article about a small utility I hacked together recently. Then only last week a company asking me about my scripting/programming experience. Was nice to to point them to some published work. Got a tenner for the article as well.

[HairyArsedBloke]

Well, how about some 'ASSICONS?' ......

AH!

I'm getting close to 5,000 posts and was looking for ideas for a custom thingy.

Thanks.

[BolshieBastard]

I can't imagine many other industries where 6 months without work "isn't that bad". Imagine a builder/plumber/tradesman having no work at all for 6 months...
I still find this bench thing a bit weird... how a skilled expert can not find any work for 6+ months is just weird. I know it's naive, but are long-term benchees typically happy to take work further afield at crappy rates - does professional pride play its part or is it a case of there are flat-out no roles in your area of expertise?

I'd been working away from home for about four years then picked up a job at barcrap. After signing a new 6 month extension we were hit with a 20% take it or leave it rate cut offer 4 weeks into the new contract. So I told them to sling their hook and walked.

I didnt realise it at the time but the also market went into a steep downturn about a month into me deciding to take it easy for a while. When I started looking again the only jobs were in London so I decided to sit tight.

Eventually picked up a job within daily travel but you live and learn.

[nomadd]

What you been working on today?

Spring Web Services port, for a client who has already written the Java code against another web services engine.

And, although it seems as if we are wandering off-topic here, it's still useful stuff for me to do at my own cost as every damn Java job on Jobserve insists on Spring and Hibernate (both of which are used on this project - did the porting of the code to Hibernate 3 last week), so it's all good for marketability. Remember the old contractor maxim: you're only as good as your next contract. I use Jobserve as a continuing guide as to what that next contract might be.