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JobPath, a personal blog about my experience on Seetec's JobPath program

category national | rights, freedoms and repression | opinion/analysis author Wednesday December 26, 2018 19:34author by Lilesosanna - JobPath Participant

JobPath the first 52 weeks and my recall to a second term on JobPath, blogged in real time

This blog, my first, will in general aim to document the program and specifically my experiences on JobPath. Protecting their identities you will meet the other job seekers and staff, will there be villains and hero’s or stale biscuits and tea? The blog will be anonymous because I’m not sure how DSP or Seetec will feel about the real time, real person, review.

Why do a blog, I feel that it gives a window for the 115,000 people who will be invited to the mandatory scheme over the full 4+2 years. JobPath is discussed by politicians, by journalist and even on public forums, the vast majority of whom only get the opportunity to view from the outside in and so only see things from a superficial vantage point. My time embedded or if you like immersed in the scheme, gives a personal and unique opportunity to document my experience and is allowing me the privilege of blogging from the inside out. It requires some intrusion into my life and maybe some repetitive reading, it will require some commitment from myself and the thought of possible consequences leave me a little unhinged. However difficult it is personally, hopefully it will serve the purpose of shedding light on the truth in a way that turning up with a press pass or in a Ministerial car, never could do.

In November 2018, I received a second ‘invitation’ that I couldn’t refuse to do another 52 weeks of JobPath. Considering the amount of people who viewed the blog from all corners of the planet and the participants that the blog helped, along with the number of people who contact me for and offering me help, I’m going to do another 52 weeks of blogging under JobPath two. The aims will be the same.

If you have been invited to attend JobPath for the first, second or even third time, this blog, my first, will in general aim to document the program and specifically my experiences on JobPath. Protecting their identities you will meet the other job seekers and staff, will there be villains and hero’s or stale biscuits and tea? The blog will be anonymous because I’m not sure how DSP or Seetec will feel about the real time, real person, review.

A little about me, I’m a mature woman with a third level education who built my career in management, finance, administration and personal development. A busy and happy life imploded in 2010 when the recession years brought my working life to an abrupt end. Hope remained with me as I became debt free; was diagnosed with a mental illness and started to work out how to manage and live as good a life as I can.

The blog is my journey through the program, the highs, lows and the damned right funny things that happen when you are on JobPath.

I'm now one of the 11,000 people attending JobPath for a second time and will be blogging these 52 weeks in real-time. JobPath 1 is complete for everyone to read, comment and share.

Related Link: https://jobpathmyexperienceoftheemploymentandskillsprogram.wordpress.com/

Comments (1 of 1)

Jump To Comment: 1
author by useless eaterpublication date Sat Dec 29, 2018 00:39author address author phone

Program was a failure in UK, even before the Irish government decided to implement it.
I guess they were just in such an ideological rush to hand out taxpayers money to private companies
that they never even bothered to research it for 5 minutes on google!!

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2012/nov/27/data-work-pr...lures

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2012/nov/27/work-programme-lo...-jobs

This village article was interesting!
http://www.villagemagazine.ie/index.php/2015/01/privatisation-kic...oned/

Seetec are a company known for their work in prisoner rehabilitation in the UK.
I guess that says something about what our government think of the unemployed!

Regardless of whether there are useless programs like this running, when there is half decent work available
most Irish unemployed people will go out and get jobs. The figures show this clearly.
They really don't need to be patronised like this!

So why do our political class continue to waste loads of our tax money on useless programs like this?
Especially given their terrible record in the UK?


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