Job centre told me to apply for job which no longer exists

[Dazza1983]

I signed on at the job centre on Wednesday.When i was there my advisor gave me 3 jobs to apply for and said i had to apply for them before i sign on again in 2 weeks on the 5/11/14.

 

She told me to make sure i apply for them along with proof i have as i could be sanctioned for not applying for them.

 

Today iv gone in to Universal job match to find them and apply for them.Iv found and applied for 2 of them but i cant find the third even with the universal match job ID.It was definitely on there at some point because the advisor had printed it out to give to me.

 

My question is surely i cant be sanctioned for this as i have attempted to apply for the job but it no longer exists?

[Mr.P]

You won't like my answer.... The advisor had given you a verbal "job seeker's direction" to apply for three vacancies - This would have been noted on the LMS - As a result of failing to comply with this direction, you could pick up a sanction.

 

There is an expectation that you would have taken steps to apply for these vacancies promptly. It could be that the closing date on one of the vacancies was on the Wednesday, or the closing date might have passed by the time you were given the instruction. Another possibility is you have been given an invalid UJM reference number. If you get challenged over this vacancy, do not mention what day you decided to apply, and just go with "invalid reference". See if you can find a few other similar vacancies and apply for them to make up for it.

[sillygirl1]

Print out ANY screen where you get 'invalid reference' or 'job closed due to too many applications' as this is proof you actually followed instructions.

 

I did this several times when I was on JSA, and they were more or less okay - the UJM didn't provide me with one job I hadn't already applied for...which really annoyed one adviser, who then started digging out very junior jobs, I carefully explained that I had been a director level secretary and that the jobs wanted somebody under 25 - and I was 53....

[essexmat]

I would also advise signing up to CV-Library and uploading your CV. They do a 'one click' application process although if you really do fancy a job it is worth doing a proper application with a covering letter. If you simply need to get your applications up you can search for jobs in your area and when you click apply your CV is sent automatically and you get an email saying you have applied. You can use these as proof of application or should you wish to you can show the JCP adviser your account (do not disclose log in details though!) that have a list of recent applications. This should save you from any sanction threat. Relying on UJM is like relying on a Greater Anglia train to be on time ...

[Dazza1983]

You won't like my answer.... The advisor had given you a verbal "job seeker's direction" to apply for three vacancies - This would have been noted on the LMS - As a result of failing to comply with this direction, you could pick up a sanction.

 

There is an expectation that you would have taken steps to apply for these vacancies promptly. It could be that the closing date on one of the vacancies was on the Wednesday, or the closing date might have passed by the time you were given the instruction. Another possibility is you have been given an invalid UJM reference number. If you get challenged over this vacancy, do not mention what day you decided to apply, and just go with "invalid reference". See if you can find a few other similar vacancies and apply for them to make up for it.

 

 

I agree.In future when the jobcentre give me a job i will apply for the vacancy as soon as possible.Iv already found similar vacancy's and applied for them to make up for it.Hopefully they will be ok with this.

 

I will also do what sillygirl1 said and print out any screen where i get invalid reference or job closed.

[Dazza1983]

I would also advise signing up to CV-Library and uploading your CV. They do a 'one click' application process although if you really do fancy a job it is worth doing a proper application with a covering letter. If you simply need to get your applications up you can search for jobs in your area and when you click apply your CV is sent automatically and you get an email saying you have applied. You can use these as proof of application or should you wish to you can show the JCP adviser your account (do not disclose log in details though!) that have a list of recent applications. This should save you from any sanction threat. Relying on UJM is like relying on a Greater Anglia train to be on time ...

 

I agree with you.UJM is awful.I don't disclose my log in details to the jobcentre.I'm already registered with c.v. library which is a lot better website than UJM.

 

Has a Greater Anglia train ever been on time? They haven't on the times iv used them in the past:-)

[jasta11]

Definitely do as Essexmat suggests and join both CV-Library and Reed.co uk - they're both 'one click to apply' after you've uploaded a cv and short covering letter.

 

In terms of getting responses and interviews I have to say that both sites are utter rubbish, leading me to believe that the agencies who use them are merely collecting CV's from potential customers for any real vacancies that may occur in future, so don't hold out much hope of actually being asked to any interviews.

 

However, what these two sites are excellent for is providing solid proof to the JC that you're applying for jobs. Anything you click on is added to an 'Applications' list and you just screenprint this out every two weeks; all the info - job title, agency, date, etc - is neatly laid out for you. Plus you'll also get another application confirmation sent to your own email address each time you click on 'Apply'. Print that out too. I never show less than 50-60 jobs applied for per fortnight and the JC are telling me I'm actually doing too much! Takes no time to do either; can rack up ten applications in 2 minutes.

[Mr.P]

Don't forget, there is also google Chrome plugin to automate your UJM searches & applications - Might be worth looking at it if you want to rack up the "job search" hits. With any luck, it will automatically apply for vacancies before your adviser even has a chance to issue you with a JSD

[think about it]

Just wondering if you had more details about the job than just the UJM ID, if so perhaps you could contact the company yourself and take a copy of the letter / email along with you to your next signing.

[jasta11]

Just wondering if you had more details about the job than just the UJM ID, if so perhaps you could contact the company yourself and take a copy of the letter / email along with you to your next signing.

 

Absolutely. I've never applied for a UJ vacancy via UJ itself as I wouldn't risk my data going astray. The vast majority of UJ vacancies will state the agency handling it or the actual company or even provide a contact email for someone in the company - all acceptable means of applying. I simply ignore any vacancies which can only be applied for via that UJ 'Click to apply' button.

 

Don't forget that how you apply for vacancies is entirely up to you, not the JC; they can mandate you to look on UJ for jobs but they can't force you to apply using UJ's own button. They're all told to try and get people to apply via UJ - and even store all their jobsearch on there - but if you can find an alternate way of applying then that's perfectly acceptable. Make sure you have some sort of screenprint proof of your application, however you did it.