Oman Removals in Kildare have advertised (Updated Link here) for a web designer intern on Job Bridge. If you have a look at their site you might see why they are in need. (PS I’m not sure if Continuum who did design work for Oman in 2008 are responsible for the current design.)
Now if you are a out of work or budding designer looking for mentoring or experience how would you expect to get it with a removals company whose business and expertise is not in the area of website design? If you are a removals company who don’t want to spend money on hiring a company to design your website what might you do if there is an intern scheme available?
These of course are the questions that the National Employment and Entitlements Service should be asking when accepting applications for the scheme.
By the way Job Bridge is now open to Sole Traders to apply to host interns. Previously forbidden from participating, someone has lobbied for the rules to be changed and voila those people working on their own who need a spare pair of free hands, who want recruit an intern can do so.
Oh yes if you own a property and pay management fees to Fisher Property Management you might wonder what you are paying for. They’ve advertised for a Maintenance/Cleaning Manager Intern post. – Updated link here Amazing how many of these internships get manager tagged on for appearances sake.
Don’t forget – after you’ve done your stint of free work, you get no objective accreditation for it – nothing to say what skills you developed and in what way; whether you could be considered at a certain skill level as a result of your training and development – something “transferrable” that you could take to an employer that might actually pay you a wage (if any exist after Job Bridge is going for a while) and say “See, I have demonstrated this skill at this level!”.
But then it could be because the scheme has nothing to do with training, education or skills development.
PS Sorry if this is a bit ranty. I work in L&D, and this Job Bridge programme really annoys me. Perhaps because it is so close to the bone and actively diluting the perceived value of training and continuous professional and skills development. Also, it’s wasting tax payers money, FORFAS had a report 7 years ago now that provided a more sensible approach than this (http://www.forfas.ie/publication/search.jsp?ft=/publications/2004/Title,819,en.php)
It’s been changed since Continuum worked on it – here’s a snapshot from 2008 http://web.archive.org/web/20081226164248/http://www.oman.ie/securestorage/securestorage.aspx (images missing, but the content is very different)
The current site was built using http://www.coffeecup.com/
I noticed the Oman ad last week. What intrigued me was why an in-house web designer with a removals company would be dealing with clients on the phone, Internet and face to face. To my knowledge (and I live close by and know of the company) all internal clients are based at Atlantic House.
Could it be that this job is for an office clerk who would spend a little of their time working on the website? If so, they will learn little about web work. Less if they are to continue using CoffeeCup.
A sole trader is not somebody who works on their own.
http://www.businesscompanyformations.ie/soletrader.htm
This is just a scandalous scheme, and I’m appalled that Labour is associated with it. I hope the issue is raised in the Dail, as it is just slavery with no benefits to the “intern”.
Red Links 18/08/2011 : Alexia Golez // Aug 18, 2011 at 11:57
[...] Suzy on the continuing Job Bridge mess. [...]
Ah. So that’s where all the Irish design jobs went. Whew!
Open FM » Today’s Links // Aug 19, 2011 at 09:41
[...] Need a new website designed? Get an intern Oman Removals in Kildare have advertised (Updated Link here) for a web designer intern on Job Bridge. If you have a look at their site you might see why they are in need. (PS I’m not sure if Continuum who did design work for Oman in 2008 are responsible for the current design.) Now if [...] [...]
JobBridge – the real questions // Sep 1, 2011 at 00:39
[...] Internships that involve unskilled roles in hotel and catering, retail sales, cleaning, packing boxes, warehouse duties, the care of vulnerable people etc. should be excluded from this programme. Companies that don’t specialise in an area should not be recruiting staff to work oh for example on their website if they can’t teach someone about the business of web design …. [...]