The schmooze : voices from the community

The world of work used to be fairly straightforward for most people. You drew up your CV, applied for a job and then worked for your employer for many years – perhaps getting promoted or changing department from time to time. If, for some reason, you didn’t have a job, you were “unemployed” and could claim the benefits.

The charity I am privileged to lead - Resource - was set up to help in 1992 to give free, confidential advice and support to Jewish people who were out of work and help them to get back into work – and you had to be unemployed to use our services. We offered one to one appointments and ran seminars and training sessions, some of which could run over multiple days and were mostly held during normal office hours between Monday and Friday.

But today, things are far more complicated. Increasing numbers of people have part-time jobs, work flexible hours, are committed to zero-hour contracts, do voluntary work or run small online or real world businesses. Even those who don’t have a full-time, salaried job often participate in the gig economy to some extent, where they may for example sell their artwork on Etsy, drive an Uber or deliver take away food. It is now far more unusual for anyone to be completely unemployed in the old sense of the word.

The Covid pandemic has of course accelerated many of these changes. The time away from the office has led more and more people to seek to improve their work-life balance, including working more often from home, having more flexible or reduced hours or seeking a complete career change.

It has made many people re-evaluate what they want from their work life, to realise that they don’t have to stick with the job they have, when it is causing them stress, unhappiness and maybe even making them ill. It has led to the phenomenon many are calling the Great Resignation – an historically high number of people all thinking of leaving the jobs they have to seek pastures new, to improve their lives or to seek more income at a time of rapidly increasing costs. And some – especially the over 55s – are choosing to leave the workplace altogether.

For many, the new world of work is nothing less than a golden opportunity, where they feel they can at last ‘have it all’, in many cases allowing them to spend more time at home, perhaps with their children, but others find the lack of certainty, the rapid changes and the feeling they should be constantly looking for their next move unsettling, as they struggle to find their way through the unfamiliar and daunting world of choice.

Employers are having to adapt to this new environment – the pressures on them to provide flexible and hybrid working conditions; to build and maintain a sense of loyalty and togetherness amongst employees who may no longer share office space; and, of course, to provide a competitive salary and reward package, have never been higher. Those who don’t adjust are finding their employees being snapped up by competitors who have been quicker to embrace newer working models.

Resource has changed too. Our core goals remain the same – to help people develop the tools, learn the skills and gain the confidence they need to get the job they want – but we have adapted our services to match the flexible needs of our clients. We offer one to one meetings with professional advisors, as well as interactive workshops online, and they can take place in the evenings and even at weekends where appropriate. You can come to us for assistance even if you do currently have a job and are not fulfilled – or not making ends meet - if you feel you would benefit from some help and guidance to get moving on the next stage of your working life.

And now that all of our services are offered remotely, there is the added advantage of being able to help people anywhere in the UK.

We look forward to sharing the journey with you