Your perfect job?

[eml]

Planning for next winter I shall be recruiting a new member of staff so I thought I would ask everyone what they look for in their perfect job.

So far I am planning to offer
*5 day week with weekends off
*maximum 40 hour week guarenteed....time off in lieu if problem keeps you late one day
*agreed job and training specification
*laid back friendly boss....(I hope!)
*reliable juniors
*training from Chief Examiner
*Newly refurbished mobile home with CH, TV etc
*sensible wage

Please give me your thoughts on what else would make you choose my job

[Esther.D]

umm that sounds pretty much ideal if I was looking for that type of job ... no help I'm afraid.

Not like the groom job I had a couple of years ago..the spec should have been:

5 day week, 12+ hour day, unpaid baby sitting in evenings
Looking after 7 horses, 5 dogs and 4 children (5-14yrs)...all at once in different places..horses, dogs and children all disobedient and untrained..
Previous grooms all lasted approx 2 months and left due to bad injuries...(I managed 3 months and had nightmares for the next 6 months...)
Mad employer who alternately is nice and screams at you, throws things etc etc
In the middle of nowhere not even on a bus route to escape in evenings..no village nearby even..

Anything that is not like that is great
:D

[KarinUS]

maybe a reduced boarding fee, if you are bringing along your own horse?

[eml]

Thanks Esther and Karen. Thankfully we are walking distance to town with good young social life and we have no kids. Just off to tell the ponies they will have to be on best behaviour :D Fortunately they are not hard on staff most people stay for 3-4 years!

[Busterbum22]

Be careful how you word your ad. going off what you're put i would personally think that it was an easy number and you may end up with some right dead legs.

I tend to hold the interviews and then select a handful of hopefuls and ask each of them if they are willing to work for me for a couple of days so i can see how they work and they can see if they like the job.

you can usually tell after a day with some folk, others it takes two or three days.

I do it this now as over the last couple of years from the 5 people i've taken on 2 of them had excellent CV's and were brill on interview, but when it came to real work OH MY GOD! both only lasted a couple of weeks before i had to say Soz not working see you later.

But your ad sounds brill, if you want to hang off till next june, you can have my daughter, she finishes 6th form college then.

[maverick927]

Esther D, you thought you had it bad. Wait till you hear my experience.

Gemma heads to South Wales in 2001. Its late July and the weather is perfect, all ready to start my perfect summer job.
Car trip down Ireland was fun, boat trip ok (I hate boats) and we head to my destination. Now the bad parts.
We pull in and the people don't even introduce themselves. I spent the first few days thinking one woman was the owner, but no she was the owners sister who had come on holiday from London.
I was given no training, which was tough for someone who had never looked after 26 horses at once before.
Tea time, one tiny chicken fillet and my drink served in a cup that had been chewed by the dog. Bed time at 12am in a camp bed.

Day 2 : 6.30am I am awaken, Gemma you slept in! Out I go to muck out 15 beds and give all the haynets out to the correct stable (I was given no training, and was made to feel wick when i didn't know what stable got what hay)
i was told to get breakfast at 8.30am. Get handed a bowl which has been chewed by a dog. Lunchtime, get handed a sandwick which was full of yuck. Decided to go for a wonder and feed to horses, but even they didn't want it.
After lunch was stuck on a fizzy pony and taken on a hack. Pony took me for a hack instead as her buttons where in different places to Maverick's, but was given no instruction. I was pretty scared.
Tea time, scarmbled egg, pre cooked and then heated in microwave.
Day 3 was similar, broke down in mum's arms in day 4, but was persuaded to stay.
Day 5, mum had had enough and rescued me and took me home.

So i lasted a full 3 days. In that time I lost 8lbs in weight, got fleas from the dog, lost alot of confidence and nearly two years later I am still having nightmares about it and remember everything that happened and how sad I was.
What was worse was that I only 14, i wasn't getting paid (I was there to get experience, so had my living provided if I gave a helping hand around the place) and they made me work a 17 1/2hr day. i never could have managed a month. It really knocked me off working with horses again, but did make me appreciate how lucky I was to have Maverick.

I am possible going to get the job at the stables near me in the summer. I am happy to work wth the horses as I will get paid a good wage, only work 7 hours a day and also get the comfort of my own bed. I would never even consider boarding again