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#1 Posted : 16 June 2004 14:35:00(UTC)
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Posted By Ron Young Initially Fixed Term for one year Royal London Group is the UK’s second largest mutual life insurer with over 3.5 million customers and funds under management of £23.8 billion. The Group comprises 3 main offices across the UK with over 3,500 staff, all working to the highest standards in the field of Pensions, Protection and Investment. Within our HR department we have a small but busy Safety team who are looking to expand and develop the professional service which they provide to all parts of the Group. As a result, we are looking to appoint two suitably qualified and experienced Group Safety Officers to assist in all aspects of Safety. Reporting to the Group Safety Manager, you will be a Technician Safety Practitioner with the NEBOSH Diploma Pt 1 or equivalent and have:  Considerable experience of providing advice and guidance to line managers on a broad spectrum of safety issues  Experience of safety training and DSE assessments  Excellent communication skills and be prepared to manage a demanding workload  A high degree of drive, energy, flexibility and self motivation to develop this role, along with a confident disposition Salary will be in the region of £20,000 (dependant upon experience and qualifications) If you’re interested and feel you meet the above requirements, we would like to hear from you. Please send your CV and covering letter stating current salary and preferred location to Claire Frost, Senior HR Advisor, Royal London, Royal London House, Alderley Road, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 1PF. e mail claire.frost@royal-london.co.uk Closing date 28th June 2004.
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#2 Posted : 17 June 2004 14:26:00(UTC)
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Posted By Lewis T Roberts Nice one Ron, 23.8 Billion turnover, 3500 staff, diploma pt1, considerable experience, experienced trainer, demanding work load and do I read that right up to 20K dependant on experience.... safety seems to be a high priority there. Quite brilliant!!!
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#3 Posted : 17 June 2004 14:51:00(UTC)
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Posted By Richard S Pigg Please Ron, Lets not go down this avenue again, the role is in a low risk environment in parts of the country where salaries are low. Yes I would question the necessity of a Diploma but sarcasm is not really necessarily. Regards, Richard
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#4 Posted : 17 June 2004 14:52:00(UTC)
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Posted By Richard S Pigg soory should read Lewis
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#5 Posted : 17 June 2004 15:14:00(UTC)
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Posted By Terry Smyth Due to the nature and the profitability of the organisation, not to mention the expectancy, it's time that an association be set up to regulate minimum payments I believe that the salaries offered have clearly undermined the professional status of the safety practictioners advertised for! Regards Terry
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#6 Posted : 17 June 2004 15:39:00(UTC)
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Posted By Karen Todd I feel that a separate thread would be the place to talk about salaries in general. We should not be slagging off specific jobs that are advertised, because this will discourage companies from placing ads on this forum, and possibly deprive some of the forum users seeking employment opportunities of that opportunity. People should be able to take pride in the job that they do and who they work for, and they will be reluctant to apply for jobs that people have slagged off. Karen
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#7 Posted : 17 June 2004 16:14:00(UTC)
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Posted By Lewis T Roberts I really have to take issue with Karen. I have not slagged off any job. The job is worth while, important, crucial and a statutory requirement in addition to the company's moral obligation. We all know that if the pay scales do not reflect the position equal to that of those in the organisation that are involved in production or sales revenue credibility is compromised.
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#8 Posted : 17 June 2004 17:53:00(UTC)
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Posted By Terry Smyth KAREN TRUST IN VALUE AND VALUE YOUR WORTH! No offence or disrespect intended! Regards Terry
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#9 Posted : 17 June 2004 19:06:00(UTC)
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Posted By Mike Miller My initial response is one of caution because as I recall a similar thread was pulled just recently for critisism of another advertised post in London for £20. I did however support the critics and feel that it was justified. That said I will go on to say that the critisism here is justified too. One contributor to this thread suggested that the critisism may have the effect of putting people off advertising jobs on this forum or even stop people applying. Well that may be so but we can do without the undermining of all our hard work and expertise by those who would exploit graduates who are desperate to gain a little experience. In some ways I blame ourselves because we pour out our troubles on this forum about how hard it is to get a job, experience and Blah, Blah ..... As a result some employers and occasionaly agencies (no offence Richard)surf this site and take advantage of our situations. A roofing sub contractor on one of my projects in a recent discussion said that he would not get out of bed for less that £40 an hour. Why should we be any different. We have not gone through training, college, or university to become a charity. So the sooner employers get serious about health and safety and pay a decent living wage the better. As for the comment about it being a low risk environment. So was Fatty Arbuckles!!!and look what happened to that chap.
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#10 Posted : 17 June 2004 23:33:00(UTC)
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Posted By Karen Todd Okay, okay. Perhaps my earlier posting was a bit strongly worded and I apologise. I did not mean to offend anyone. When I say "we" I mean in the collective sense, in that we all have a responsibility and as a previous respondant has indicated, previous threads have been pulled and there have been warnings from the moderators. It is important that employers are not discouraged from advertising, and that people are not discouraged from applying, and in the ideal world everyone would get a fair deal. Nonetheless, if I had a position to advertise, I would be hesitant, because someone is bound to have an issue with either the spelling, the salary, or the essential criteria ;) Karen
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#11 Posted : 18 June 2004 08:48:00(UTC)
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Posted By Richard S Pigg "As a result some employers and occasionaly agencies (no offence Richard)surf this site and take advantage of our situations. " - Sorry I don't understand, as agencies we get paid by the client a set percentage so it is in our interest to get as much money as possible for people. Going back to the issue of low pay, there does seem to be a Union mentality creeping in, which I find very worrying. It is the employers decsion as to how much they want to pay, yes in the short term they may save some cash but in the longer term, staff turnover is likely to be higher. Regards, Richard Pigg Key People
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#12 Posted : 18 June 2004 13:00:00(UTC)
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Posted By Brett Day Here's my two penneth - I find it frustrating that in certain areas H&S is poorly paid, but like most industries there are the 'entry level' / 'low risk' positions. I started off funding my own initial qualifications then started working for a company on £12k per year because it was the only way into the industry (had to extend the loan I took out to get qualified by a couple of years). Yes there are always emoployers that will try to screw down on wages but sometimes that is not the end all and be all !!! I worked for a company for two years - average wages BUT was part of a good experienced team, CPD was no issue - you need to do a course to keep current, this mob made it compulsery !! My main gripe was the fact that I had to use my own car (Having had a licence four years and covered 40,000 it takes its toll on cars). I left them after some major changes within the company and joined a 'World class consultancy' last year - company car, 5K rise, the works BUT had to commute into London and found that thier was more work than could professionally be done, stayed 3 months and left. End result I know what I am prepared to accept in terms of salary, If I'm expected to travel I will NOT use my car under any circumstances and will also want to know what sort of CPD the company is prepared to put me through. Bottom line -if you don't like the job don't take it !!! When companies find that they can't recruit or retain staff, they will have to up their game, it happens in other industries and will after time proberly happen in this one. Agencies - we've already had this thread, there are good and bad, the good will do the upmost to get you a good package, because it is in their interest to, if they've got you in they've earnt the fee. Yes I know there are probably some spelling mistakes, comes of being mildly dislexic and a U/S spellchecker !!!!
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#13 Posted : 18 June 2004 15:50:00(UTC)
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Posted By Ron Young For obvious reasons, I did not wish to become embroiled in the issues raised by some members regarding this posting. However, I think it best that I clarify some of the facts. When it stated "Funds under management", this does not mean turnover. Neither does it mean profit and those who stated this are way off the mark. Also I've always been told that if you can satisfy about 70% of the job requirements and you like the idea of the job, apply. So why shouldn't prospective employers ask for a bit more. The amount of negative comments towards this posting amazes me and detracts from the reason it was placed in the first instance i.e. to work for a company with a high regard for safety and to build on skills already learned. I believe that those who have a problem with advertised conditions and then comment with improper facts, do this web facility a disservice and it could lead to a reduction in use by prospective employers.
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#14 Posted : 18 June 2004 17:44:00(UTC)
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Posted By Brett Day Ron Hear, Hear !! As I stated in my post sometimes the wage is not the end all and be all !!!! I would hope that prospective employers are not put off using this forum. I've had a few interviews from it (first and second) and am waiting to hear from them. Perhaps this discussion/rant/moan would be better had on it's own seperate thread rather than leaping on every position posted if it doesn't meet with the reader's approval on wages, qualifications etc. Ron, I hope you find the person you are looking for and they have an interesting career with you.
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#15 Posted : 21 June 2004 10:45:00(UTC)
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Posted By Clarke Kent What a load of whingers, If you are not interested in the job then simply look elsewhere and leave space for those who are. 14 responses and not one applicant?. It reminds me of those people who write to the BBC complaining that they have been offended by a programme they have just seen, have you not heard of the 'OFF' button. get a life
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#16 Posted : 21 June 2004 11:21:00(UTC)
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Posted By Gary Bennett Hi Ron Please do not let the discontented put you off posting further vacancies on this site! If I stayed closer to Edinburgh I would consider applying!! Regards, Gary.
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#17 Posted : 21 June 2004 11:26:00(UTC)
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Posted By Geof Don't know about that Gary, have you ever met Ron????
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#18 Posted : 21 June 2004 16:09:00(UTC)
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Posted By Keith Egerton My only comment is the comment very early in the thread, words to the effect 'its a low pay area'. Having originated from Cheshire, you try buying a house in Wilmslow on £20k per year... I can't comment on Edinburgh. Cheshire is no more highly or low paid than any other part of the country. I would have thought Wilmslow being so close to the Manchester would is quite well paid - hence this job isn't. Clearly any employer is entitled to try and get somebody for the cheapest rate...but I wouldn't apply for a position on £20k. My first job in safety back in 1996 was paying nearly £20k then... luckily I have progressed through this end of the career ladder and am now probably in the upper quarter of safety job salaries scales.
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#19 Posted : 21 June 2004 17:41:00(UTC)
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Posted By Geof This really one of the saddest postings I've seen on this forum - lighten up guys! I'll admit to having a pop at a London based job on a previous occasion but this one is quite different. We have an employer advertising posts which I have no doubt will be filled at or around the advertised rate. But if they don't get filled the salary level will be raised - they call it market forces. Something we all need to consider in the real world. Two respondents to this thread made the cardinal mistake of misreading or misunderstanding the meaning of profits (which says something about their understanding of commerce) and put up quite offensive comments as a result. It was your mistake - let's see you apologise. On the other hand if you want to deter companies (usually led by the safety officer and one of our own) putting up vacancies on this format - then just carry on criticising. Then we all lose. Geoff Burt
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#20 Posted : 21 June 2004 19:27:00(UTC)
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Posted By Jason Gould I personally would have gone for this job if I lived near Trafford Park or south Manchester. £20,000 does not seem low for someone with a dip 1 and some teaching experience and also with a get up and go about them. Actually the company looks like it has a lot to offer, your not left on your own and out of your depth. You belong to a big group. You can gain Group safety experience etc. Why knock it. If it was London then maybe it was over reaching but up in the north this to me is a decent wage for someone progressing through a safety career. I did three months travelling 55 miles a day assisting H&S manager 2.5 days which was fine because she was an good manager and 2.5 days assisting a quality manager from hell who thought after a 2 day internal auditing course I would Identify all the companies ISO problems. I did, they paid Cr** £12000 so I had to quit outright and in protest. (Just blown my chances now lol) Unfortunately I live in north Manchester (Bury) and the M62 south bound seems too much of a headache in the mornings so I am going to give this a miss unless there’s another route. My best of luck to the candidate and the company. Jason Gould Tech Sp Gen Cert Dip 1 7307 teaching cert 9001 internal auditing Just starting dip 2 sit exam in june 2005 All self funded Currently doing some DDA access audits Feel free to send an email and take the PI**, as I also have a good sence of humour. And still cannot seem to find that decent job in my area. And after watching the plumbing program last week £50,000 to £100,000 am currently kicking myself silly. Jason
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#21 Posted : 13 July 2004 09:02:00(UTC)
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Posted By Ron Young Many thanks to everyone who, despite the bad press from a few, sent in their CV's. We will be in touch soon to arrange dates for those who we wish to interview.
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