Returning to Work

I’ve been out of the workforce a few years since having my kids. I would really like to get back to work but I’m worried I’ll be out of the loop. Surely things can’t have changed that much in five years. Do I just need a bit of a confidence boost or would you recommend some kind of course?

When you’re out of the workforce, you can start to feel that you’ve really lost touch with work, and what it requires, so your confidence to think about a re-approach can be quite brittle.

There are a number of ways to ease yourself into work again. One is to attend a pre-employment course, such as a Jobs Club, where you’d meet like-minded people and in this way give/get support to make a successful return to work. FAS and local Partnership Organisations run these courses very well. Recently, FAS have launched an Executive Networking & Support programme which is targeting experienced/skilled/specialist/managerial type participants whose hope it is to get back into productive work. This is also a very successful programme, and you don’t have to be collecting social welfare benefits to avail of it.

Another route back into the workplace is to get involved in some voluntary work activities, or indeed to offer your services free in terms of work experience. Volunteers Centres across Ireland can facilitate this work process – check out www.volunteersireland.ie and www.activelink.ie

Getting work experience in a career area or work role you’ve knowledge of will be easier if you approach an appropriate organisation via one of your contacts, say friends, family, previous work colleagues etc. It’s amazing that a month or so’s high-performing work on a voluntary basis can often result in a job offer, if you make your need known. Courses, work experience and voluntary work efforts all increase career confidence, helping the transition back into work feel quite smooth – it’s the way to go.

Good luck.