Leo Abse & Cohen
Solicitors

The cloud of redundancy had a silver lining for Anglesey woman Janine Jones.

Losing her job seemed like a massive blow but now, thanks to a new scheme run by the trade union Unite, she has set up her own business microchipping pets and dog grooming.

And more sacked workers can also find new careers.

Unite tomorrow officially launches its campaign to encourage employees across Wales to engage in training to improve skills in the work place.

The scheme, Step up to Learning, provides vital training and support particularly for the growing number of businesses under threat of losing their jobs, and is backed by leading south Wales law firm, Leo Abse & Cohen.

One of the first companies to apply for funding was Eaton Electrics where 265 staff are being made redundant at the Holyhead plant. The company, which makes miniature circuit breakers, is moving production to a facility in Austria.

Despite the massive jobs blow for the area, a number of Eaton Electrics employees under notice of redundancy have benefited from Unite's Step up to Learning scheme enabling them to upskill or retrain.

Janine Jones, aged 38, is one such worker to have benefited. Her contract with Eaton ended on the 6 March along with many of her colleagues.

"The news of the redundancies was a massive blow," said Janine, a process operator who has been with the company for 12 years and lives with her husband and two children in Caergeiliog on Anglesey. "I was very anxious, wondering where I was going to get another job under the current climate."

But with support from her Unite union learning representative Glyn Haynes, Janine identified the sort of work she thought she might enjoy and set about completing the set of skills she needed to move on.

Janine decided to invest her redundancy money and set up her own business microchipping pets and dog grooming. "It was something I have wanted to do for years but losing my job gave me the spur I needed to change my career direction and do something I feel passionate about," she said.

The Step up to Learning project will involve more than 50 employers in Wales, encompassing both recruiting new learners and also providing the support for existing learners
to gain essential skills and qualifications to retain their current
positions, gain promotion or seek reemployment. Step up to Learning can fund learning with cash grants.

Working closely with the Wales TUC and the Sector Skills Council, the Step up to Learning courses include basic skills, CV writing, job search assistance, interview techniques and confidence building.