SUSU announce 'Job Shop' to tackle student unemployment

SUSU have today announced plans to open a ‘Job Shop’ on campus to “increase part-time employment opportunities for students”.

The shop will offer “external temporary and part-time work opportunities” as well as “recruitment advice”, taking on part of the service already offered by SUSU’s Advice Centre.

While SUSU are still in the planning stages for the official launch, students have been asked to suggest names for the shop, with early frontrunners including ‘The Recruitment Agency’ and ‘Part Time’.

The policy follows the March 2014 Union Council mandate for the “VP Welfare and Union President to create a business plan for a SUSU run Job Shop”, aiming to “help increase part time employment opportunities for students”

VP Welfare Beckie Thomas told the Soton Tab:

The idea behind the recruitment agency is to bring together opportunities, making it easier for students to find part- time work. Locating this in a prominent space inside the Student Union building will ensure maximum exposure and benefit more students. For those who are not interested in part-time work, the recruitment agency will also be signposting to services/ opportunities which enhance student employability.

The policy, proposed by Beckie Thomas, was justified as some students suffer a “cost of living gap of over £7500”, with only a “small proportion” of advertised University jobs open to current students.

The Union resolved that SUSU should advertise job vacancies to students as “financial difficulties shouldn’t hold back students from getting an education”.

A study was also referenced in the policy suggesting “students who work … show increased cognitive development, critical thinking skills and reading comprehension” than those who do not.

The announcement has been met with some criticism following the announcement that the planned location of the shop, in the ‘Pod 1’ area outside The Bridge, would result in the loss of “more of our precious remaining social space”.

What do you think of the Job Shop? A step in the right direction, or a waste of space? Let us know in the comments!