Regional Minister Rosie Winterton in York for job seekers milestone (From York Press)

Regional Minister Rosie Winterton in York for job seekers milestone

10:10am Monday 1st February 2010 in

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A MINISTER was visiting a York JobCentre Plus today to mark the 100th anniversary of Government support for job seekers.

Regional Minister Rosie Winterton met staff at the JobCentre Plus, in Monkgate, a century after 62 Labour Exchanges were launched across Britain – including one in Parliament Street, York.

She said that as the region recovered from the downturn and looked towards future sustainable growth, the services and expertise offered by JobCentre Plus would be crucial in ensuring people got the training, skills and employment they needed.

She said the Exchanges, the forefathers of today’s Jobcentre Plus centres, were the start of a radical concept – that Government should bring together people looking for work and employers looking for workers.

“The determination to help people find work and develop careers was a key driver in the creation of the Labour Exchange – and that commitment still underlies the Government’s approach today,” she said.

“We are investing £5 billion to help everyone who loses their job to get new employment. We won’t give up on anyone who is out of work, especially people in areas that have been hit hardest by the recession from which we are now emerging.”

A spokeswoman said that some of the old practices of the original Labour Exchanges had fallen by the wayside over the past century.

“For example, the first Labour Exchanges had separate entrances and rooms for men and women, separate rooms for skilled and unskilled workmen and “juveniles” as young as 11 years of age would queue up to find work.”

Whereas, in the 1970s and 1980s, customers spoke to staff hidden behind large screens at formal interviews, today’s job seekers were invited to meet one-to-one with friendly advisers in an open-plan office to discuss the advice, training and financial support they needed to get back to work.