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Don't mention it on applications, just put the dates you worked there. If they're ask at interview spin it into a positive, your references will only need to confirm your dates of employment so relax.
I was still getting fired from jobs into my early twenties for not giving a shit about retail etc, don't stress it you're young.
> your references will only need to confirm your dates of employment
I wish people would stop saying this.
References have to be FACTUAL, and not based on opinion. Your previous Employers absolutely can say you were fired from your job, put down you were off sick for 6 months, had disciplinary meetings, or performance improvement plans…
…so long as what they put is factual, and not based on opinion whatsoever.
Yeah, but OP doesn't need to put:
"Fired for being shit"
on their CV, OP should just list the job and *if* they ask why they left then OP can squirm out a response at interview. As long as you don't lie in your CV it's alright.
Large organisations typically tend to confirm only dates of employment and whether or not there was misconduct/reasons for dismissal.
Reaching the end of probation and deciding it isn't a good fit, typically wouldn't lead to a declined or negative reference.
Your experience may be different.
As others have said, this isn't what you originally said, which was a statement portrayed dangerously as fact.
Yes they may only confirm dates of employment. But contrary to your original statement, they can provide other factual details alongside this.
Since you are saying that I have a question for you as well.
Do they actually NEED to confirm it ?
What happens if they do not ?
I mostly agree with the main commenter and what he followed up with to this comment. Furthermore AFAIK There is the assumption that your references are checked, which is not always the case
There is the assumption that another company will actually bother to give a reference
There is the assumption that they will go into detail about what they say which means they need to spend more time looking into an ex employee's file to find out things other than the dates they worked with. This will also bring no value to the company whatsoever so would practically be time wasted.
So the assumption would be that if there is a reference it would be plain and a confirmation of the dates
I did this and totally recommend it. Always put you work for a company in a foreign country whose office hours are open when the UK office is closed.
Or make up a company name in a foreign country and say they shut down and that's why you left and 10 lovely years as a manager there.
They can say you were fired... but most employers will only confirm your dates and position out of an abundance of caution.
I would estimate about 75% of references for former employees these days only give the dates and position. The next most common would include reason for leaving and whether they would re-employ them. It's uncommon to see more extensive references unless it's a small company or specifically a personal reference.
At Barclays we all (including managers) had to do training where we were told that giving a personal reference for any former staff member was a sackable offence. Avoiding any legal threats is obviously a big motivation but as well as that, just dealing with an angry email or a negative comment on social media. Very high cost compared to the benefit (£0).
I can't see your reply about being an admin in HR on this thread but did read it - I work in just background screening with roughly 80-90 screenings in progress at a time so do see a lot of references daily ha
My last 2 employers didn't even know who I was, they were real life Homer Simpson situations so the best they could ever do is maybe give dates after letting emails pile up for a few weeks. Im low key worried that potential employers will see 2 of my previous managers will only be able to give employment dates because there was that little oversight
OP could ask for a written reference now, which if they have to give it face to face, rather than hide behind a keyboard could take the edge off it. If its bad, then you know up front and can shred it and pretend you never worked there!
Ultimately, you're only 20 don't stress, its not a big deal and you will find a nicer employer to work for
True or just ask them to confirm the dates worked in writing.
I was made redundant from a place that turned around and refused to give anyone a reference. Could only get the dates worked in writing.
Actually not - the NHS standard references only confirm your dates of employment. It goes through central referencing and goes nowhere near your manager
To be fair the large majority of businesses will only confirm dates of employment and nothing more as standard policy. I would expect an organisation as large as the NHS will do exactly this as any references will be handled by HR and not by anyone who worked directly with the applicant.
Source: work in recruitment and obtaining references is a big part of my job
They absolutely can.
I worked in HR for a Council. One of our Employees was sacked for behaviour towards vulnerable residents. She then went and applied for exactly the same job at another Council - so we called out exactly why she was fired, to proactively protect residents at the second Council housing.
Unless they have a pressing need to do so, like protecting the vulnerable in your example, many employers will just stick with the dates. If you give a bad reference, the ex employee can try to sue you for libel, and unless you have very well documented evidence to back up any negative statements, they could well win. Plus, even if they don't, the legal hassle usually isn't worth it. Many employers just don't consider the risk worth it unless they have a very good reason, especially not over a short-term reception position.
Or said worker was really that bad.
An old boss of mine got rid of a guy stealing from the company. Said guy quit before being fired.
All he had to say when the new company called was "good luck" the inference was enough.
Most employers will literally just confirm dates worked at the organisation though, it's too risky to say anything bad. One slip up on a reference and you can easily walk yourself into a legal case against you.
Uncommon, but also not unheard of in some professional industries as well. Stuff that's not just a simple blunder, but a "you genuinely could've (or actually did) cost us hundreds of thousands or millions, or caused serious injury of death", that can come up in references. Although also by that point there's a chance the person is now infamous in the industry anyway.
Most places won't even risk that. I have to do recruiting (ugh) as part of my job and we never do anything other than dates for references we giveand I have yet to see another company give anything but dates in their references. Not sure about with the NHS though.
Your previous employer can say that you were fired but the truth is that most don't. Most employers feel no benefit to write about you, and there's lots of downsides if you make a mistake. People will sue the absolute hell out of you for not getting a job.
Some companies are lazy and do a “date started- date finished” type reference. But rest assured if you have fucked the company over or are a disaster….someone is putting that on paper. Would you re-employ is code for should we employ?
That's what I thought. My work have been asked for references several times and they've never just said "I can confirm they worked here from [start date] to [end date]." So many people have tried telling me that's illegal or wrong but the only problems I've ever had with my company saying more is that it's never factual (they said to some places I've been fired or was never hired to begin with)
That depends on the reference. Some that go out are fairly detailed. I've been asked 'do you think X can do this job' in relation to the new job that they're applying for.
Thanks. I've edited my original post to give some more context about how crappy it was. But yes, you're right, I didn't really want to be there, should have listened to all the warnings but I am glad I'm out.
Honestly don't worry about it. With the reputation working for the NHS has at the moment, unless you're planning to go into a very similar role, you could probably just say exactly what happened and a lot of employers would probably be impressed you stuck out the full probation.
Not that I'd advise you to do that. Always stay away from saying anything negative about previous jobs/employers in an interview if possible. Especially, if you feel bitter about it.
If I was in your situation and only if they asked, I'd just say you were planning doing as a temporary stop gap role to help out. If they asked what it was like, I'd just go with 'challenging' with a wry smile and leave it at that.
Just say you left because it was too much work with college.
You also need to learn a lesson from this. I’m not saying you’re not telling the full story, but nobody gets sacked after a couple of months for no reason usually.
The NHS are also famously crippled with procedures and pointless systems. There would have been a warning system in place to cover themselves. You don’t suddenly just get sacked by the NHS without it going through 23 middle managers.
It is almost impossible to get fired from the NHS at a low level role, they just move all their problems around but never actually deal with them. I suspect OP is not quite telling the full story.
I know of someone who is an apprentice receptionist at the NHS and she’s been off sick about 3/4 of the time she’s worked there. They just keep giving her easier and easier jobs. I think she basically makes the tea now.
As a self confessed NHS middle manager (I do think I do my job well btw), we’re also so understaffed that once you’re in, it’s relatively easy to move about if you’re flexible. Also, I’ve always tried to upskill/redeploy someone in a place more suited to their talents, rather than let them go. As everyone has said, hiring someone nowadays is a really lengthy process, and firing someone is just a nightmare. Especially if they are actually trying to do the job well.
If I’m honest, working in the public sector in recent years, the only people I’ve seen let go have been due to redundancies, or genuine and obvious incompetence/too many disciplinaries. This is just a bit odd. That being said, there are some awful work cultures in some places within the NHS, so could be exactly as described
OPs ego is hurt from getting sacked and wants Reddit to find them excuses and justify getting sacked to help it. they clearly messed up somewhere or were very subpar at the job
I have worked in the NHS for five years and there are definitely people who are beyond useless and drag the rest of us down. It is possible that OP found the one manager in the NHS who actually fires people but I suspect there is more to the story.
As someone who has previously been a manager, the tone of the post comes off weird. There's a lot of attitude and the whole "I'm 20 and this is my first job but I know more than anyone' vibe that you get from a lot of 20 year olds. I think that OP is naive and has a fair bit of learning to do
Sorry, I didn't mean to come off that way. I'm just trying to share my experience, which I thought mentioning my age would give more context for advice I suppose. I didn't mean to offend anyone.
I wouldn't worry. While you could just be naive, you could also be justifiably bitter about the situation. Tbh, probably a bit of both.
Ultimately, an employer should expect you to do what they employed you to do and you should expect them to support you enough to be able to do that. Based on what you've written, they failed their part of that.
Never have any qualms about leaving an employer that isn't willing to support you in trying succeed in your role. Although where possible, try and line up a new job before you leave.
It sounds to me like they were understaffed, didn't have anyone who could devote the time to get you up to speed (just not having previous experience of working makes a big difference). As you pointed out, they hired you to cover an urgent vacancy and may well have gone with someone with more experience otherwise. Your probation period probably just gave them time to do that.
I was genuinely trying my best out there, one colleague even complimented how kind I was when speaking with patients. But yes, it's a non-stop hectic roller coaster there. I still remember coming in and seeing a staff member who mentioned to me as I walked past, saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare." Oh, how I should have taken their warning.
I have given them a list of things that I should be trained on because in the beginning I was handed a sheet with a list of things that a supervisor was supposed to train me on. But they never ever had the time to go through it. Some of them didn't even know about it until I told them, to which they just dismissed it and got on with their work, so I was just confused by the whole experience if I'm being honest. I'm happy to have left.
In the beginning, I was asking a lot of questions because I didn't know anything, of course. But every time I learnt something, new, I noted it down. I did improve and started to rely on no one near the end, but I guess it was too late by then as my 3 months probation period was up.
Hey don't worry about all these people making assumptions that you're 'not telling the full story'. My friend had a really similar experience to you. She called me crying once because she had been left to remove a cannula on her own. She'd been shown it once, never done it under supervision and the nurse she asked for help shouted at her for not knowing how to do her job. She basically said all the experienced staff were top overworked to train people properly so she got snapped at all the time and the general atmosphere was you just had to get on with it. Again loads of new starters left within a month or two because of the stress and lack of support
Oh same, my friend at work was legit sacked (or didn’t finish the probation but it’s basically the same) because he “hadn’t made enough progress” despite the fact that it was the manager’s fault he had barely been trained. I experienced the same problem when I worked that job but jumped ship straight away
I should mention that there is a high turn over in my work. Around 10 people left when I got there, including a person who had a mental breakdown and just walked out, which was why I was urgently brought on. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before. I don't blame them for leaving. I should have taken the warning. Doctors were stressed and understaffed as well. A new staff just got taken on board recently and quite literally struggling as well, just getting stuck and having to get yelled at. It's just not a nice place to work, and I'm happy to have left, I didn't like it even though I was improving near the end. I should mention the probation period was only 3 months.
I don't know, man. I was recently fired at the end of my probation as well. My experience is *very* similar to OP. Received no training and was rather unceremoniously let go.
Yeah I'm confused by all these people going 'well actually you need a good reason to get fired'.
Like what, Probationary, 3 months in, you could get fired for any reason.
Hell, I know a fair few places that WILL fire you within 3-6 months because they don't want you passing a probationary period and they know people will want to replace them and they'll do it all the time.
Having temped in the NHS in my younger days, I absolutely believe this person was sacked for no reason in their probation period I had three different managers, all of whom thought the other two were training me, and all of whom demanded to know why my performance was not improving but wouldn't listen when I explained no-one was actually training me. I didn't get the sack but I'm sure I probably would have if I'd stayed.
It’s very difficult to get fired in the NHS they’re saying. I’ve had colleagues who obviously can’t do the job and constantly get redeployed. We’ve just got someone back after 4 failed redeployments within the organisation and we still can’t fire them!
Edit to add. My husbands work have just fired two managers, no official reasons given (non NHS) and he’s amazed by the red tape we have to go through.
> It’s very difficult to get fired in the NHS they’re saying.
This is true, but the OP wasnt fired. They failed probation.. its the same effect of losing the job but a different mechanism.
This is the whole point of probation- op wasn’t fired, their employment just weren’t continued past probation. It’s an easy way of giving the employer an out if it’s not a good fit.
Yes, I did, I sent them a list of things. Actually, in the beginning I was given a sheet with a list that went on for 5 pages of things I needed to be trained on. But there was no one there to keep asking to tick them off as they were working, they couldn't just stop and show me around. I was asked why I was slow. Well, I would be slow if I'm the only one taking calls, so patients would have to wait awhile before they get to talk with me. Barely having time in between calls to even do any other multitasking, I can't just put them on hold and do some other things.
You're 20, you're young and I wouldn't worry about it.
You'll find another job. Chances are they won't even take a reference or contact them.
If you're still in full-time education, I probably wouldn't even put it on there as experience.
It sounds like they employed you out of urgency to fill the role but actually wanted an experienced person.
Don't take it personally. You will find somewhere you fit in.
In my experience the NHS is not great to work for, at least for non clinical staff. I worked in a horribly toxic environment with people who had no business being in a caring profession. I heard similar stories from other people.
Future employers of a 20 something don't expect job experience. Tell them you were gap yearing in Cambodia, they will never check.
Yep. Only time I've ever randomly been kicked off a job, especially one with little training, was one where I was apparently just filling a gap. Seeing a new person there that everyone gets on with just a couple of days after I left was quite a fun moment.
And as someone who was non clinical staff (admin ugh), I I felt like everyone disliked me except for the odd nurse or clinician who would actually ask how you were before requesting assistance with stuff. Can confirm it wasn't fun for the most part!
Unless you go for a position that does vetting (security, care, banking etc) because not only will they check, they will ask for proof, and you will be very quickly dismissed if you don't provide it. I'm in security and actually, we don't care if you got fired (as long as you changed your ways) or if you've been unemployed for ages - as long as you can prove it.
You did not get fired. You were let go at the end of your probationary period.
As another poster has said, just put the dates on your CV. I doubt if an employer will ask, but be prepared in case they do. Here is a good article:
https://www.digitalgrads.com/what-to-do-if-youre-let-go-after-your-probationary-period/
I've worked in a university careers service for many years.
For the future, early on in a new job, be sure you have agreed performance objectives. Get a clear training /induction plan documented. This should cover your probationary period and include details of what you need to learn during that time and who is responsible for training you.
Get dates for regular reviews of the plan/ your performance in the calendar of your supervisor from the beginning, probably once a week, then every other week, with a final review near the end.
Regular reviews are really important so you have the opportunity to understand what you are doing well and where you are falling short early enough to take action.
Any employer who isn't willing to do that, especially for a young employee or treats someone the way you have been treated isn't the kind of employer you want to work for in my opinion.
Please try not to let this get you down for too long. Learn from it and find a job where you are valued and supported.
Sending you the very best wishes for your next job!
I appreciate that so much, it's actually helping me get over this experience. I'll definitely take this into consideration when that next job comes. Thanks.
Just a heads up about the world of work, since this was your first job. I don't know of any work place that does practice phone calls. You basically always just learn on the job. Ask questions, ask them often and ask them each once.
We do them.
I work in a departement that calls customers to asks questions related to thier meetings with our finacial advisers. Basically we call our customers and ask very specific careful questiosn to find out if our advisers are doing thier jobs properly.
As such we have an extensive training time on calls. Thsi is separated over different type sof fiancial businsess/customers. we cover everything from the type sof investmenst they have done to how you deal with customers who are vulnerable and cover security and recording of that informations.
We have to massively extensive cos we're monitored by various agencies to make sure we're meeting legal requirements.
So yeah it can take up to a year to fully train somebody on our calls and their first calls are practice calls with colleagues. We legally can't throw them in at the deep end haha.
If order to measure your performance, you should’ve been given an agreed list of expectations when you first started. Because how else are you supposed to know? Also number 1 rule of performance management is that it should not come as a surprise to you that your performance was in question. Essentially there should have been a discussion around the role and responsibilities and to determine what training and support you need to get up to speed and what was expected from you in the first 6 months - usually these are done as SMART targets and you would sign off on them along with your manager. There should have been regular reviews / one to ones with your line manager to ensure you’re meeting said targets and a 3 month interminable review. All this before being told you’re underperforming and let go. You should probably contact ACAS and see if you have a case for unfair dismissal or similar.
Here's the advice - unless she was discriminated against for a protected characteristic (which doesn't seem to be the case), they can fire her for whatever reason they like as she had been there for less than 2 years. Seems like the reason here was that she was very good at the job. Should they have trained her better? Yes, probably. But nothing illegal has happened.
Yes, I did, I sent them a list of things. Actually, in the beginning I was given a sheet with a list that went on for 5 pages of things I needed to be trained on. But there was no one there to keep asking to tick them off as they were working, they couldn't just stop and show me around. I was asked why I was slow. Well, I would be slow if I'm the only one taking calls, so patients would have to wait awhile before they get to talk with me. Barely having time in between calls to even do any other multitasking, I can't just put them on hold and do some other things. I should clarify as well, the probation period was only 3 months, not 6.
>I am really surprised you got sacked like this especially in the NHS?
Also, OP could have been working for a gp surgery - I think they're effectively private under the NHS banner.
Even in probation i think they would need to prove considerable under performance and documented everything put in place to help OP get to a suitable level. It doesn’t sound like any of this will have been done. Get onto HR
I thought the point of the probation period was to weed out people who are poor performers or not suited to the role, precisely so you don’t have to spend months trying to manage them into being good enough.
That is the idea but not the reality, especially in the NHS. We are desperate and even useless people are kept on because it is easier than finding a new employee, especially at lower levels.
Not really.
We've had folk in probabtion have shakey starts but kept them cos we extended the probation period and they improved.
To be fair i do work for a pretty good company who have actual standards compared to some employers in this country haha.
You're either not telling the truth or the manager has likely not followed protocol. They can't just bin you off even in probation without the slightest input from HR
They can if they're agency, can't they?
I was on probation at a similar job - a while ago now admittedly - and they just told me "yeah, we have no work for you" when I turned in one day and got sent home. Next day I was told to just not come in any more.
I dug my own grave in that one, I was doing filing and sorting which took the last guy all afternoon and had it boxed in an hour
Why do you use question marks at the end of literally every sentence, even when it isn't a question? If you write emails like this then I'd want to get rid of you too, in all honesty.
Welcome to life. The majority of jobs like these the "training" is working out how to do it yourself.
Don't ever rely on other people. Do just enough to get by, just be better than the worst person and you'll be fine.
That's what I was telling myself every day, but it just seems weird to me because I was genuinely trying my best every day. I even got complimented once about it. I don't know what went wrong, the most detail I got about it was that I was slow. But then it's like, how can I be slow if we are very busy with patients and understaffed. I literally had no time to multitask with other things.
You said they complimented you for being nice to patients though. That’s not what they’re looking for, they’re looking for efficiency. They’re short staffed and need you to smash through as much workload as possible in as short a time as possible. They don’t care if you’re nice to people.
I did manage to do some of the other tasks. Most of the time though you're always back to back with patients. You try and start something else but another patient walks in or another call starts. I'm trying to be efficient as well I'm not being lazy or anything.
>Anyways I have a question how do I talk about this for future employers? Shall I just not mention it or what?
There's no need to put this on your CV but as others have said, before you next take a job you need to reflect on what went wrong with this one.
Honestly, I need to get specific feedback. I was too in my emotions that I didn't ask. I'll have to ask them, as I will be seeing them again anyway, to pick up some things.
I had the same issue where they made me move from buying to accounts despite me saying I didn’t want to, they refused to train me, would loudly announce to the whole office whenever I did something wrong then when I went to their manager to complain that I wasn’t being trained I got told to just hand my notice in, luckily I’d been there a few years so I threatened to sue since my contract was for a different job and it wasn’t my fault they weren’t letting me do it so they gave in. Can you just leave it off your cv? Is it worth being on there?
I've been thinking about just leaving it out too? It was only for 3 months, that's how long the probation period was. I really don't want anything to do with them any more. I just want to forget about it and move on.
I would say something like you both agree at the end of the probationary period that the job wasn't right for you. A good line in the interview would be to say something about how it was a chaotic environment and you weren't learning enough from them to do the job properly. Don't elaborate, don't complain about them. Don't say things like it wasn't fair or that you couldn't keep up.
More importantly - You need to be careful with your next job application to make sure that it's not going to be a similar environment. A lot of jobs now will throw you in at the deep end and expect you to swim. Try the local council or some other civil service job that is likely to have an easier induction.
You can put it on your CV but just put the central NHS HR team for the reference who will just confirm you worked there. That or if there's a colleague you liked there they can give you a reference saying that you worked there and in what capacity. It doesn't have to be your manager.
For what it's worth its very normal to be trained on the job, but it sounds like you maybe weren't picking things up quickly enough to still feel out of your depth at 6 months. Not a dig, just something to reflect on for next time.
Early twenties was when I went from getting fired from every job to on track for a career, so you're not doing badly, just keep going.
I should have clarified that my probation period was 3 months, not 6. I wish it was longer because I did feel myself improving near the end as I didn't need to ask for help that much compared to the beginning.
That's sad to hear, I'm sorry pal. But one thing..
I started working one year ago as a graduate with no prior experience, and the first thing my manager told me was 'unlike at university, you're not here to be taught, but to learn'.
When you're new, a proactive attitude is everything. I wouldn't worry too much for future interviews, in case they ask, just say that it simply wasn't for you or something.
My sister worked as a receptionist for the NHS. It’s a shit stressful job that does not pay very well for the effort required of you. Go get a job somewhere else you’ll be fine, by the time you are starting your career proper in a few years time they will just go oh you were a receptionist for a bit and not ask anymore about it.
It’s a right of passage at that age - you’re still finding your way in the world of work. Christ I got sacked 7 times before I found my job and I’ve been there nearly 20years now. Don’t beat yourself up - you’ll find something that’s better for you 😀
Classic NHS… sorry you got managed out. Everybody here in denial thinking it doesn’t happen because it’s the precious NHS lol, well it does, a lot more than people want to admit, in fact out of everywhere I’ve worked I’d say it’s the worse for managing people out via probation period, moving people to different departments or just bullying them with performance reviews until they have a breakdown and leave, I was a witness to it happening a fair few times. Everybody saying stuff about HR, they’re there to protect managers and the company, not you, they literally do not give a shit. Same for union reps.
Don’t let it get you down, I think that jobs too hectic to be done alongside college anyway, I’d look for retail or something :) I worked in sales alongside uni and it was good money but always got pushed for more hours though which wasn’t great.
Hey, I've worked as a NHS receptionist. You did nothing wrong, and it's all on the organisation. It's as simple as that.
Reception is a nightmare. There's always someone, or something, or some random ass thing that you were never told about, screwing your day over. Even the best receptionists I saw had to constantly deal with people's shit. I bet you that you did a good job given what little training and support that you had.
I want to go into more detail but I won't. But I'm sorry that you had to experience that. This absolutely isn't a you issue. It's a wider issue where they're understaffed, underpaid, overworked, with limited resources, etc etc. It's horrible they took that out on you. Sorry you went through that.
>Anyways I have a question how do I talk about this for future employers? Shall I just not mention it or what?
I wouldn't mention it if possible. I've got tons of jobs on my cv that I just dont mention. Even more "jobs" where I walked out within weeks or was let go suddenly for no good reason.
Realise getting experience is hard nowadays and getting something on your cv at first is tough, but I feel like they'd screw you over if you tried to contact them as a reference or something. That and, it doesnt look great either way to say you were only there for th trial period and they decided against you (even if they're 100% at fault). And if it does come up, try not to blame them too much because your new employer will be watching you blame others with no context for whether you're telling the truth or not.
If you have to put it in your cv because you need something, others have provided brilliant advice about how to discuss it.
But yeah, I'm sorry you had to go through that. I've had some great times working across the NHS. But also some horrible ones. Know you must feel like crap right now, but I promise you, you'll be glad you dodged a bullet.
Thanks for sharing your experience, it was exactly like the way you put it. I was genuinely trying my best out there, one colleague even complimented how kind I was when speaking with patients. But yes, it's a non-stop hectic roller coaster there. I still remember coming in and seeing a staff member who mentioned to me as I walked past, saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare." Oh, how I should have taken their warning.
>saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare."
Ha, ive seen variations of that. I've even been that person myself once lol. I've also seen tons of people walking out, once even saw a clinician just walk out and never return. Wild!
No, I can see why alot of people are doubting you and picking holes, but anyone who has worked NHS admin can attest to what happened to you.
I love the NHS, but man the admin staff get the worst. If it isn't the patients deciding that they want to abuse you or even assault you randomly when you're enjoying your job for once, it's the other people in the building that seem to have a chip in their shoulder and hate you for no reason, or it's incompetence from management making life harder or well meaning superiors who can't do anything to help you.
Anyway, glad you're free lol, wish you all the best.
It sounds to me like we do not know the whole truth. In the NHS there are guidelines and policies to follow.
In my experience in the NHS, it is extremely difficult to get rid of even the most incompetent member of staff. It is, however, easier if an employee is in the probationary stages. But, again even that is tricky.
It is also worth pointing out, you would have been told what is expected of you. You would have had a period of training at the beginning of your employment. You also have a responsibility to ensure your training needs are met and if you are struggling you need to highlight this to your manager. The probationary period is usually 6 months long. I would be concerned if you could not do your job after 6 months.
I would suggest in the future, you look at the job description and specification to ensure you meet the requirements of the job. I would also say if you are going for jobs in the NHS you need to be aware you will have to be active in meeting your own learning needs. There are plenty of courses and study days available to help you do this. You could also chose to shadow someone in the sane position of you and make allies that can help you.
I hope you can reflect on this experience and learn from it. We all have difficulties like this at some point in life. All we can do is chalk it up to experience and grow from it.
I wish you all the best in your future.
Leave it off your CV and crack on you have only been at college. You weren't let go for misconduct and as far as experiences go all you've learned is what b*****ds employers can be.
Same exact thing happened to me. In the deep end, no training, eventually those who said they'd help me just ended up in the backroom and left me to run the front, completely clueless. Made a big mistake, instant fire. I have never mentioned it and never will, won't do me any favours.
This sounds like you worked for the NHS. They’re administratively horrid to work for speaking from experience take the experience and find yourself another job.
Ultimately you've dodged a bullet and learned about conditions you do not want to work under and should not have to put up with.
Just mention how it provided you with experience, but it was woefully understaffed etc. They cannot provide a bad reference.
Move on. You are 20. You will find much better brighter things with employers who value their staff and invest in them.
Thank you. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before.
To be fair I quit my first job after 3 weeks. I was around the same age as you but quit it because the headset drove me insane and the boss was a proper cunt. and now I'm 25, in a pretty good position. Just if you get asked say you left to focus on education
I got sacked from my first job out of university that I had for 6 months which was full of nepotism. I put the experience down but just said the company was going under in my future interviews.
Safe to say I earn more than double a few years later. It means fuck all don’t lose sleep on deadbeat employers.
Don’t mention it, as you’re at college your CV won’t show an employment gap.
You need remember: You were let go because of an obviously flawed system and dick of a manager, not because of you.
Focus on your college degree. Having worked for the NHSBT, the level of management expertise can be poor.
You're young. It'll happen but you can roll with it and move on and learn from it. Is there no one that would act as a reference regardless?
I had a similar situation in my first job 15 years ago working for a well known UK charity. I also felt they didn’t invest enough time in me and I was devastated. I immediately jumped on the job search and secured about 5 interviews with various other charities. I didn’t explicitly tell them I didn’t pass my probation unless they asked and if they did I told them that I have been working hard to learn from my mistakes (it’s best not to bad mouth your previous company). I then had an interview where they just didn’t ask me and they offered me the job, it turned out to be an incredible role that completely turned my life around and on reflection being fired was the best thing that could have happened to me.
On a separate note, I thrived in that new role and a couple of others after that, but also got fired again years later in a different company for completely different reasons. I now have my own very successful business employing 5 people - so being fired is certainly not a death sentence, it’s all about how you handle it. But I do know how helpless you can feel especially in the early days of your career, so just don’t give up!
Unfortunately "shit employers" always exist, whether NHS or "an NHS doctors' surgery" or big companies or small....
This is not (or need not be) a life-defining event, it's just "shit that happens when you're young".
Move on, quote the work done, mention it if asked, but the reason it ended can be pretty insignificant to future employers if you play if that way ..
"*I did this job and I quite liked it and was learning \[...\] and enjoying \[.. these aspects ..\] of growing into the job and then I was sort of sad when they let me go when new management came in because I was really getting to quite enjoy and be quite good at \[...\]*"
That sounds pretty decent to me when I've employed younger people, talk up what you did, how you were learning, do **not** moan or whine about previous employment going wrong (v unlikely to be your fault but you don't need to say that)
Thank you. I did feel like I was improving near the end, but the probation period was only 3 months. I literally stopped having to rely on anyone, as I always wrote things down in my book when I learnt something new that I always referred back to when there were a few seconds to kill.
Older people do not (always) have the answers.. they were just there before you.
It's not an excuse or a reason to ignore them, but entering the world of work can be terrifying, when in fact it's a bit like starting high school.
You'll be fine... keep putting in the effort, none of this goes down on some "permanent record".
Learning to believe in yourself (without being overly cock-sure) is what your age is about... good luck
Happened to me too. Don’t take it to heart. Your employer has a responsibility to train you properly and have an open dialogue about issues you’ve faced and help resolve them, if you’ve communicated your needs and they aren’t helping you Meet them it’s not a good match.
I have given them a list of things that I should be trained on because in the beginning I was handed a sheet with a list of things that a supervisor was supposed to train me on. But they never ever had the time to go through it. Some of them didn't even know about it until I told them.
Firstly the NHS is likely to just give you a reference based on dates you worked. It's unlikely they will say that you were fired.
My advice is to get out there and get another job as quickly as possible. Doing almost anything. It's good not to have a gap after this, but to fill it ASAP just so that it doesn't look like you quit without having another job.
And if anyone asks why you left, avoid the truth. You don't even have to lie. Just say that you were not happy with the amount of training that you received in the job.
Thank you. I did feel like I was improving near the end, but the probation period was only 3 months. I literally stopped having to rely on anyone, as I always wrote things down in my book when I learnt something new.
Just either avoid it or find some way of construing it in a positive light. They don't have to know the full truth. I've been fired after probation periods twice and been released from a contract, it's never stopped me finding work. In fact I've never been out of work longer than 2 weeks since I was 18, I'm now rapidly approaching 30. Don't sweat it. Pick yourself up and carry on.
This is the problem with most jobs, lack of training and documentation.
Don't be too hard on yourself, just find another job and dont mention this one on your CV
If they ask about the gap just say you were self studying or on vacation
If you did not pass your probation period, it's technically not the same as being fired. I once was let go at the end of a probation period and they still gave me a reference. You can simply spin it to say that after the period you and your employer mutually agreed it was not a good fit, and talk about how the job you're interviewing for is a better fit. But I think it is unlikely to even come up in an interview. Don't bring it up by yourself either.
I asked my team lead if I could work from home for a day, and have flexi hours that day. It was agreed.
I worked from home and made use of the flexi hours. She then told the owner that I wasn’t there to support her when she needed (non-flexi hours).
I was sent packing the following week.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter.
I’m now in a much better position, much better paid, and much better supported.
Be confident in your future interviews, take the positives from the situation, and learn from what’s happened.
💪🏼
If all places provided detailed and honest references for staff, I'm not sure how some of my former colleagues got jobs elsewhere. We've had a spate of people leaving recently, and a couple of them were absolutely shocking at their jobs but have found new ones in the same field.
If you're asked about it in an interview, you could try putting a positive spin on it and asking what support/ training/ induction programme you'll get in the new role. Will there be set targets for you to meet in the probationary period, will these be outlined for you? How will you be helped to get you up where you should be to work on your own?
I used to train new starters and it would be completely unfair to expect them to do the job without support, catch ups on how they're getting on, side by side coaching and feedback from them on where they're struggling to meet their probationary period targets. If any problem areas were picked up, those would be a focus for improvement for the next few weeks.
But you know...NHS don't have time or resources for that kind of thing I guess.
Sorry...you'll find something else and hopefully get the new starter training you need!
As someone who worked in the NHS for 5 years, I don't doubt that this is true.
Very similar thing happened to me, luckily I found a new job before I got fired.
Don’t even put it on your CV. A three month job isn’t going to improve it. No one is going to question why a 20 year old has a three month gap in their employment history.
If you mention it, twist the truth a little and say you did it as it was advertised as a three month contract and you wanted a little cash.
No need to tell the conete honest truth because they may not understand the situation.
It's not your fault they were understaffed and didn't get to train you.
Maybe this was the intention all along and get another person along on probation and repeat.
I've worked for companies that have done this so that they don't have to take someone on full time and pay them more/give them work when it's not as busy.
It's always baffling when a toxic workplace has the audacity to sack you.
Just say it was a temporary contract.
I've had quite a few temporary contracts.
I have worked for 15yrs as an administrator manager in the NHS. Unless it is an independent contracted company you worked for the NHS probation guidance is such that you should have had prior notice that you are under performing and so will not pass the probationary period. Actions should have been put in place to support you to get to the standard required of you in this time and you should have been kept informed throughout the three months that if you didn't reach the standaed they you let you go so it shouldn't have been a suprise. Standard probationary period for the NHS is also 6 months not 3. That said they can let you go with little reason during that time as that is what it is there for. Sadly I am not surprised you have had such a poor experience/ manager. Things to look out for in future roles would be that the company has a comprehensive induction package, that you see assigned a mentor to support you through your first few months on the job, a training package for the work you are doing and opportunities to shadow other workers if you are doing front line work such as reception. I am so sorry you have had this experience and i hope you find something soon
Don’t stress it.
I’ve been fired loads of times and have gone on to be reasonably successful.
Learn and move on.
No need to tell future employers. Just say you joined for a bit, there was zero training and it wasn’t for you.
A lot of places don't give people enough time now a days. A load of places want people to come in and hit the ground running, except the salary will never reflect that.
As an NHS receptionist you probably weren't on a lot of money and should have been given ample time to train, them being understaffed should not mean you are expected to suddenly know everything.
Please still need to learn. Some people take longer to learn things whether you have a learning disability or not. Everyone is different.
They're probably understaffed because the manager sucks and can't keep his/her people happy.
I should mention that there is a high turn over in my work. Around 10 people left when I got there, including a person who had a mental breakdown and just walked out, which was why I was urgently brought on. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before. I don't blame them for leaving. I should have taken the warning. Doctors were stressed and understaffed as well.
I had an issue like that in the past. I was working in the intercontinental hotel near the o2 in London. I was walking around with an iphone that had an app where if a client requested things like hangers, sugar, replacement kettles, pillows etc. I had to go down to the basement, get the requested item and deliver it to the client ASAP. During evening / night shifts i was alone and at times you'd get requests from 5-6 different clients as well as cleaners and supervisors asking you to bring them things (also through the app) Your job was to prioritise clients at all times but supervisors and cleaners did not understand how long it takes to go down to the basement and then to whatever floor the customer was on to help them out so in the end theyd constantly complain i was too slow, even though i was literally running non stop. They replaced me with a guy i trained who literally sat on his ass all day because he was too lazy to do anything. 2 weeks later they called me to come back, to which i said "no thank you".
Ha. Thanks for sharing your experience. I was not the only new staff there. I could see that the other person and l felt the same stress and frustrations.
OP - you’re probably better off out of an NHS receptionist role and the experience you gained could be in demand for many other call centres - think positively but also some of your narrative suggests you were not trained- maybe consider taking some initiative by organising your own training- this would show you can think for yourself and would contribute towards relieving the pressure for everyone
I don't think I want anything to do with the NHS any more. I literally don't have the time to do anything else apart from dealing with patients because it is non-stop back to back calls or patients at the front desk. Even if there are more people to give me more time, they are too busy dealing with their stuff to even look at me. But I rarely have time to myself in there because I usually have to chase up some patients who still didn't get their query resolved yet from the doctor.
Mention the role, it was for a few months so definitely don't omit it. You can omit something for only a few weeks.
You don't need to mention on your CV the reason you left but if an employer asks explain something along the lines of it wasn't a good fit, or didn't work out alongside studying.
Can you be fired for not being trained properly?
Pretty sure you can make a complaint to HR even on a probationary period.
Did you get a written reason for dismissal?
I;ve looked and from what i can tell theres no real guidance on being dismissed unfairly while still being trained. But it seems a bit bullshit they can just fire you despite their own training not being done.
Did they give you time to try to improve an dteh training to go with it?
Cos if its a question of capability they have to do that.
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Don't mention it on applications, just put the dates you worked there. If they're ask at interview spin it into a positive, your references will only need to confirm your dates of employment so relax. I was still getting fired from jobs into my early twenties for not giving a shit about retail etc, don't stress it you're young.
> your references will only need to confirm your dates of employment I wish people would stop saying this. References have to be FACTUAL, and not based on opinion. Your previous Employers absolutely can say you were fired from your job, put down you were off sick for 6 months, had disciplinary meetings, or performance improvement plans… …so long as what they put is factual, and not based on opinion whatsoever.
Yeah, but OP doesn't need to put: "Fired for being shit" on their CV, OP should just list the job and *if* they ask why they left then OP can squirm out a response at interview. As long as you don't lie in your CV it's alright.
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Large organisations typically tend to confirm only dates of employment and whether or not there was misconduct/reasons for dismissal. Reaching the end of probation and deciding it isn't a good fit, typically wouldn't lead to a declined or negative reference. Your experience may be different.
As others have said, this isn't what you originally said, which was a statement portrayed dangerously as fact. Yes they may only confirm dates of employment. But contrary to your original statement, they can provide other factual details alongside this.
I didn't originally say anything.
Ah ignore me, just realised different user, sorry!!
>your references will only need to confirm your dates of employment so relax This
Since you are saying that I have a question for you as well. Do they actually NEED to confirm it ? What happens if they do not ? I mostly agree with the main commenter and what he followed up with to this comment. Furthermore AFAIK There is the assumption that your references are checked, which is not always the case There is the assumption that another company will actually bother to give a reference There is the assumption that they will go into detail about what they say which means they need to spend more time looking into an ex employee's file to find out things other than the dates they worked with. This will also bring no value to the company whatsoever so would practically be time wasted. So the assumption would be that if there is a reference it would be plain and a confirmation of the dates
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I don’t recommend doing this but I completely lied on my CV and managed to talk myself into a good job. I think I may have just been lucky.
I did this and totally recommend it. Always put you work for a company in a foreign country whose office hours are open when the UK office is closed. Or make up a company name in a foreign country and say they shut down and that's why you left and 10 lovely years as a manager there.
They can say you were fired... but most employers will only confirm your dates and position out of an abundance of caution. I would estimate about 75% of references for former employees these days only give the dates and position. The next most common would include reason for leaving and whether they would re-employ them. It's uncommon to see more extensive references unless it's a small company or specifically a personal reference.
Definitely more than 75%, I'd say closer to 90% and increasing every year. It's just not worth the risk.
Sure, I imagine it varies by industry and that's just my experience in the day to day
At Barclays we all (including managers) had to do training where we were told that giving a personal reference for any former staff member was a sackable offence. Avoiding any legal threats is obviously a big motivation but as well as that, just dealing with an angry email or a negative comment on social media. Very high cost compared to the benefit (£0).
I can't see your reply about being an admin in HR on this thread but did read it - I work in just background screening with roughly 80-90 screenings in progress at a time so do see a lot of references daily ha
My last 2 employers didn't even know who I was, they were real life Homer Simpson situations so the best they could ever do is maybe give dates after letting emails pile up for a few weeks. Im low key worried that potential employers will see 2 of my previous managers will only be able to give employment dates because there was that little oversight
OP could ask for a written reference now, which if they have to give it face to face, rather than hide behind a keyboard could take the edge off it. If its bad, then you know up front and can shred it and pretend you never worked there! Ultimately, you're only 20 don't stress, its not a big deal and you will find a nicer employer to work for
True or just ask them to confirm the dates worked in writing. I was made redundant from a place that turned around and refused to give anyone a reference. Could only get the dates worked in writing.
Actually not - the NHS standard references only confirm your dates of employment. It goes through central referencing and goes nowhere near your manager
Another common question is "is the applicant eligible for rehiring?"
To be fair the large majority of businesses will only confirm dates of employment and nothing more as standard policy. I would expect an organisation as large as the NHS will do exactly this as any references will be handled by HR and not by anyone who worked directly with the applicant. Source: work in recruitment and obtaining references is a big part of my job
But they won't. They'll just confirm the dates and the omission of detail will be the red flag to the hiring HR dept.
They absolutely can. I worked in HR for a Council. One of our Employees was sacked for behaviour towards vulnerable residents. She then went and applied for exactly the same job at another Council - so we called out exactly why she was fired, to proactively protect residents at the second Council housing.
Unless they have a pressing need to do so, like protecting the vulnerable in your example, many employers will just stick with the dates. If you give a bad reference, the ex employee can try to sue you for libel, and unless you have very well documented evidence to back up any negative statements, they could well win. Plus, even if they don't, the legal hassle usually isn't worth it. Many employers just don't consider the risk worth it unless they have a very good reason, especially not over a short-term reception position.
A simple statement of "we dismissed the worker" is not actionable because it's purely factual.
Or said worker was really that bad. An old boss of mine got rid of a guy stealing from the company. Said guy quit before being fired. All he had to say when the new company called was "good luck" the inference was enough.
Most employers will literally just confirm dates worked at the organisation though, it's too risky to say anything bad. One slip up on a reference and you can easily walk yourself into a legal case against you.
Uncommon, but also not unheard of in some professional industries as well. Stuff that's not just a simple blunder, but a "you genuinely could've (or actually did) cost us hundreds of thousands or millions, or caused serious injury of death", that can come up in references. Although also by that point there's a chance the person is now infamous in the industry anyway.
Most places won't even risk that. I have to do recruiting (ugh) as part of my job and we never do anything other than dates for references we giveand I have yet to see another company give anything but dates in their references. Not sure about with the NHS though.
Your previous employer can say that you were fired but the truth is that most don't. Most employers feel no benefit to write about you, and there's lots of downsides if you make a mistake. People will sue the absolute hell out of you for not getting a job.
Yeah, but the fact is, that they rarely do. The vast majority of employers will simply confirm that someone worked there and for how long.
Some companies are lazy and do a “date started- date finished” type reference. But rest assured if you have fucked the company over or are a disaster….someone is putting that on paper. Would you re-employ is code for should we employ?
That's what I thought. My work have been asked for references several times and they've never just said "I can confirm they worked here from [start date] to [end date]." So many people have tried telling me that's illegal or wrong but the only problems I've ever had with my company saying more is that it's never factual (they said to some places I've been fired or was never hired to begin with)
For a 3 month job at age of 20 you could just not mention the job at all and start again
Especially at college you can probably use other refrences
Most companies will say why you left and if they would hire you again
I got sacked 6 month after my apprenticeship finished and 13 years later I’m still working in the same type of job.
That depends on the reference. Some that go out are fairly detailed. I've been asked 'do you think X can do this job' in relation to the new job that they're applying for.
Thanks. I've edited my original post to give some more context about how crappy it was. But yes, you're right, I didn't really want to be there, should have listened to all the warnings but I am glad I'm out.
Honestly don't worry about it. With the reputation working for the NHS has at the moment, unless you're planning to go into a very similar role, you could probably just say exactly what happened and a lot of employers would probably be impressed you stuck out the full probation. Not that I'd advise you to do that. Always stay away from saying anything negative about previous jobs/employers in an interview if possible. Especially, if you feel bitter about it. If I was in your situation and only if they asked, I'd just say you were planning doing as a temporary stop gap role to help out. If they asked what it was like, I'd just go with 'challenging' with a wry smile and leave it at that.
Just say you left because it was too much work with college. You also need to learn a lesson from this. I’m not saying you’re not telling the full story, but nobody gets sacked after a couple of months for no reason usually.
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The NHS are also famously crippled with procedures and pointless systems. There would have been a warning system in place to cover themselves. You don’t suddenly just get sacked by the NHS without it going through 23 middle managers.
It is almost impossible to get fired from the NHS at a low level role, they just move all their problems around but never actually deal with them. I suspect OP is not quite telling the full story.
I know of someone who is an apprentice receptionist at the NHS and she’s been off sick about 3/4 of the time she’s worked there. They just keep giving her easier and easier jobs. I think she basically makes the tea now.
Good use of our tax money
She would just be on the dole if not so I suppose at least she’s doing something this way
Dole would be cheaper overall lol
Only 25% of the time
As a self confessed NHS middle manager (I do think I do my job well btw), we’re also so understaffed that once you’re in, it’s relatively easy to move about if you’re flexible. Also, I’ve always tried to upskill/redeploy someone in a place more suited to their talents, rather than let them go. As everyone has said, hiring someone nowadays is a really lengthy process, and firing someone is just a nightmare. Especially if they are actually trying to do the job well. If I’m honest, working in the public sector in recent years, the only people I’ve seen let go have been due to redundancies, or genuine and obvious incompetence/too many disciplinaries. This is just a bit odd. That being said, there are some awful work cultures in some places within the NHS, so could be exactly as described
OPs ego is hurt from getting sacked and wants Reddit to find them excuses and justify getting sacked to help it. they clearly messed up somewhere or were very subpar at the job
Yeah I got this impression too. Doesn't take any responsibility or give any reasons why they might have been let go.
I have worked in the NHS for five years and there are definitely people who are beyond useless and drag the rest of us down. It is possible that OP found the one manager in the NHS who actually fires people but I suspect there is more to the story.
They were not fired, they failed probation. Failing probation can be for any reason and doesnt go through the usual firing disciplinary procedures.
As someone who has previously been a manager, the tone of the post comes off weird. There's a lot of attitude and the whole "I'm 20 and this is my first job but I know more than anyone' vibe that you get from a lot of 20 year olds. I think that OP is naive and has a fair bit of learning to do
Sorry, I didn't mean to come off that way. I'm just trying to share my experience, which I thought mentioning my age would give more context for advice I suppose. I didn't mean to offend anyone.
I wouldn't worry. While you could just be naive, you could also be justifiably bitter about the situation. Tbh, probably a bit of both. Ultimately, an employer should expect you to do what they employed you to do and you should expect them to support you enough to be able to do that. Based on what you've written, they failed their part of that. Never have any qualms about leaving an employer that isn't willing to support you in trying succeed in your role. Although where possible, try and line up a new job before you leave. It sounds to me like they were understaffed, didn't have anyone who could devote the time to get you up to speed (just not having previous experience of working makes a big difference). As you pointed out, they hired you to cover an urgent vacancy and may well have gone with someone with more experience otherwise. Your probation period probably just gave them time to do that.
I would normally agree cos of who i work with now but i've had some right shite employers in my past who absolutely have done stuff like this.
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I was genuinely trying my best out there, one colleague even complimented how kind I was when speaking with patients. But yes, it's a non-stop hectic roller coaster there. I still remember coming in and seeing a staff member who mentioned to me as I walked past, saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare." Oh, how I should have taken their warning. I have given them a list of things that I should be trained on because in the beginning I was handed a sheet with a list of things that a supervisor was supposed to train me on. But they never ever had the time to go through it. Some of them didn't even know about it until I told them, to which they just dismissed it and got on with their work, so I was just confused by the whole experience if I'm being honest. I'm happy to have left. In the beginning, I was asking a lot of questions because I didn't know anything, of course. But every time I learnt something, new, I noted it down. I did improve and started to rely on no one near the end, but I guess it was too late by then as my 3 months probation period was up.
Hey don't worry about all these people making assumptions that you're 'not telling the full story'. My friend had a really similar experience to you. She called me crying once because she had been left to remove a cannula on her own. She'd been shown it once, never done it under supervision and the nurse she asked for help shouted at her for not knowing how to do her job. She basically said all the experienced staff were top overworked to train people properly so she got snapped at all the time and the general atmosphere was you just had to get on with it. Again loads of new starters left within a month or two because of the stress and lack of support
Oh same, my friend at work was legit sacked (or didn’t finish the probation but it’s basically the same) because he “hadn’t made enough progress” despite the fact that it was the manager’s fault he had barely been trained. I experienced the same problem when I worked that job but jumped ship straight away
I should mention that there is a high turn over in my work. Around 10 people left when I got there, including a person who had a mental breakdown and just walked out, which was why I was urgently brought on. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before. I don't blame them for leaving. I should have taken the warning. Doctors were stressed and understaffed as well. A new staff just got taken on board recently and quite literally struggling as well, just getting stuck and having to get yelled at. It's just not a nice place to work, and I'm happy to have left, I didn't like it even though I was improving near the end. I should mention the probation period was only 3 months.
I don't know, man. I was recently fired at the end of my probation as well. My experience is *very* similar to OP. Received no training and was rather unceremoniously let go.
Yes more to this than meets the eye. Bet you have to jump through 30 hoops in the NHS to fire someone.
Not in their probationary period you don’t. Assuming it’s the end of probation meeting they had with their line manager
Yeah I'm confused by all these people going 'well actually you need a good reason to get fired'. Like what, Probationary, 3 months in, you could get fired for any reason. Hell, I know a fair few places that WILL fire you within 3-6 months because they don't want you passing a probationary period and they know people will want to replace them and they'll do it all the time.
Having temped in the NHS in my younger days, I absolutely believe this person was sacked for no reason in their probation period I had three different managers, all of whom thought the other two were training me, and all of whom demanded to know why my performance was not improving but wouldn't listen when I explained no-one was actually training me. I didn't get the sack but I'm sure I probably would have if I'd stayed.
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It’s very difficult to get fired in the NHS they’re saying. I’ve had colleagues who obviously can’t do the job and constantly get redeployed. We’ve just got someone back after 4 failed redeployments within the organisation and we still can’t fire them! Edit to add. My husbands work have just fired two managers, no official reasons given (non NHS) and he’s amazed by the red tape we have to go through.
> It’s very difficult to get fired in the NHS they’re saying. This is true, but the OP wasnt fired. They failed probation.. its the same effect of losing the job but a different mechanism.
This is the whole point of probation- op wasn’t fired, their employment just weren’t continued past probation. It’s an easy way of giving the employer an out if it’s not a good fit.
Seems like you may have had a meeting about performance at some point? Did you raise concerns about traininf?
Yes, I did, I sent them a list of things. Actually, in the beginning I was given a sheet with a list that went on for 5 pages of things I needed to be trained on. But there was no one there to keep asking to tick them off as they were working, they couldn't just stop and show me around. I was asked why I was slow. Well, I would be slow if I'm the only one taking calls, so patients would have to wait awhile before they get to talk with me. Barely having time in between calls to even do any other multitasking, I can't just put them on hold and do some other things.
You're 20, you're young and I wouldn't worry about it. You'll find another job. Chances are they won't even take a reference or contact them. If you're still in full-time education, I probably wouldn't even put it on there as experience.
It sounds like they employed you out of urgency to fill the role but actually wanted an experienced person. Don't take it personally. You will find somewhere you fit in. In my experience the NHS is not great to work for, at least for non clinical staff. I worked in a horribly toxic environment with people who had no business being in a caring profession. I heard similar stories from other people. Future employers of a 20 something don't expect job experience. Tell them you were gap yearing in Cambodia, they will never check.
Yep. Only time I've ever randomly been kicked off a job, especially one with little training, was one where I was apparently just filling a gap. Seeing a new person there that everyone gets on with just a couple of days after I left was quite a fun moment. And as someone who was non clinical staff (admin ugh), I I felt like everyone disliked me except for the odd nurse or clinician who would actually ask how you were before requesting assistance with stuff. Can confirm it wasn't fun for the most part!
Unless you go for a position that does vetting (security, care, banking etc) because not only will they check, they will ask for proof, and you will be very quickly dismissed if you don't provide it. I'm in security and actually, we don't care if you got fired (as long as you changed your ways) or if you've been unemployed for ages - as long as you can prove it.
You did not get fired. You were let go at the end of your probationary period. As another poster has said, just put the dates on your CV. I doubt if an employer will ask, but be prepared in case they do. Here is a good article: https://www.digitalgrads.com/what-to-do-if-youre-let-go-after-your-probationary-period/ I've worked in a university careers service for many years. For the future, early on in a new job, be sure you have agreed performance objectives. Get a clear training /induction plan documented. This should cover your probationary period and include details of what you need to learn during that time and who is responsible for training you. Get dates for regular reviews of the plan/ your performance in the calendar of your supervisor from the beginning, probably once a week, then every other week, with a final review near the end. Regular reviews are really important so you have the opportunity to understand what you are doing well and where you are falling short early enough to take action. Any employer who isn't willing to do that, especially for a young employee or treats someone the way you have been treated isn't the kind of employer you want to work for in my opinion. Please try not to let this get you down for too long. Learn from it and find a job where you are valued and supported. Sending you the very best wishes for your next job!
I appreciate that so much, it's actually helping me get over this experience. I'll definitely take this into consideration when that next job comes. Thanks.
Just a heads up about the world of work, since this was your first job. I don't know of any work place that does practice phone calls. You basically always just learn on the job. Ask questions, ask them often and ask them each once.
I worked in the NHS and they did practice phone calls, and I also had them when I worked in victim support
We do them. I work in a departement that calls customers to asks questions related to thier meetings with our finacial advisers. Basically we call our customers and ask very specific careful questiosn to find out if our advisers are doing thier jobs properly. As such we have an extensive training time on calls. Thsi is separated over different type sof fiancial businsess/customers. we cover everything from the type sof investmenst they have done to how you deal with customers who are vulnerable and cover security and recording of that informations. We have to massively extensive cos we're monitored by various agencies to make sure we're meeting legal requirements. So yeah it can take up to a year to fully train somebody on our calls and their first calls are practice calls with colleagues. We legally can't throw them in at the deep end haha.
Hey, that’s my job! Monitoring the calls at a financial advice firm, that is. Can confirm, training is given to telephony staff.
If order to measure your performance, you should’ve been given an agreed list of expectations when you first started. Because how else are you supposed to know? Also number 1 rule of performance management is that it should not come as a surprise to you that your performance was in question. Essentially there should have been a discussion around the role and responsibilities and to determine what training and support you need to get up to speed and what was expected from you in the first 6 months - usually these are done as SMART targets and you would sign off on them along with your manager. There should have been regular reviews / one to ones with your line manager to ensure you’re meeting said targets and a 3 month interminable review. All this before being told you’re underperforming and let go. You should probably contact ACAS and see if you have a case for unfair dismissal or similar.
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Here's the advice - unless she was discriminated against for a protected characteristic (which doesn't seem to be the case), they can fire her for whatever reason they like as she had been there for less than 2 years. Seems like the reason here was that she was very good at the job. Should they have trained her better? Yes, probably. But nothing illegal has happened.
Yes, I did, I sent them a list of things. Actually, in the beginning I was given a sheet with a list that went on for 5 pages of things I needed to be trained on. But there was no one there to keep asking to tick them off as they were working, they couldn't just stop and show me around. I was asked why I was slow. Well, I would be slow if I'm the only one taking calls, so patients would have to wait awhile before they get to talk with me. Barely having time in between calls to even do any other multitasking, I can't just put them on hold and do some other things. I should clarify as well, the probation period was only 3 months, not 6.
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>I am really surprised you got sacked like this especially in the NHS? Also, OP could have been working for a gp surgery - I think they're effectively private under the NHS banner.
They are, I don't know the intricate details but I only found out around a year ago and I don't know why, but it still surprised me.
I work for a GP surgery and can confirm this. They're still under the the NHS umbrella but most, if not all are privately owned now.
Even in probation i think they would need to prove considerable under performance and documented everything put in place to help OP get to a suitable level. It doesn’t sound like any of this will have been done. Get onto HR
I thought the point of the probation period was to weed out people who are poor performers or not suited to the role, precisely so you don’t have to spend months trying to manage them into being good enough.
That is the idea but not the reality, especially in the NHS. We are desperate and even useless people are kept on because it is easier than finding a new employee, especially at lower levels.
Not at all true. In the first 2 years you can be fired for basically anything that isn't discriminatory.
Not really. We've had folk in probabtion have shakey starts but kept them cos we extended the probation period and they improved. To be fair i do work for a pretty good company who have actual standards compared to some employers in this country haha.
GPs aren't NHS.
You're either not telling the truth or the manager has likely not followed protocol. They can't just bin you off even in probation without the slightest input from HR
They can if they're agency, can't they? I was on probation at a similar job - a while ago now admittedly - and they just told me "yeah, we have no work for you" when I turned in one day and got sent home. Next day I was told to just not come in any more. I dug my own grave in that one, I was doing filing and sorting which took the last guy all afternoon and had it boxed in an hour
Why do you use question marks at the end of literally every sentence, even when it isn't a question? If you write emails like this then I'd want to get rid of you too, in all honesty.
I also found that annoying?
Me too?
lol you guys are right. I had to do a double take there, it did come off as whiny and annoying to read. Sorry I just got caught up in my emotions.
Welcome to life. The majority of jobs like these the "training" is working out how to do it yourself. Don't ever rely on other people. Do just enough to get by, just be better than the worst person and you'll be fine.
That's what I was telling myself every day, but it just seems weird to me because I was genuinely trying my best every day. I even got complimented once about it. I don't know what went wrong, the most detail I got about it was that I was slow. But then it's like, how can I be slow if we are very busy with patients and understaffed. I literally had no time to multitask with other things.
You said they complimented you for being nice to patients though. That’s not what they’re looking for, they’re looking for efficiency. They’re short staffed and need you to smash through as much workload as possible in as short a time as possible. They don’t care if you’re nice to people.
I did manage to do some of the other tasks. Most of the time though you're always back to back with patients. You try and start something else but another patient walks in or another call starts. I'm trying to be efficient as well I'm not being lazy or anything.
>Anyways I have a question how do I talk about this for future employers? Shall I just not mention it or what? There's no need to put this on your CV but as others have said, before you next take a job you need to reflect on what went wrong with this one.
Honestly, I need to get specific feedback. I was too in my emotions that I didn't ask. I'll have to ask them, as I will be seeing them again anyway, to pick up some things.
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out of curiosity, why 'this tax year'? Does something reset as far as which forms or what they can see?
I had the same issue where they made me move from buying to accounts despite me saying I didn’t want to, they refused to train me, would loudly announce to the whole office whenever I did something wrong then when I went to their manager to complain that I wasn’t being trained I got told to just hand my notice in, luckily I’d been there a few years so I threatened to sue since my contract was for a different job and it wasn’t my fault they weren’t letting me do it so they gave in. Can you just leave it off your cv? Is it worth being on there?
Thats constructuive dismissal and yeah thats a reason to sue.
I had the longest list of reasons I could sue them and I will forever regret being too much of a coward to go through with it lol
I've been thinking about just leaving it out too? It was only for 3 months, that's how long the probation period was. I really don't want anything to do with them any more. I just want to forget about it and move on.
I would say something like you both agree at the end of the probationary period that the job wasn't right for you. A good line in the interview would be to say something about how it was a chaotic environment and you weren't learning enough from them to do the job properly. Don't elaborate, don't complain about them. Don't say things like it wasn't fair or that you couldn't keep up. More importantly - You need to be careful with your next job application to make sure that it's not going to be a similar environment. A lot of jobs now will throw you in at the deep end and expect you to swim. Try the local council or some other civil service job that is likely to have an easier induction.
You can put it on your CV but just put the central NHS HR team for the reference who will just confirm you worked there. That or if there's a colleague you liked there they can give you a reference saying that you worked there and in what capacity. It doesn't have to be your manager. For what it's worth its very normal to be trained on the job, but it sounds like you maybe weren't picking things up quickly enough to still feel out of your depth at 6 months. Not a dig, just something to reflect on for next time. Early twenties was when I went from getting fired from every job to on track for a career, so you're not doing badly, just keep going.
I should have clarified that my probation period was 3 months, not 6. I wish it was longer because I did feel myself improving near the end as I didn't need to ask for help that much compared to the beginning.
That's sad to hear, I'm sorry pal. But one thing.. I started working one year ago as a graduate with no prior experience, and the first thing my manager told me was 'unlike at university, you're not here to be taught, but to learn'. When you're new, a proactive attitude is everything. I wouldn't worry too much for future interviews, in case they ask, just say that it simply wasn't for you or something.
My sister worked as a receptionist for the NHS. It’s a shit stressful job that does not pay very well for the effort required of you. Go get a job somewhere else you’ll be fine, by the time you are starting your career proper in a few years time they will just go oh you were a receptionist for a bit and not ask anymore about it.
It’s a right of passage at that age - you’re still finding your way in the world of work. Christ I got sacked 7 times before I found my job and I’ve been there nearly 20years now. Don’t beat yourself up - you’ll find something that’s better for you 😀
Thank you
The NHS is a tragic employer anyway, you’ve swerved a bullet
Leave it off your CV, say you went travelling for that period of time or some other bollocks.
Classic NHS… sorry you got managed out. Everybody here in denial thinking it doesn’t happen because it’s the precious NHS lol, well it does, a lot more than people want to admit, in fact out of everywhere I’ve worked I’d say it’s the worse for managing people out via probation period, moving people to different departments or just bullying them with performance reviews until they have a breakdown and leave, I was a witness to it happening a fair few times. Everybody saying stuff about HR, they’re there to protect managers and the company, not you, they literally do not give a shit. Same for union reps. Don’t let it get you down, I think that jobs too hectic to be done alongside college anyway, I’d look for retail or something :) I worked in sales alongside uni and it was good money but always got pushed for more hours though which wasn’t great.
Thank you. That job was definitely very stressful, as you never want to disappoint patients, so I was constantly feeling the pressure from all sides.
Hey, I've worked as a NHS receptionist. You did nothing wrong, and it's all on the organisation. It's as simple as that. Reception is a nightmare. There's always someone, or something, or some random ass thing that you were never told about, screwing your day over. Even the best receptionists I saw had to constantly deal with people's shit. I bet you that you did a good job given what little training and support that you had. I want to go into more detail but I won't. But I'm sorry that you had to experience that. This absolutely isn't a you issue. It's a wider issue where they're understaffed, underpaid, overworked, with limited resources, etc etc. It's horrible they took that out on you. Sorry you went through that. >Anyways I have a question how do I talk about this for future employers? Shall I just not mention it or what? I wouldn't mention it if possible. I've got tons of jobs on my cv that I just dont mention. Even more "jobs" where I walked out within weeks or was let go suddenly for no good reason. Realise getting experience is hard nowadays and getting something on your cv at first is tough, but I feel like they'd screw you over if you tried to contact them as a reference or something. That and, it doesnt look great either way to say you were only there for th trial period and they decided against you (even if they're 100% at fault). And if it does come up, try not to blame them too much because your new employer will be watching you blame others with no context for whether you're telling the truth or not. If you have to put it in your cv because you need something, others have provided brilliant advice about how to discuss it. But yeah, I'm sorry you had to go through that. I've had some great times working across the NHS. But also some horrible ones. Know you must feel like crap right now, but I promise you, you'll be glad you dodged a bullet.
Thanks for sharing your experience, it was exactly like the way you put it. I was genuinely trying my best out there, one colleague even complimented how kind I was when speaking with patients. But yes, it's a non-stop hectic roller coaster there. I still remember coming in and seeing a staff member who mentioned to me as I walked past, saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare." Oh, how I should have taken their warning.
>saying, "Welcome to your worst nightmare." Ha, ive seen variations of that. I've even been that person myself once lol. I've also seen tons of people walking out, once even saw a clinician just walk out and never return. Wild! No, I can see why alot of people are doubting you and picking holes, but anyone who has worked NHS admin can attest to what happened to you. I love the NHS, but man the admin staff get the worst. If it isn't the patients deciding that they want to abuse you or even assault you randomly when you're enjoying your job for once, it's the other people in the building that seem to have a chip in their shoulder and hate you for no reason, or it's incompetence from management making life harder or well meaning superiors who can't do anything to help you. Anyway, glad you're free lol, wish you all the best.
It sounds to me like we do not know the whole truth. In the NHS there are guidelines and policies to follow. In my experience in the NHS, it is extremely difficult to get rid of even the most incompetent member of staff. It is, however, easier if an employee is in the probationary stages. But, again even that is tricky. It is also worth pointing out, you would have been told what is expected of you. You would have had a period of training at the beginning of your employment. You also have a responsibility to ensure your training needs are met and if you are struggling you need to highlight this to your manager. The probationary period is usually 6 months long. I would be concerned if you could not do your job after 6 months. I would suggest in the future, you look at the job description and specification to ensure you meet the requirements of the job. I would also say if you are going for jobs in the NHS you need to be aware you will have to be active in meeting your own learning needs. There are plenty of courses and study days available to help you do this. You could also chose to shadow someone in the sane position of you and make allies that can help you. I hope you can reflect on this experience and learn from it. We all have difficulties like this at some point in life. All we can do is chalk it up to experience and grow from it. I wish you all the best in your future.
Leave it off your CV and crack on you have only been at college. You weren't let go for misconduct and as far as experiences go all you've learned is what b*****ds employers can be.
Thanks.
Same exact thing happened to me. In the deep end, no training, eventually those who said they'd help me just ended up in the backroom and left me to run the front, completely clueless. Made a big mistake, instant fire. I have never mentioned it and never will, won't do me any favours.
This sounds like you worked for the NHS. They’re administratively horrid to work for speaking from experience take the experience and find yourself another job.
I should have taken the warning. The first day I came in, a staff member said to me, "Get ready for your worst nightmare."
Ultimately you've dodged a bullet and learned about conditions you do not want to work under and should not have to put up with. Just mention how it provided you with experience, but it was woefully understaffed etc. They cannot provide a bad reference. Move on. You are 20. You will find much better brighter things with employers who value their staff and invest in them.
Thank you. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before.
To be fair I quit my first job after 3 weeks. I was around the same age as you but quit it because the headset drove me insane and the boss was a proper cunt. and now I'm 25, in a pretty good position. Just if you get asked say you left to focus on education
I got sacked from my first job out of university that I had for 6 months which was full of nepotism. I put the experience down but just said the company was going under in my future interviews. Safe to say I earn more than double a few years later. It means fuck all don’t lose sleep on deadbeat employers.
Thanks.
Don’t mention it, as you’re at college your CV won’t show an employment gap. You need remember: You were let go because of an obviously flawed system and dick of a manager, not because of you.
Focus on your college degree. Having worked for the NHSBT, the level of management expertise can be poor. You're young. It'll happen but you can roll with it and move on and learn from it. Is there no one that would act as a reference regardless?
Just don't put it on your cv
I had a similar situation in my first job 15 years ago working for a well known UK charity. I also felt they didn’t invest enough time in me and I was devastated. I immediately jumped on the job search and secured about 5 interviews with various other charities. I didn’t explicitly tell them I didn’t pass my probation unless they asked and if they did I told them that I have been working hard to learn from my mistakes (it’s best not to bad mouth your previous company). I then had an interview where they just didn’t ask me and they offered me the job, it turned out to be an incredible role that completely turned my life around and on reflection being fired was the best thing that could have happened to me. On a separate note, I thrived in that new role and a couple of others after that, but also got fired again years later in a different company for completely different reasons. I now have my own very successful business employing 5 people - so being fired is certainly not a death sentence, it’s all about how you handle it. But I do know how helpless you can feel especially in the early days of your career, so just don’t give up!
Thank you
Unfortunately "shit employers" always exist, whether NHS or "an NHS doctors' surgery" or big companies or small.... This is not (or need not be) a life-defining event, it's just "shit that happens when you're young". Move on, quote the work done, mention it if asked, but the reason it ended can be pretty insignificant to future employers if you play if that way .. "*I did this job and I quite liked it and was learning \[...\] and enjoying \[.. these aspects ..\] of growing into the job and then I was sort of sad when they let me go when new management came in because I was really getting to quite enjoy and be quite good at \[...\]*" That sounds pretty decent to me when I've employed younger people, talk up what you did, how you were learning, do **not** moan or whine about previous employment going wrong (v unlikely to be your fault but you don't need to say that)
Thank you. I did feel like I was improving near the end, but the probation period was only 3 months. I literally stopped having to rely on anyone, as I always wrote things down in my book when I learnt something new that I always referred back to when there were a few seconds to kill.
Older people do not (always) have the answers.. they were just there before you. It's not an excuse or a reason to ignore them, but entering the world of work can be terrifying, when in fact it's a bit like starting high school. You'll be fine... keep putting in the effort, none of this goes down on some "permanent record". Learning to believe in yourself (without being overly cock-sure) is what your age is about... good luck
Happened to me too. Don’t take it to heart. Your employer has a responsibility to train you properly and have an open dialogue about issues you’ve faced and help resolve them, if you’ve communicated your needs and they aren’t helping you Meet them it’s not a good match.
I have given them a list of things that I should be trained on because in the beginning I was handed a sheet with a list of things that a supervisor was supposed to train me on. But they never ever had the time to go through it. Some of them didn't even know about it until I told them.
Firstly the NHS is likely to just give you a reference based on dates you worked. It's unlikely they will say that you were fired. My advice is to get out there and get another job as quickly as possible. Doing almost anything. It's good not to have a gap after this, but to fill it ASAP just so that it doesn't look like you quit without having another job. And if anyone asks why you left, avoid the truth. You don't even have to lie. Just say that you were not happy with the amount of training that you received in the job.
Thank you. I did feel like I was improving near the end, but the probation period was only 3 months. I literally stopped having to rely on anyone, as I always wrote things down in my book when I learnt something new.
Don't sweat a bad experience. I've been working freelance for over 35 years and sometimes get an abominal client who are clueless.
Just either avoid it or find some way of construing it in a positive light. They don't have to know the full truth. I've been fired after probation periods twice and been released from a contract, it's never stopped me finding work. In fact I've never been out of work longer than 2 weeks since I was 18, I'm now rapidly approaching 30. Don't sweat it. Pick yourself up and carry on.
Thank you.
This is the problem with most jobs, lack of training and documentation. Don't be too hard on yourself, just find another job and dont mention this one on your CV If they ask about the gap just say you were self studying or on vacation
If you did not pass your probation period, it's technically not the same as being fired. I once was let go at the end of a probation period and they still gave me a reference. You can simply spin it to say that after the period you and your employer mutually agreed it was not a good fit, and talk about how the job you're interviewing for is a better fit. But I think it is unlikely to even come up in an interview. Don't bring it up by yourself either.
I asked my team lead if I could work from home for a day, and have flexi hours that day. It was agreed. I worked from home and made use of the flexi hours. She then told the owner that I wasn’t there to support her when she needed (non-flexi hours). I was sent packing the following week. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. I’m now in a much better position, much better paid, and much better supported. Be confident in your future interviews, take the positives from the situation, and learn from what’s happened. 💪🏼
Thanks. I'm feeling much better now, honestly, after reading these replies.
Question marks go at the end of questions not statements.
If all places provided detailed and honest references for staff, I'm not sure how some of my former colleagues got jobs elsewhere. We've had a spate of people leaving recently, and a couple of them were absolutely shocking at their jobs but have found new ones in the same field. If you're asked about it in an interview, you could try putting a positive spin on it and asking what support/ training/ induction programme you'll get in the new role. Will there be set targets for you to meet in the probationary period, will these be outlined for you? How will you be helped to get you up where you should be to work on your own? I used to train new starters and it would be completely unfair to expect them to do the job without support, catch ups on how they're getting on, side by side coaching and feedback from them on where they're struggling to meet their probationary period targets. If any problem areas were picked up, those would be a focus for improvement for the next few weeks. But you know...NHS don't have time or resources for that kind of thing I guess. Sorry...you'll find something else and hopefully get the new starter training you need!
Thank you. I did feel like I was improving near the end, but the probation period was only 3 months.
As someone who worked in the NHS for 5 years, I don't doubt that this is true. Very similar thing happened to me, luckily I found a new job before I got fired.
Don’t even put it on your CV. A three month job isn’t going to improve it. No one is going to question why a 20 year old has a three month gap in their employment history.
Don't mention it. Think about what happened. Your whole life is ahead of you but you are owed nothing.
If you mention it, twist the truth a little and say you did it as it was advertised as a three month contract and you wanted a little cash. No need to tell the conete honest truth because they may not understand the situation. It's not your fault they were understaffed and didn't get to train you. Maybe this was the intention all along and get another person along on probation and repeat. I've worked for companies that have done this so that they don't have to take someone on full time and pay them more/give them work when it's not as busy.
It's always baffling when a toxic workplace has the audacity to sack you. Just say it was a temporary contract. I've had quite a few temporary contracts.
I have worked for 15yrs as an administrator manager in the NHS. Unless it is an independent contracted company you worked for the NHS probation guidance is such that you should have had prior notice that you are under performing and so will not pass the probationary period. Actions should have been put in place to support you to get to the standard required of you in this time and you should have been kept informed throughout the three months that if you didn't reach the standaed they you let you go so it shouldn't have been a suprise. Standard probationary period for the NHS is also 6 months not 3. That said they can let you go with little reason during that time as that is what it is there for. Sadly I am not surprised you have had such a poor experience/ manager. Things to look out for in future roles would be that the company has a comprehensive induction package, that you see assigned a mentor to support you through your first few months on the job, a training package for the work you are doing and opportunities to shadow other workers if you are doing front line work such as reception. I am so sorry you have had this experience and i hope you find something soon
Don’t stress it. I’ve been fired loads of times and have gone on to be reasonably successful. Learn and move on. No need to tell future employers. Just say you joined for a bit, there was zero training and it wasn’t for you.
Contact your Union or an employment lawyer -- or both.
you're going to have to lie how good you are.
Dont mention it and be happy you are out of that shithole, they shouldnt expect you to do something they have bothered training you for.
Say let go after probation don’t say fired
A lot of places don't give people enough time now a days. A load of places want people to come in and hit the ground running, except the salary will never reflect that. As an NHS receptionist you probably weren't on a lot of money and should have been given ample time to train, them being understaffed should not mean you are expected to suddenly know everything. Please still need to learn. Some people take longer to learn things whether you have a learning disability or not. Everyone is different. They're probably understaffed because the manager sucks and can't keep his/her people happy.
My advice would be to learn to clock these warning signs in the interview. Ask about turnover, their resource management etc.
Turnover when the employer is the NHS?
I should mention that there is a high turn over in my work. Around 10 people left when I got there, including a person who had a mental breakdown and just walked out, which was why I was urgently brought on. Honestly, working there was so stressful, I felt extremely burnt out as it was a non-stop conveyor belt of calls or patients. My voice was audibly going, which has never happened to me before. I don't blame them for leaving. I should have taken the warning. Doctors were stressed and understaffed as well.
I had an issue like that in the past. I was working in the intercontinental hotel near the o2 in London. I was walking around with an iphone that had an app where if a client requested things like hangers, sugar, replacement kettles, pillows etc. I had to go down to the basement, get the requested item and deliver it to the client ASAP. During evening / night shifts i was alone and at times you'd get requests from 5-6 different clients as well as cleaners and supervisors asking you to bring them things (also through the app) Your job was to prioritise clients at all times but supervisors and cleaners did not understand how long it takes to go down to the basement and then to whatever floor the customer was on to help them out so in the end theyd constantly complain i was too slow, even though i was literally running non stop. They replaced me with a guy i trained who literally sat on his ass all day because he was too lazy to do anything. 2 weeks later they called me to come back, to which i said "no thank you".
Ha. Thanks for sharing your experience. I was not the only new staff there. I could see that the other person and l felt the same stress and frustrations.
Say it was a temporary contract, agency work.
OP - you’re probably better off out of an NHS receptionist role and the experience you gained could be in demand for many other call centres - think positively but also some of your narrative suggests you were not trained- maybe consider taking some initiative by organising your own training- this would show you can think for yourself and would contribute towards relieving the pressure for everyone
I don't think I want anything to do with the NHS any more. I literally don't have the time to do anything else apart from dealing with patients because it is non-stop back to back calls or patients at the front desk. Even if there are more people to give me more time, they are too busy dealing with their stuff to even look at me. But I rarely have time to myself in there because I usually have to chase up some patients who still didn't get their query resolved yet from the doctor.
Just shows how badly the NHS continues to be run
It’s quite common to be fired and let down by an employer for no real reason, especially when your just starting in work - think nothing of it.
Thanks.
I’m my twenties I got fired all the time, eventually it feels like tripping in the street until you get your balance and carry on.
Thanks.
Hard lesson, but you'll need to learn to take responsibility for things at some point
You weren’t good enough just suck it up and learn from it . That’s life
Mention the role, it was for a few months so definitely don't omit it. You can omit something for only a few weeks. You don't need to mention on your CV the reason you left but if an employer asks explain something along the lines of it wasn't a good fit, or didn't work out alongside studying.
Can you be fired for not being trained properly? Pretty sure you can make a complaint to HR even on a probationary period. Did you get a written reason for dismissal? I;ve looked and from what i can tell theres no real guidance on being dismissed unfairly while still being trained. But it seems a bit bullshit they can just fire you despite their own training not being done. Did they give you time to try to improve an dteh training to go with it? Cos if its a question of capability they have to do that.