working in London

[punisa]

Hello comrades :)
Since this is "mutual aid", I'd be very glad if some of you could give me a bit of insight information on what it's like living and working in London.

As capitalism is still around, I'm thinking of a ways to survive in this bloody system.
Job market in my country is looking rather bleak these days. Luckily, unlike local patriots, I'm very willing to travel and go work outside of my country.

I'd try England, since I speak English very well.
I have no friends/relatives in London, but it wouldn't be the first time for me to go to a city alone.

My (prostitution) skills are mainly coding, programming and similar IT stuff.
Any info is appreciated.

[Bitter Ashes]

Hello comrades :)
Since this is "mutual aid", I'd be very glad if some of you could give me a bit of insight information on what it's like living and working in London.

As capitalism is still around, I'm thinking of a ways to survive in this bloody system.
Job market in my country is looking rather bleak these days. Luckily, unlike local patriots, I'm very willing to travel and go work outside of my country.

I'd try England, since I speak English very well.
I have no friends/relatives in London, but it wouldn't be the first time for me to go to a city alone.

My (prostitution) skills are mainly coding, programming and similar IT stuff.
Any info is appreciated.
Maybe I'm a little biased, but from what I understand, London is very hard on people. Most Northerners tend to see London as a lot more cut-throat and mercenary atmosphere than the North. For your kind of work though, London is good for finding, just remember that the competition for jobs, especially right now, is very tough. Just bear that in mind when you're looking.

[punisa]

Maybe I'm a little biased, but from what I understand, London is very hard on people. Most Northerners tend to see London as a lot more cut-throat and mercenary atmosphere than the North. For your kind of work though, London is good for finding, just remember that the competition for jobs, especially right now, is very tough. Just bear that in mind when you're looking.

Thanks a lot for the input Ranma42 ! :)
I've heard similar stories myself, although most of these are just speculations made by some of my friends who enjoy talking about places they never actually visited - if its not home, its no good :laugh:

Yep, competition is high everywhere these days. But I was really shocked the other day when I did a quick search for the open positions in my profession here in Croatia.
Last year you could at least find 20-30 companies who would at least invite you for an interview, but now there is nothing, zero :(

I think I'll either have to look for some completely different profession or actually try my chances abroad. London came to mind because some IT guys with whom I correspond told me that majority of IT companies are HQ in London and Luxembourg.

I hope I'll manage to earn a few bucks so I could visit London for at least a week and do some job hunting.
Damn I hate capitalism :crying:

[Steve_j]

Yeah London imo can be a pretty hard place. Although it does have its perks.

If you want to get an idea of the work thats on off start checking some classifieds or online notice boards. I wouldnt have a clue for it but www.gumtree.com is pretty general and could be a good start.

If you do by chance want to head over for a week to attend some interviews, hit me up, im regularly hosting friends that are comming through london. If the dates arnt clashing with someone you will be welcome at mine.

[bajo.el.arco.del.sol]

for IT i would look at more "traditional" job sites rather than gumtree - though it couldn't hurt to look at gumtree as well. i'm not sure which ones to recommend though as i work in a totally different sector with our own specialised sites.

an italian friend of mine recently found that after months of applying with no interest, she got calls (and eventually a job) after switching the phone number on her CV to her boyfriend's london number. don't know if that's just chance or not, but it makes sense that employers would be more interested in someone local than dealing with the hassle of moving someone over for the job. if you're interested and don't have a friend in london, you can always get a london skype-in number.

not sure where you're from, but the visa system is a pain if you need one to work here. you'll need to either have an employer who's willing to sponsor you, or have enough points for a tier one general migrant visa.

[Bitter Ashes]

Depending on whether he's from the EU or not he should not need a work permit I thought.

[bajo.el.arco.del.sol]

Depending on whether he's from the EU or not he should not need a work permit I thought.

exactly. EU wouldn't, but anywhere else would.

[HamishFTW]

Try somewhere like Bristol :D It's a lot smaller than London, but still reasonably big. Perfectly sized. And it's beautiful. Certain areas. In the summer. If you're not particularly fussy about what kind of work you want it shouldn't be too hard to find a job. The creative industry here is pretty huge. I imagine that it wouldn't be toooo hard to find some IT stuff. Give Google a whirl.

[punisa]

hello guys, thanks for all the information. I really REALLY appreciate it :)



If you do by chance want to head over for a week to attend some interviews, hit me up, im regularly hosting friends that are coming through london. If the dates arnt clashing with someone you will be welcome at mine.

Hey Steve, you're a great comrade :thumbup1:
I might get in touch with you later, but not until this fall cause I don't think I'll get a chance to make some drastic changes till then.
But appreciate the offer. If you ever want to come for a visit to the Balkans, call me up - you got a comfy bed at your disposal :)


Depending on whether he's from the EU or not he should not need a work permit I thought.

I'm from Croatia, we are still not a part of EU, but should join this or next year.
But since last year we don't need Visa's for UK, so its all cool.


Try somewhere like Bristol :D It's a lot smaller than London, but still reasonably big. Perfectly sized. And it's beautiful.
Thanks for the suggestion, sounds rather nice and I'm definitely not a picky type :lol:
Hell, I'd work in a remote village if it will pay my bills :o