Campaigners fight to save jobs organisation

A petition of 1,533 people has been raised to try to prevent Hull Job Shop, based in the BBC Building, from closing next month.

The service which opened in November 2009, costs £130,000 a year to run and has seen 452 people get jobs. Nearly a third of the city’s population, 47,800 people, are claiming Jobseekers Allowance, twice as many as in 2007. The petition to Hull Council says it’s a “no frills, no nonsense approach” to helping residents find work.

More than 60 per cent of the Job Shop’s clientele have no internet access at home.

Project manager Ben Elton said 167 people registered in May alone. Nearly 100 of the 3,500 on their books are military veterans.

He said: “Public sector jobs are now all online.

“Even if you are applying to be a cleaner you still have to fill out a nine- page application form.

“I felt we were discriminating against people with low skills and income – they can’t even see the vacancies because they advertise on different websites.”

Mr Elton, who served with the Royal Logistic Corps in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan, said: “With Labour in power this is an ideal opportunity for (council leader) Steve Brady to give a good news story to the city.”