WhenItRainsItPours

Hi guy
I came to Perth on my wifes visa in May and have been lucky enough to find work recently as an electrical t.a.
I sent off to the tra a few months back and after waiting so long for an outcome decided to call them, it soon became apparent that i hadn't sent them enough proof of my work history to have been successful anyway so the chap is putting my assessment off until late september to give me a chance of getting some evidence together.
My problem is that i never had a formal apprenticeship and the earlier companies i worked for either wont or cant provide me references.
Anyone got any good ideas on what kind of bumf i can overload the artc with to try and increase my chances?

Ive been working as a general electrician for nearly ten years, i only completed my nvq3 not long before i came out as i knew i had no chance without it.
also ive just applied for a j.i.b approved card from back home, do you think this will help my cause.

Any advice would be much appreciated

thanks

Leon

johnny.w

I honestly think you may be struggling . I sent copies of my apprentice papers, Quals certs, I7th edition , jib cards, references and job senarios .
I,m still waiting on reply.
Also i dont know how your going to get a jib card but given the recent proposals from all the major firms this will be worthless in the future.
I hope i'm wrong and you are do get your artc.

cheers john

WhenItRainsItPours

Getting the jib card shouldnt be to difficult, i am having my card upgraded then sent to a uk address, the people at jib i found very helpful, they even let me scan and email the application.
Now getting through to the artc was a different story, although i did get through to a honcho in the end who told me that the committee only get together once a month towards the end of month, and currently its taken on average three months so i hope thats some indication on when you should get your outcome.
Ive got about 3/4 weeks to get more proof together, i think im going to struggle aswell

derren7

Hi there,
The criteria for the ARTC is to have served and completed a 4 year apprenticeship OR 7 years experience.
In your case references are vital for the 7 years experience, so I would approach your previous employers again. Even if they can only supply simple statements of service then you could submit some statutory declarations where you can explain why they can't provide you with a detailed reference ( or any kind of reference) and the type of work that you carried out, tools used etc.
I'm going to submit 5 stat decs because I worked for a number of agencies.
On their own stat decs are a poor substitute for detailed references so you need to back them up with other proof such as simple references , pay slips.
Hope this helps.
Regards Derren

WhenItRainsItPours

Yeah it does help a bit thanks, i never thought of payslips.. There might be one or two in my shipment when it arrives.
The problem i have is a had two successful unfair dismissal cases against former employers. Hence my reluctance to contact them