According to Sheila Gilmore a Labour MP from Edinburgh, the answer is – when it is in a supermarket. I must admit I was stunned by her remark. At a time when getting any job is difficult, it seemed very out of touch to effectively say that hundreds of thousand of hardworking people didn’t have a proper one.
It was by chance that last Monday I flicked through the channels and caught a debate on BBC Parliament about apprenticeships. Ms Gilmore’s criticism was that the governments investment in creating jobs was not that good if it simply created jobs in supermarkets.
Supermarkets have their weaknesses. They are accused of crushing local business, price fixing, swallowing up land and killing town centres and competitors alike, but the reality is they provide a service the vast majority rely upon. And to their credit, in my experience, they are good trainers. They are happy to employ people without the highest academic qualifications and will also promote staff because they’re good at what they do, not just because they have a degree. It is possible to join a supermarket stacking shelves and end up running a superstore several years later with hard work, natural ability and a bit of luck.
Universities aren’t for everyone and the ‘start at the bottom and work your way up’ approach to careers should be a welcome and encouraged alternative in any business.
Next time Ms Gilmore MP stands in the queue at her local supermarket and the light flashes and that queue becomes the slowest, it may not be bad luck, it may be the cashier wants to give her time to reflect on her comments.
In any case an MP is the worst person to suggest supermarket staff should get a proper job!
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