Former sergeant major who applied for 400 jobs still struggles to find work
A former sergeant major has said more needs to be done to help find former soldiers work after he struggled to find work despite applying for 400 jobs.
Wayne Taylor, 46, is a veteran of both Gulf wars and did tours of duty in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo and Northern Ireland.
He was earning £45,000-a-year when he left the 26th Regiment Royal Artillery in December 2011.
But he claimed since leaving the army he cannot find jobs that pay above the minimum wage because he does not have relevant experience.
He sad: "The trouble with trying to get work if you're ex-army is they look at us and think we were only there to kill people - that's putting it bluntly but it's how it is. It's not easy."
The former sergeant major, who served almost 25 years in the army, said more should be done to "signpost" what options are open to veterans.
He said: "When you leave [the army] they do have the career transition workshop. What I experienced from it was inadequate at the time.
"I think there should be a lot more sign posting for guys and girls leaving the army.
"Of course I will always have an army pension - people are always quick to comment - but I don't get the full pension for personal reasons."
Taylor left in 2011 when his term of service came to an end and had spells working as a carer and a prison custody officer, but has not settled into a role since leaving the army.
"Four friends have committed suicide since we've come out of service. They are men that life's tolls have got on top of them for whatever reason," he said.
"Myself, I was diagnosed with PTSD but that's no reason not to work, it just means I get poor sleep."
His wife Laura said: "When employers see his CV with 'military' on it, all they think is 'thick squaddie'. But my husband led hundreds of men. He's not a thick squaddie."
Mrs Taylor, 48, said her husband would be ideally suited to a role in logistics and management, with warehouse management or an office role being among his preferred options.
Taylor, from Wrexham, Wales, even took to standing on a roundabout with a placard reading "Job Wanted. Educated to degree level. Speak to me please" after failing to find a financially viable job.
"I'm fed up of emails and replies saying 'unfortunately we're not taking this application any further'," he said.
"Things have been really difficult so I thought it was time to be proactive and try something different."
He added: "I do agency work, some driving and bits and pieces, just trying to bring some money in.
"Amazon offered me a role that's £7-something an hour. By the time I travelled home from work it would leave me with £60 for a 12-hour day which isn't financially viable.
"I'm not a job snob, I'm just trying to better myself. I personally feel that I'm a bit better than £7.50 an hour."
Taylor put his difficulties down to lacking experience in the industries he was applying to, despite his 25 years' military service. He said potential employers were unable to see how his military skills could be transferred to a civilian workplace.
He believes that the Army and Ministry of Defence (MoD) could do more to ensure former troops are aware of what civilian jobs are attainable.
"I don't want to bring the armed forces into disrepute because that's my life. But I think it needs to be signposted properly, what's available," he said.
"It's a shame that a lot of these charities that assist former soldiers is all self-funded and set up by people - it's nothing to do with the MoD.
"The MoD could be a lot more involved in them."
