What's So Great About The UK?

We all do in a foreign country. I came to the US with a small suitcase in my hand. That's all, and I made it.

I can see that you felt like ranting, but keep on going. You obviously need to go through with the exam, even if you have to borrow some money. What makes you think you can just show up without a paper showing your credentials and you going to get a highly paid job? Your experience in Poland certainly helps, but without the exam - it means nothing.

There are plenty of Poles here in Chicago, doctors, lawyer, accountants who had to start from scratch, if that's what they wanted to continue doing. If not, there is always the construction site, or worse.

I don't know how long you are in the UK, but it is not its class system that prevents you from getting a good job. It's the almighty piece of paper. It works everywhere and the rest is up to you.

Good luck.

That's not what I said. I have "papers", "credentials" - but from Poland. I have qualifications and titles, and 10 years of experience, and I do not want a "highly paid job" - I want a chance to prove that I am good at what I do. That is all. That almighty exam would set me back 1/3 of my monthly income. I am already in debt and absolutely cannot go any further down that road. I used to think that experience, a university degree, a professional attitude, several translated books to my name etc. would account for something. And I haven't given up - I am working as self-employed translator/interpreter, accumulating British experience etc. It really feels as comfortable and efficient as swimming in jelly though ;-(

It would be much easier to just give up and become a cleaner instead. That's where I see the class system at work - if you're not rich enough to buy yourself the only approved credentials and titles, stay away from the better jobs - they're not for the likes of you! Maybe I'm just bitter, because I get praised all the time by my clients (the end users) but this never gets to anybody at the agencies I work for, and I'm not getting any younger.

well...

i had a completely different experience in the uk.
nowhere else on this planet have i met trusty employers who will give you a chance if you have the right attitude without even asking for any paper.

and that was the case in every job i took so far...

definitely a different story back home in germany. and probably in the us.

Magdalena. i guess you haven't met the right people and if you are unhappy with how your agencies find you jobs or work... change them. there are so many out there that are actually willing to help...

I'm 34 years old, born and bred in the Home Counties of England in the shadow of the South Downs and named after a character in Britain's longest running drama serial .......can't get much more English than that, but I've still yet to see men walking to work in bowler hats carrying a brief case, an umbrella and a rolled up copy of "The Times". I think that is my parents' generation that you're talking about.

The genteel pace of life in the UK, similar to that seen on TV in things like Miss Marple or The Vicar of Dibley, has long gone and it has NOTHING to do with immigration. I'm not a social historian and can't give you specific reasons for it, but a "selfishness" has come from somewhere. I describe the current generation as the "Heat Magazine / Big Brother" generation with an unhealthy interest in the likes of David and Victoria Beckham.

That combined with what I see as soaring crime rates makes a grim future for all of us trying to make it here.

Keep plugging away Magdalena, but there is no shame in going home and saying things didn't work out. In fact it takes enormous courage to do that and should be seen as a real strength of character to be admired. Do what's right for you and don't worry about what others may or may not be thinking. Lands End really takes your breath away, so try and visit it if you can.

Osiol says this thread is the usual "shi*e throwing". Well, as I'm new here I can't compare it to what has gone before, but I think there is quite a lot of intelligent discussion going on for those who choose to find it and read it.

There were many nationals of many countries who took military action during World War 2 from the British mainland. South Africans and Ian Smith from the then Rhodesia were among them. After the war, we shot most of them in the back by forcing them in to independence talks.

Are you saying that Britain forced independence on her colonies etc?

Its called Thatcherism, as she put it herself . . . " And, you know,there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first. It's our duty to look after ourselves " In otherwords, me me me

Unfortunately, I grew up in this era too and I doubt that any of us are the better for it.

Yeah, how well I know that, it's just part of the "what used to come to your mind when you thought of England" stuff ;-)

I guess I read a few too many books by Graham Greene in my time...


I definitely will, I'm stubborn as hell! :-)


That is true, but not for translation/interpreting. At least if you want to do anything better-paid and more serious than translating business letters and doing community interpreting, not that there's anything wrong with that, but it is a bit like allowing a professional stage dancer to only teach dance in nursery school or something such like.

You wouldn't imagine how many CVs and applications I have sent out, how many leaflets distributed, how many online ads placed for my business.

Well, one British thing I'm really into is the stiff upper lip, so I am officially stiffening mine now ;-)

Unfortunately this is true for most countries in Europe and also the USA - there's not much comfort in that but at least you're not alone.


I don't think she can take all the blame - the tendency for a "me, me, me" culture spreads far and wide while her influence was pretty localized.

You mean only the UK then? UK Prime Minister for 12 years, and of course the UK has no influence on anywhere else in the world.


Most of it then? please elaborate

Yes, Harold Wilson shot Ian Smith in the back and then we shot Australia and New Zealand in the back by joining the E.U. and now the only beneficiaries are the good for nothing lazy Poles who want to claim our social welfare system for nothing. The only place for the British now is Europe-nobody else wants them.

Particularly late on a balmy summer evening when they glow-worms are out.


I recommend spray-on starch. My upper lip hasn't moved since 1994. Good luck to you, Magdalena. It may just depend on what it is you do, but some people (irritatingly) seem to just land on their feet whilst others have a hill to climb.

:-)

Though botox injections would work pretty well too, come to think of it! Some celebrities seem to have mistaken their forehead for their upper lip, it seems... ;-)

17. band called MAN LIKE ME omg, they are awesome

They dont like being called "Eastern Europeans" Mister H.

What do they prefer ?

poles are attracted to britain because of the amounts of benefits we give them.

I wonder if you would get a council house in Wrocław?

i hate poles, especially when i walk into them, the ones at the fire station in particular, always have some brute hurtling down them

Yes, but the ones at the fire station are made of steel and are probably of a higher I.Q. than those in trousers!

I'm gonna make a concession to the English, they have the best football league in the world. La Liga and Serie A are also contenders but the Premiership is a cut above. About Wales, eh, the hills maybe. About Scotland, maybe some of its writers.

I work with several Polish people and they all say the same thing - life was much harder in Poland.Wages were very low but living costs compared to wages were high and for working 50 hours per week they were unable to afford anything other than basic essentials.Working in Britain even for minimum wage(which means they are entitled to tax credits)they can save money(sometimes by renting 1 room between 2/3 people)and within months afford a car plus extras.Once offered a better job(even a low paying one) life gets even better.Poles expect to work hard for very little while some Brits and some immigrants want to work a little for a lot of money.In Britain Poles work hard and earn far more than they did in Poland.Also,despite some bad areas Britain is actually a great country to live and work in.

Sounds like the lot for many British people living in Britain today.

Actually,the genteel pace of life can still be found in many villages and towns throughout the UK but less than in the past due to most people now driving cars.Also,despite the rise in violence between young teenagers and the general rise in bad behavior Britain still has a low violent crime rate (much lower than the USA and lower even than Australia).I do agree with you about the "Heat Magazine" generation.

With the huge amount of Poles coming to the UK I would guess that there are many potential translators and interpreters now here. If employers have such a huge pool to pick from, then obviously the ones that have more qualifications are the ones that will get the best work. I don't see why you would expect any different. That said though, the same applies to us Brits too. In my profession (software development) having a degree and experience is not enough to land the best jobs. You must keep up to date with many very expensive courses.

There are many things that make employing foreign people into professional jobs very difficult...What does the qualification mean? Was the university Poland's equivalent to Oxford, or Bournemouth? Is the qualification genuine? Who are the references? Having a good CV will count for little. Everyone applying for the job will have a good CV. This is why internationally recognised qualifications are so important.


I think it is this attitude that annoys some Brits a little. There is the assumption that you should be able to come here for a bit and leave with more than you arrived with.

Personally I think crime will get worse before it gets better, partly down to a lenient justice system and virtually full prisons.

Yes there are still some quiet country idylls left, but we the love affair with house and road building, how long is it before everything is concrete ?

Countless numbers have thrived and profited from capitalism across the world. Why deny Poles the chance to come to the UK, pay their dues and derive some benefit in the process? They are merely using their options. She didn't come to live off of benefits.

No ,but I bet she goes to the local NHS clinic for free health care. Im sorry ,but I totally agree with a previous poster on this,it is taking the p iss that 1.5 million potential patients can have as much use of our health system as it is as my Grandfather who has contributed since 1947 and is getting ****** treatment due to an overloaded and under funded NHS.

The trend towards hedonism started after WWII and probably as an answer to the privations suffered, plus a greater awareness of ordinary citizens of their rights, plus more rights to be aware of.

Society generally became very “can do”, that is to say positive. Everything was frenetically moving forward: new technology which led to an easier life, better education prospects and better health prospects. The baby boomers who were growing up in the decades following the war really did have it better than their parents. When it was their turn to have children they too wanted to offer them even better prospects and something slipped out of the equation: duty. Suddenly everyone was overly conscious of their rights but less alert to their duties hence the hedonistic society.

Margaret Thatcher’s contribution occurred in this final phase but probably because her intentions were misinterpreted.
Her influence outside the UK was to show that it wasn’t necessary for the entire nation to be held to ransom by the Trade Unions. This caught on abroad and in fact since her time in government Trade Unions in the Western world have lost a huge amount of power.

If I am the "she" you mean, I would have nothing against paying a fixed fee per visit - 20 pounds, say. When I first arrived, and I bet many other Poles had the same assumption, I was absolutely prepared to have to pay for any health care given to me. The thing is, I cannot change the system - your government would have to do that. Even if every immigrant insisted upon paying for NHS care, there is no system in place which would enable such payment to take place, even from a basic accounting point of view. Who should take the money? The GP, the Primary Care Trust, the Council?


It will be the ones with the British qualification who will get the best work. This does not mean that they have *more* or *better* qualifications. But let's not speak of me.

While interpreting, I met an English health visitor, and we got to chatting of this and that. She told me that she had spent most of her working life abroad (in Australia), where she worked in health care and gained lots of experience. When she returned to the UK, all her professional experience was declared unimportant and it was back to square one for her. This is why I said that the British are not interested in experience and expertise gained abroad. And this is why I spoke of a class system firmly in place.


A translator is more like a football player than a lawyer. Either he/she delivers or not. If a footballer is good in Spain, he is equally good at his job when moved to Monaco. If I am capable of interpreting financial negotiations with American partners in Poland, I am then equally capable of interpreting financial negotiations with Polish partners in the US. If I am a lousy interpreter though, no exam however costly and no certificate will be able to help when the time comes to show what I'm made of.


What is wrong with that?