Rubbish jobs? No way!

Many people who spent good money on The Sunday Times last week must have felt insulted when they saw their work derided as "rubbish jobs". Roles such as smoking cessation adviser, monitoring and evaluation officer and many others were dismissed as "silly" or "dubious". So was the attack well-founded?

Nathalie Nadijfotiou
Head of Social Inclusion

Heading up a staff of 10, Nathalie Nadjifotiou, 47, is the head of social inclusion for Southwark council and has been so for three years. Her role is crucial, she says, and accusations that it is merely job creation are grossly unfair.

"The majority of people who work within the public sector really want to make a difference to their local community. I can't tell you the numbers who work hours of unpaid overtime just to make that happen.

"Those who shout loudest have always managed to win in the end, but we are here for those who can't speak out, whose needs may be hidden and are therefore not being met.

"We take a broader view of equality than gender or racial discrimination; I deal with issues such as poverty, exclusion, crime, discrimination and racial diversity. This is a very mixed borough in terms of race and culture, those who have money - and those who don't.

"A major part of my job involves bringing together the police, health authority, youth and other council services on a variety of initiatives - all with the aim of trying to find new ways to improve things so that people can have a better life. I'm out and about a lot, talking to residents from different communities, talking to all the departments here. It's not a desk-bound job at all."

Nadjifotiou has worked at Southwark council for two decades in this field and has seen huge social changes. She says people don't understand that change takes time.

"For example, 20 years ago, nobody had given a thought to crèche facilities at leisure centres so single parents could swim in peace while their children were looked after. Or the provision of dedicated swimming sessions for those with disabilities or learning difficulties-Nowadays, we accept initiatives like these as examples of a modern, caring society. But you need to take lots of small steps to get there."

She says the joy of the job comes from making a difference to just one life. "You send staff on a lip-reading course to help deaf tenants. Then you see the look on a tenant's face when they can communicate for the first time in years. Suddenly, the tenants feel the service is there for them."

John Porter
Maintenance Monitoring Officer

John Porter, 53, has been in his job for only 18 months. The role is unique within the Corporation of London, having been created in the early Nineties with the arrival of compulsory competitive tendering.

So is it just a case of pointless job creation? Porter won't have it, though he believes there are some questionable appointments in the public sector. "There's an element of truth in it, particularly in certain desk jobs. Managers, for example, can sometimes get assistants - but tradesmen can't." He does agree that his job title might sound a little baffling to an outsider. "A lot of people think it's a pen-pushing desk job. So when people ask, I just say I deal with maintenance and repairs, it makes life a lot easier."

There is quite a bit more to it than that. He is responsible for overseeing all building maintenance work carried out within the Corporation of London's large cleansing services depot in Upper Thames Street.

The site itself is a waste-transfer station for street refuse within the City, housing boiler rooms, a ventilation plant and repair workshops. Porter's remit also includes overseeing all maintenance and repair work for the corporation's nine public conveniences. So it is a part desk, part "out and about" role.

"If anything goes wrong or needs renewing or upgrading, I'm responsible for getting the contractors in to tender for teh work that needs doing. Once you've issued the work, you have to ensure that it's being done properly, then sign it off as completed. The downside is all the paperwork - everything has to be logged."

While the job title might be relatively new, Porter has worked within the Corporation of London as an electrical engineer for 30 years, and he is clearly proud of his role in helping maintain the day-to-day infrastructure of the City.

"It's incredibly worthwhile, even if it is a behind-the-scenes job. You really do have to know what you are doing, and that only comes with years of experience. A graduate with an IT qualification isn't going to be able to do it."

Linda Docherty
Smoking Cessation Adviser

Linda Docherty, 30, is modest about the number of people she has helped quit smoking for good. When pressed, she admits it probably tallies up to "around 150" in two years. So perhaps it is not surprising that when she reads stories claiming that many publicsector roles are "rubbish jobs for rubbish people", she gets angry.

"To be honest, it makes me upset. I feel I've worked and studied hard to get where I am, and I've got a lot of experience working with addictions and helping people overcome them. Tell people your job title and some people think we just sit there telling people to stop. The word 'cessation' confuses people; maybe a 'stop smoking' adviser would be more understandable."

Smoking cessation adviser roles were created after 1998, following the release of the Government's White Paper titled Smoking Kills. Docherty is a registered general nurse with a postgraduate diploma in drug and alcohol studies, a master's degree in public health and a certificate in counselling skills.

As well as advising up to 10 would-be quitters daily in her office at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, her role also involves staff training and organising nosmoking campaigns. She has been there for just under a year, having done the same job for a year at Redbridge and Waltham Forest Health Authority.

Would-be non-smokers see Docherty for six half-hour sessions each week. The first session involves advice and information, and a quit date is set for the second session. Treatment then consists of a four-week programme of the all-important behavioural support plus either nicotine replacement therapy (which can be patches, gum, microtabs, nasal spray, lozenges or inhalator) or support plus the prescription-only drug Zyban.

"That first month is crucial," she explains. "The fourweek period after quitting is when most people relapse."

In a sense, the quit-smoking message is still in its infancy. "Eventually, it will make a real difference to the cost of treating smoking-related diseases on the NHS," she says. But she has no doubt whatsoever that the job makes a real difference to people's lives.

"You get people who've smoked for 40 years coming in here saying, 'I can't do this.' But they do."

Docherty also dismisses objections that her role takes much-needed funds away from front-line medical care.

"It costs less than £1,000 a year to help someone give up smoking. Compare that with the £1.7 billion cost to the health service each year in treating smoking-related disease."