Hundreds of Irish companies advertise for JobBridge interns every week. The programme can last for up to 9 months, during which full-time interns receive €50 a week from the state on top of their social welfare payments. That works out at €3.75 an hour if the intern is under the age of 25.
In the second post of a new weekly series,we look at a sample of internships that have been posted in the JobBridge database over the past week.
1. LAUNDRETTE OPERATIVE
Are you friendly, energetic, and enthusiastic? Are you interested in learning how to offer customers “a service that is second to none”? Do you have “the correct attitude towards learning new skills”? SuperValu is looking for an intern to wash clothes for 9 months. The selected candidate might even get a job in the end if they can prove that “the business could not survive without them.”
2. FRESH FOOD ASSISTANT
Not satisfied with just one intern, SuperValu is also looking for someone to make up the deli sandwiches. Applicants must be able to “live the SuperValu brand values and actively encourage others to do the same.”
3. WAITING STAFF
Gourmet Kitchen in Ballina is looking for a state-funded intern to greet customers and clear tables.
4. TCD ADMINISTRATOR
TCD jumps on the JobBridge bandwagon yet again. It can afford to fund marketing trips to luxury Dehli hotels but won’t pay an administrator.
5. SCHOOL CARETAKER
“Within the school community we share our search for truth about God, the world, ourselves, and our eternal destiny,” Muckross Park College tells parents on its website. That’s unless you’re the caretaker intern, in which case you’re only needed to undertake “weight-bearing tasks” and move “heavy objects” for €3.75 an hour.
6. GROUNDS MAINTENANCE OPERATIVE
The Carrick-on-Shannon Golf Club is looking for an intern with “knowledge of machinery maintenance” to look after their grounds. Just ensure your application to the Honorary Secretary is marked private and confidential. They don’t want the lads at the clubhouse to know.
7. WEBSITE DESIGNER
ADT Software in Carlow needs an intern with knowledge of HTML, CSS, and website design. After 9 months, the intern will have “attained skills” in…website design.
8. SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR
Applicants for Castle Leslie’s internship are required to have a good understanding of email, Word, Excel, and the internet. The intern will receive training in…email, Word, Excel, using the internet, and answering the phone.
9. LEGAL RESEARCH ASSISTANT
No jobs at the Department of Jobs?
And finally…
10. LAWNMOWER STORESPERSON
Are you methodical in nature? Are you looking to gain skills in stock management and team dynamics? Are you passionate about lawnmowers? The intern selected by this company will be required to pack parts, keep the place tidy, and “lift boxes of up to 20 kg.”
