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Tuesday 26 September 2017

Army veteran, 46, who served in the Gulf and Afghanistan is spotted at a roundabout with a 'job wanted' poster after failing with 400 applications

A FORMER sergeant major has been forced to wave a "job wanted" sign at a roundabout after struggling to find work despite sending off 400 applications.
Wayne Taylor, 46, is a veteran of both Gulf wars and did tours of duty in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo and Northern Ireland - but can now only find minimum wage jobs.
Left frustrated at missing out time and time again, the military man decided to take action, saying: "Things have been really difficult so I thought it was time to be proactive and try something different.
"I’ve had no response from so many applications, I just thought ‘go and give it a try and see what happens’.
"It might just work."
Making up a sign that read: "Job Wanted. Educated to degree level. Speak to me please", Taylor stood at the entrance to the Chester Business Park in Cheshire on Friday.
He has led hundreds of men and women in the army and, since leaving the military, has gained a Level 6 qualification in leadership and management.
His annual salary when leaving the 26th Regiment Royal Artillery in December 2011 was £45,000 but now the only offers he receives are for roles paying little more than the minimum wage.
Wayne added: “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."
Wayne lives in Garden Village, Wrexham, with his wife Laura, who works part-time in an office administration role.
The pair met via a pen pal website for the armed forces and married in 2014.
Mrs Taylor, 48, joined her husband at the business park on Friday, when representatives from a couple of firms came over to take down Wayne’s details.
She 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.
"He was offered £8 an hour to deliver mattresses.
"No disrespect to people who do that, but he is capable of so much more."
Wayne has been treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and has seen some of his former comrades take their own lives since leaving the army.
She added: "They did not feel manly enough to keep their families. It’s heartbreaking.”
Wayne said he would be ideally suited to a role in logistics and management, with warehouse management or an office role being among his preferred options.

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