Looking for a job: Electrician

Sorry Paul. Your quals are worthless in Spain. You will need to retrain and gain qualifications issued in Spain which relate to their system.

Virtually no work for an unqualified electrician is Spain.

Not strictly true as the Costa is full of unqualified cowboy tradesmen who get plenty of work risking getting heavy fines if caught and possible the lives of those who give them work.

Are they same people who can wire a plug in the UK move to Spain then call themselves Electricians

Hi Paul,

You dont state you intend to become self employed  (autonomo). You do however state your intention to seek employment with a Spanish Electrical Company as an employee.  

In recent years ,Many East European 'Electricians' have found work in the U.K Electrical Industry, and you have the right to seek to do the same in Spain.

Others may have some hard evidence to the contrary, but with your Qualification as an Electrician in the U.K. Electrical Industry with it's high reputation of competency based Apprentice biased training  I think if given the chance you could maybe work under the supervision of a full Spanish accredited Electrician and hopefully in time, progress to the point were you could undertake Spanish Electrical examinations  and become fully accredited .  I know the language barrier could be a problem, you do not state whether you are fluent in Spanish, but if not then this would be something you would have to consider.

Best wishes in your quest.

LeckyLes.

Thanks for replying to my message. What I was hoping was to possibly send my c.v. to any English run companies that could take me under their wings, do you know any such companies 

Not going to happen Paul. Why would a company take you on and invest time training you?. With unemployment so high they would just employ somebody who is already qualified. Who will probably be able to speak Spanish and can therefore converse with the locals and go to suppliers etc

 When moving to Spain you either need to have enough money you don't need to work. ...Or have a really good offer that will generate a good income. Being an unqualified electrician who doesn't speak Spanish doesn't tick the box.

This may come across as negative, but it's the reality. 

Sorry but I’m not an unqualified electrician I am a time served fully qualified electrician who wants to move to Benidorm to live & was looking for any English speaking electrical companies that might be interested in taking me on 

I am mystified why ,on this Forum, some members refer to U.K Electricians who may have served a full UK Apprenticesbip and be fully competent In  their highly trained field of work , and have many years of service, as ' Unqualified' .

It is a fact that Spain has their own Electrical Competency scheme and with that comes it's own Certification Scheme which an operative must conform to and ultimately sit examinations in order to be recognised as a bona fide Electrician in Spain.

Their is no evidence these Schemes are in any way more superior to such schemes in force in the U.K , in fact in the last 20 years or so mutual agreements of European Electrical Regulations have ensured a great deal of harmonization in Electrical standards amongst E.U countries. Having witnessed first hand samples of work carried out in Spain I have to declare that the quality of work produced by U.K trained  Electricians  ,plus the thourouness of Mandatory Inspctions carried out on samples of their work ,Annually by independent bodies ,does stand head and shoulders above the average Spanish equivalent . Yes their will be differences in working practices between the two countries, that is to be expected , and if a UK trained Electrician is to carry out his or her trade in Spain they would have to undergo a period of compliance training and Certificatuon , both on the job, and via Inspection and Verification by outside Conrformance bodies. . The UK. Trained Electrician , providing he also has competency in communicating in the language of the customers he intends to serve, is well versed in this type of work ethic.

Paul, I am sure you realise you face an upward struggle but wish you all the very best and sincerely hope you do succeed. 

As a further note.

I think a lot of the unessecery, and incorrect labelling of U.K trained Electricians as 'Unqualified' and ' Cowboys' is totally unfounded in terms of Fact,  and stems ,most likely from some people who have had experience of having had jobs done by, or heard stories of others having had jobs done by Unqualified British ex Pat's claiming to be Electricians' and the work being of a poor standard. This type of instance goes on everywhere and I am of the thought that Spanish people who are unqualified also carry on this practice too. Nontheless, this is not a justification in demeaning the Professionalism and integrity of the fully trained UK Electrician.

LeckyLes

Hi, 

I live in Benidorm and lucky enough to not have to work. In my time here I've got to know a lot of out of work tradesmen (over a pint) who will work for less than minimum wage. Benidorm is a great place to live if you don't need to work. There is a lot of competition here for people looking for work. Any openings are usually given firstly to family and friends (often wether qualified or not) and then friends of friends. 

The only way you are likely to secure a job is to actually be here and do the leg work to distribute your CV. It seems that most employers and businesses are not interested in replying to unsolicited emails. 

Sort yourself a good long holiday here in Benidorm with that sole purpose of finding a job.

I wish you the best of luck and if I can help you with any specific questions about Benidorm I'll be happy to help. 

Steve