Hey guys,
so after studying my lv 2 hairdressing at college and looking for work for over 9 months i got a job as a salon junior, the plan was to study my level 3 and become a stylist within 12 months.

i am 23, so kind of late to the game for a junior, i have varied work experience and have studied fashion at degree level.

the salon is not my ideal, i would love to be working within a large upmarket city salon, i am working at a well established, medium sized village salon with an older but loyal clientele

my issues are, the training company that the salon use wont take me on my level 3 untill i have built up a small clientelle within the salon, Fair Enough, BUT, our training day is wednesday and they wont put me on the book for wednesday because the LV2 junior needs the clients. catch 22.

in the salon i am not alowed to do anything with a client hair...not even a blowdry ! and this doesnt look likley to change, at the same time as me they took on a 16 yr old junior and they also have a newly qualified junior who does their colours, were as i have no further trining set up and do all the dirty work, to many hands, too little work to be honest. this really gets me down because i enjoy being busy !

the staff are ok, me and the 16 year old junior have bonded well but some other members of staff are hot and cold, they dont seem very welcoming and i dont feel like i can be myself around them !

i have been there a month now and i wanted you opinion,

do i need to give it more time ?
is it jus not the right salon for me ?
is there anything i can do to help improve the situation ?

i appreciate having someone come in who has done their lv 2 at college and wants to do their lv3 in the salon is unusual ! but should the lv2 student be geting to do root tints before me ?!

thanks for listening to my rant lol x

Hi, it sounds like you love your job but it doesn't sound like the right salon for you , perhaps you should be looking for somwhere else to work especially if you are not happy there ,
they shouldn't be holding you back , have you asked them about this and why they are doing it ?
try and ask the owner can you come in for a chat on your day off and air your geivances and see what they say , (write it all down) if it doesnt change I would be looking around for another salon before you leave this one though hth

i completely understand what your going through. I was 20 when i decided to train as a Hairdresser, which by salon reckoning is too old. I look everywhere for a job, and the only salon that would hire me was a salon exactly like the one described. My advice to you would be, finish your level 2 before you start looking for a new salon to work in. Most old fashioned salons stay true to the basic ways of hairdressing so try to learn all you can about them. They might seem old fashioned to you now, but most of the time these techniques are the best. Watch everything the stylist do, ask question and take notes. they might not let you touch there clients, but they cant stop you from learning. I know working in a stylist city salon sounds awesome, which it is , if don't have a good foundation knowledge and experience, then you wont last. The 'well eestablished salon' is a good starting point, although it feels like your not learning anything about hairdressing, you're learning how a salon works, which is priceless. As an employer, the first thing i look for is continuity, if i see that a candidate has been working in a salon for 2 years solid, they're more valuable than a good stylist who only worked in a salon for 6 months.

if you're unable to build a clientele in the salon, go mobile! trust me, its the best way to build a clientele in today's economy. And don't try to rush through your level 2! this is the most important year in my view, so don't rush it.

I've met very few hairdresser who actually enjoyed there junior years. I have never felt so used and abused in my entire career, but it taught me lot about hairdressing and the industry.

Also, its good that you hate your job, shows you care

Good luck with your Level 2

Zara

ps. Just because the salons old fashioned, doesn't mean you have to be x

ur finished ur level 2 and they wont let u touch clients? wtf. . lol. . . i would do as minky says and calmly and maturly tell you boss you are really unhappy with how things are progressing. . ask if you can take in your own training models, ask friends and family, call in favours, surely they cant stop you attending training if you find ur own model?
i was the same i was 19 when i started and im now 24 and finished my level 3 and on the floor being mr stylist, stick at it, when u get their u will be so pleased u stuck in their. . x

I had this situation , which was difficult , but once it became clear that i was there to help and learn it became much better ( i had my lvl 2 but had to do another 6 months reception , then another year on the floor) .Id give it six months because it always looks good on a cv if youve given it your best shot . Thing is , what ive noticed in the areas ive worked in , so many young people come and go , when a stylist leaves ,becomes pregnant or goes traveling , the next one down gets intensively trained and takes there place and then the next person moves up etc so your time will come and by then youll know the clients and they will be happy for you to do their hair because they know and like you .Why not get your friends in for model night? or if a stylist is running behind and your the only helper, say to the stylist would you like me to rough dry ?while she consults her next client.

Id give it 6 months then write a list of pros and cons , till then make yourself busy doing customer service , reception, teas,coffees,mixing colours,passing up foils etc.... i found it better to be busy doing things you like than to be caught sitting around or with a fag cos then you get told to scrub skirting boards in front of all the clients!
On the other hand , if you do see a job going that would suit , then there is no harm going for it why not get

i totally agree why the hell aint you aloud to touch clients??? madnes
i have been lv2 qualified for 7 years and recently did my lv3 part time one day a week at my local college, it was free as i was 24 (free for under 25's)
i was working at the same salon i'm still in as a stylist and giving up my day off to do the lv3, as soon as i qualified i was made senior stylist,
so maybe looking into a course at your college would work for you,
as for not letting you work on any clients that is stupid!
you need to stay hands on in this job, you need to build your confidence in your trade to be the best stylist you can, surely they want you to progress??? if anything that place is knocking you because the clients are going to wonder why your not aloud to do there hair??
defo have a word with the boss in the meantime get on job centre plus and see if theree is a way out
best of luck sweety!! xxxxxxxxxx

Thanks for the responses guys, i have had a good couple of days at work as a few people have been on holiday and therfore i have had work to do ! its only cleaning but atleased i was busy, then saturday comes around, a busy salon and barely anything for me to do, the current staff are so used to doing some things themselves they wont let me do them ! grrr, i am level 2 qualified and the receptionist (daugher of the owner/head stylist) is doing colours, even though she has no formal qualifications, they were only root tints but why not ask me to do them i have my lv2 qualification for gods sake USE ME! grrrrrr, gets my goat !

i spoke to my college tutor and she is going to keep her eye out for me for another post, but i will stick this one out untill something else comes along ! any good tips for killing time, i try to observe but people then give me aggro about standing in the middle of the salon floor !

Cheers fellow Geeks x

I can sympathise! I was in a similar situation in a salon I was supposed to be doing my level 2 in. I think the most they let me do in the whole 2 years was take out perm rollers, wash hair and sweep floors! I don't mind doing any of that, but it drove me bonkers that other juniors would come and go and be let to do much more!

Have you got something from college that explains what you can do? I mean that you could show to your boss? Just a thought, if not don't let it get to you, hopefully another salon will advertise who would be more than grateful to let you do things! best of luck!

Hi, Greg, thats awful it sounds like you can't do right for doing wrong in that place, and this won't be doing your nerves any good at all,
you need to be in a salon where you will be respected and valued and where you are needed, as you are not being treated right there ,
I myself and other young juniors were treated badly by senior stylists who were oh so full of themselves !..
(perhaps they were treated badly) but that is no excuse,
leaving people out is a form of bullying too, and I couldn't take the nasty ways anymore as I started feeling ill all the time with stress
so I walked out of there one day and never went back, and it was the best thing I ever did as I was on a mere pittance anyway
and I got a much better respected job too

I hope you find a salon that really deserves you and respects you
good luck Greg x minky

This doesnt sound good. Easier said than done, but just move on.
If they employed you, at some point, sooner rather than later, they need to trust you with their clients and not have you doing nonsense. If you wanted a cleaning job, you would apply for one.

In your next interview, just point out how keen you are to learn. How about getting friends in to work on their hair for practise - am not sure how this would work in a salon, its only a suggestion...

Goodluck, dont let anyone hold you back...X