WITH hundreds of applicants fighting it out for every job and unemployment figures at a 17-year high, one determined Swansea job seeker tells KATE CLARKE the attitude of some employers is making a tough situation even harder to bear.

WHEN he was serving the Queen something delicate and tasty at the opening ceremony for Swansea's LC, Wayne Phillips wouldn't have guessed that just four years later he would be unemployed, and feeling as if he had been flung on the scrap heap.

And he is far from alone. Latest unemployment figures for Wales show a hike of 10,000, taking the Welsh jobless rate to 8.4 per cent. Every day between September and November around 1,300 Britons joined the growing army of those without work. The picture is only likely to get worse over the coming months.

When supermarket giant Asda opened its store in Gorseinon more than 3,000 hopefuls chased the 300 jobs on offer at the supermarket.

Meanwhile, over at Tata Steel in Port Talbot, 800 scrambled after its 81 trainee-ship places at the end of last year.

Analysts are warning of a lost generation of graduates and school leavers who may never feel the benefits of working for a living.

And it isn't just the youngsters who are struggling.

At the other end of the spectrum, workers with years of experience and glowing CVs are struggling to get a look-in on the employment market.

And catering manager Wayne, from Llansamlet, says it isn't just the unemployment that is leaving a nasty taste in his mouth. It is the discourtesy of many would-be employers themselves.

"I am a workaholic. I need to work and I want to be busy. So I have been applying for ten to 15 jobs per week, in Swansea, Cardiff, Bristol, Newport, London — everywhere.

"And I haven't got one response. It isn't just the fact that I'm not getting interviews. The fact that people don't even send back an email saying, 'Thanks for your application Wayne, but you don't fit what we are looking for', is so rude and disheartening."

While job sites are crammed full of tips about how job seekers should conduct themselves in interviews and how to make sure their application and covering letter stand out from the rest in the postbag, they should also have a section to coach employers in common courtesy, he suggests.

At 45 years old, Wayne has clocked up decades of experience in catering, with The Bluebell Hotel in Neath, the Village in SA1, the Dylan Thomas Centre and Gwalia Housing on his CV.

His last employer had taken on three other members of staff when they recruited him and six months ago they decided they could no longer afford to keep him on. Aside from a stint on the checkouts in Morrisons, he has been unemployed since.

"I was let go from Morrisons the day before Christmas. Happy Christmas!" he said.

A chatty people-pleaser, Wayne says his skills have never been called into question, it is the state of the employment market and the offhand attitude of employers at the root of the problem.

He was even picked out on Morrisons' 'employee of the week' board for exceptional customer service skills while he was at the supermarket.

"I just don't know what else to do. I have experience, people say I stand out from the crowd, I am very good with people."

In his time in catering Wayne has served the Queen at Swansea's Brangwyn Hall, as well as ex-PM Tony Blair. And his people skills earned him Swansea City Centre Partnership's 'Proud to Serve' award a few years ago.

But his nine to five routine is a very different one now. And he says facing a long stretch on Jobseeker's allowance fills him with dread.

"I go to the Jobcentre to look for work, but there are people there with their cans of beer and there are security guards in front of the staff. It isn't a good atmosphere.

"I have quite a big mortgage because I took on several jobs to buy my house, so things are very difficult.

"I'm lucky that I have a supportive family, but I worry about the future."

Wayne isn't alone in this bind of course. But if anything, it is the older, over-50s who are struggling even more.

Experts warn it is very difficult, if not impossible, for a worker in their 50s or 60s to find another job paying the same salary. Many never work again. To make matters worse, they are losing their jobs at a time when the Government is increasing the State pension age, which means their retirement date is being postponed.

Dr Ros Altmann, director general of Saga, the old-age experts, says once they have lost their job it is almost like their life is over, but it is far too early for this to happen.

"They want to work and they need to work, but many cannot find a job ever again," he adds.

'There are people who apply for hundreds of jobs but keep on being told they are far too experienced, which is a euphemism for being too old."

Wayne says he has now started making enquiries into catering on cruise ships.

"I'm trying everything I can think of," he adds.

"But do I have to put my head on a gold platter to shine?"