Temping & Internships

Casual work and Trainees

Temporary and casual work includes the following:

• Office work – well paid if you’re qualified, this is generally the easiest work to find on account of the large number of temporary secretarial and office staff agencies.
• Work in the building trade – this can be found by applying directly at building sites and through industrial recruitment agencies such as Manpower.
• Jobs in shops and stores over Christmas and during sale periods.
• Gardening jobs in private gardens, public parks and garden centres, particularly in spring and summer.
• Peddling ice cream, cold drinks and fast food, e.g. in tourist areas or at trade shows and fairs.
• Work as a security guard (long hours for low pay).
• Nursing and auxiliary nursing in hospitals, clinics and nursing homes (temps are often employed through nursing agencies to replace permanent staff at short notice).
• Newspaper, magazine and leaflet distribution.
• Courier work (own transport required – motorcycle, car or van).
• Driving jobs, including coach and truck drivers, and ferrying cars for manufacturers and car hire companies.
• Miscellaneous jobs such as office cleaners, babysitters and labourers – these can be obtained through a number of agencies specialising in temporary work.

You can find temporary agencies, such as Adia, Adecco and Manpower, in most larger cities. Be particularly careful about jobs that may require permits or other forms of qualification.

Trainees and Work Experience

AIESEC is a student-run, non-profit organisation which offers paid internships in business and technical fields in around 90 countries and territories, including Luxembourg. You can contact the AIESEC chapter at your university for details of qualifications and application procedures. In the UK contact AIESEC UK, 29–31 Cowper Street, London, EC2A 4AT (Tel. +44 (0)20 7549 1800). AIESEC has a website (www.aiesec.org ) containing detailed contact information by country.

Transitions Abroad magazine is a good resource for information on all kinds of educational and exchange programmes. The online version (www.transitionsabroad.com ) includes country-by-country listings of programmes for study, work, internships, volunteering, language study, etc. – all in searchable form.

The European Union and EURES have a number of programmes for young people interested in training and work experience abroad. Contact your country’s national employment services agency or the national trade association for the industry in which you wish to train, who may be able to put you in contact with a suitable employer in Luxembourg.

This article is an extract from Living and Working in Holland, Belgium & Luxembourg.