What are you worth? NITO gave me confidence and fewer worries
He turned down job offers that were not good enough. Jonas got a good job and a good salary thanks to NITO.
"Remember that you have work experience, even if you are a recent graduate," said the advisers at NITO. It made me dare to say no to job offers that were not good enough," says electrical engineer Jonas Fostås Bråthen.
He has gone the Y-path with a certificate as an electrician, and accepted a job at Batteriretur in Sandefjord in May. They recycle electric car batteries, as a leading player in Europe. The field is completely new and Bråthen can develop further within something he is really passionate about.
"Before I started here, I received many job offers where the salary level was set to be for someone who is a recent graduate. But I have several years of experience from working life and my seniority therefore had to be included in the job offer.
"NITO gave me facts about where the salary should be. Of course, it's important to enjoy your job, but you also need to know what you're worth. In connection with salary negotiations and employment contracts, NITO has given me confidence and ice in my stomach.
"After several rounds of job offers, I finally accepted Batteriretur, where I enjoy it. I am very happy that NITO quality checked my contract and gave me good advice and thus contributed to me getting an employment contract I am very happy with.
Motivation to achieve goals
For several years, Jonas has been the leader of NITO Students in Porsgrunn and has been on the central board.
"During my studies, NITO gave me a solid introduction to what organizational life is all about. Being a trade union makes me confident about what is right and wrong. I have gained motivation to achieve my goals and built networks both professionally and socially.
During his studies, Bråthen took professional courses through NITO in excel and programming. They dealt with several sets of previous exam questions, with a focus on managing the time on the exam correctly.
"The courses were very good and taught me to spend as little time as possible on exams, so that I had time for all the assignments on time. These crash courses made me more worry-free during my studies.
A smooth transition to working life
Jonas believes NITO has an incredibly lucrative offer in the transition between studies and working life.
The year you have the exam, the membership is free. As an employee, you only pay 25 percent of the membership fee in the first year, 50 percent in the second year and 75 percent in the third year.
"NITO is the only trade union I know of that has this scheme. It's worth its weight in gold," he concludes.
