A NEWPORT father who has applied for more than 600 jobs in the last year is still out of work despite years of experience – and saying he is willing to do anything.

Now David Green has contacted the Argus to issue a plea to our readers, saying he is a “desperate man” in need of a job. The 40-year-old has had a tough 12 months.

He said: “I’ve never known a year like it.”

Mr Green has sent out some 150 applications in 2014 alone and hundreds more over the last year. One recruitment site he uses has logged 672 applications in the last 12 months.

In that time Mr Green has secured several temporary jobs totalling to around three months employment. He has been called for interview, but said the feedback he was getting was that competition was too great.

Mr Green’s daily routine begins with trawling through recruitment websites and sending off applications. He then looks to send any speculative applications, before checking back into the job sites in the afternoon. He applies to anything between three and 20 jobs in a day.

He said: “It’s just trying anything you can. You have to get past the barrier of recruitment agencies.

“I’ve never had trouble getting work before.”

Mr Green moved to Wales three years ago in order to be closer to his daughter following the break-up of a relationship. Since moving, he has had only temporary work, despite a CV full of experience and training.

“When money gets tight, the temps are the first to go,” he said.

His last proper job ended in January 2013 when he was working as a document controller for an engineering design consultancy based in Cardiff, on a £100 million project.

Prior to this Mr Green was a civil engineer, having started out as a labourer on building sites and worked his way up.

But in 2008, the Construction Skills Certification Scheme was introduced to the construction industry – meaning that workers like Mr Green who had trained without the proper qualification, were penalised.

“I didn’t have the £2,500 or the two years to spare for the course,” said Mr Green.

Moving to another area is not an option for the father, who said being close to his daughter is not something he is willing to give up.

Mr Green said he is applying for anything- he just wants to earn a living.

“I’m hard-working. I’m reliable.

“I just need a chance to prove what I can do.”

If you think Mr Green could work for you, you can contact him on davidgreen313@hotmail.com The plea comes despite unemployment in Wales dropping to below the UK average, according to new figures published yesterday.

The Newport-based Office for National Statistics said 105,259 people in Wales were out of work between October and December 2013, a rate of 7.1 per cent. That’s compared to 7.2 per cent for the UK overall, and is down on October-December 2012, when the Welsh rate was 8.6 per cent.

It is the first time since 2009 that the unemployment rate in Wales has fallen to below the overall UK rate.