Lifetime’s Jobmother Fairy Waves Her Magic Wand Over Welfare Families
Hayley Taylor, Britain’s fairy work mother, was not brought to the United States to work for the corporate executive whose severance is running out. She didn’t come to help the recent graduate who can’t even find a job as a barista. Her new series on Lifetime, produced by the same people who bring you ‘Undercover Boss,’ mirrors her series in England; she shows people on the brink of homelessness how to help themselves. She’s often not pretty, and sometimes she’s downright shocking.
In the first episode, for example, which premieres on October 28, right after the glitz and glamor of the ‘Project Runway’ season finale, we meet a family so devastated that Taylor has to explain basic concepts to them, like the dog feces. crowding on the bedroom floor is inappropriate; that weeks of unwashed dishes and moldy food in the kitchen could be a health hazard; and that if he doesn’t pay the rent, he will be evicted.
This young family, which includes two healthy parents and two young children, has been on welfare for years and appears unprepared for the inevitability of government funding drying up. Taylor seems to catch them just in time, literally when the eviction notice is posted. Her goal is to help parents find viable jobs in a matter of days.
Only in America? Welcome to America. I asked Taylor if things are that bad in the UK. “All families everywhere suffer similar setbacks,” Taylor stated in his heavy British accent. “The welfare systems and environments are different, but the problems are the same.” She said she was exceptionally “appalled by the dog poop” but explained: “They saw it as normal. You’d think people would bother to clean up.” [especially when they knew cameras were coming] but that is the way they choose to live.” It is a testament to how desperately it is needed.
Taylor knocks on the doors of needy families and helps them with whatever contributes to their unemployment grind. She goes beyond the basic skills of resume writing, job hunting, and interviewing, and also advises them on budgeting, cleaning and hygiene, family relationships, and parenting skills.
In fact, you’ll notice quite a few similarities between Taylor and ABC’s Super Nanny Jo Frost. Both are dark-haired, full-figured Brits who hunker down at basic levels to help families take control, though Taylor dresses less conservatively. You’ll see her sporty neckline, short shorts, and a cheeky signature neckerchief.
I was there, fact that Taylor knows from personal experience what it’s like trying to raise a family when parents are unemployed or underemployed. She dropped out of high school, went to beauty school and noticed that she had a knack for giving private lessons, particularly to adults. After a series of career ups and downs, Taylor found her ideal position managing unemployed volunteers gaining work experience.
Her innovative methods and success led to her appearing in a three-part British series called ‘Benefit Busters’, which later led to Studio Lambert offering their own series ‘Fairy Jobmother’r on UK television. Studio Lambert is also responsible for ‘Undercover Boss’, creating the US version of the original UK series.
“I was out of work and my husband lost his job,” Taylor said. “I brought myself out by staying determined and strong. When people told me I wasn’t going to go far, it gave me the will to succeed and prove them wrong.” It is that determination and sense of independence that she tries to convey to the families she advises. “When we’re at a low point in life, sometimes we can’t see what’s in front of us, and we need a third person to come and point it out.”
Helping People Help Themselves While the Fairy Jobmother doles out lots of advice, she doesn’t hand out cash, childcare assistance, training/education funds, scholarships, or expensive interview attire. “The clothes come from thrift stores, and I do a lot of research for each family,” she said, noting that she gets extensive, personalized information on all things career and life that will better equip them to be self-sufficient.
“This is to help them take control for themselves,” he said. “When I leave, everything is in its place.” She also keeps in touch. “I like to keep them motivated, I don’t drop them afterwards.”
Taylor promises that the eight families in this season’s episodes are very different. She deals with addiction, recovering from Katrina in Louisiana, and some very heated situations. “It’s understandable that they get angry and confrontational,” she explained, adding that there is a lot of emotion, both from Taylor herself and from her families. Lifetime is betting that viewers will be emotionally involved as well.