A father-of-three in the UK has put himself up for sale on an online auction website for 20,000 pounds, as a desperate measure after knowing that he will be unemployed within a month.
Andy Martin was given 30 days' notice that he was being made redundant, which led him to take the drastic action. As well as starting a daily blog outlining his efforts in finding a new job, the 45-year-old came up with the idea to auction himself off.
Martin, currently a traffic planner for a waste management company, said: "I have been unemployed in the past. I knew I could either stay bitter and angry, which I was, about losing my job, or I could do something about it. It is a whole new world so I have had to quickly get up to speed."
"I have joined networks, I am using social networking, I even bought hits for my blog to point people to my CV. After all of that, I thought, 'why not, I'll put myself up for sale!" he added.
With a 'buy now' price of 20,000 pounds the internet site was quick to inform Martin, a former delivery manager, that he was breaching the rules by trying to sell himself, the Daily Mail reported. He was, however, allowed to post in the 'goods wanted' section.
Martin, who this week celebrated his 45th birthday and 25th wedding anniversary to Debbie, an Asda delivery worker, is hoping his efforts will pay off, but also that his commitment to working will influence his 11-year-old son, Lewis.
Martin, of Stockton, Stockton-on-Tees, said: "It is hard for him. His older sisters aren't at home any more so he is seeing the impact of this."
"Our summer holiday to Scarborough is on hold and he has to watch as I spend every waking minute applying for jobs and looking online. It tugs on the heart strings a bit when he says, 'good luck with this one, dad'," the father said.
"At least it sets an example for him that jobs don't just come to you," he added.