The Job Lot

- Season 2

(2014)

Following the party to celebrate Trish's divorce Karl is shocked to find himself waking up nude in his bed. On arriving at work he meets the new deputy manager Natalie Mason whom Trish rates but about whom Angela is typically cynical. However thanks to Natalie the whole office gets to know about his one night stand with Trish and, feeling embarrassed, he applies for a new job. Of course he fails but finds the means to get himself back with the job lot when he discovers Trish at it with his flat-mate Tom.

Trish aims to impress business woman Jamina McNulty who is looking for a team leader to sell her hot tubs in China. Meanwhile Karl is annoyed when hunky phone engineer Andy flirts with Natalie so he tells Andy that she is his girl-friend. All the applicants are unsuccessful due to their inability to speak Mandarin though surprisingly Andy does speak the language and gets the job. However Jamina's sexist treatment of him in the hot tub leads Trish to cancel the deal.

Aware that the local MP backs job opportunities for young people Natalie invites him to an unemployment initiative day when each staff member mentors a young job-seeker. Sadly most of the clients are quite disinterested except Ann-Marie, who fancies Karl and compromises him into going on a date with her whilst Angela contrives an accident to get rid of the stroppy Bryony. George, the fraud investigator, gives a seminar explaining how he works but this leads to Karl accidentally Tasering Trish and when the MP arrives she looks so dishevelled that he mistakes her for a ...

The staff are encouraged to get more people back in work and Natalie challenges Angela to hit the best target with the lazy Angela meeting her match as Trisha helps Natalie to win. Trisha also tries to set Natalie up on a date with Karl but he misses it, as he is on surveillance with George, wrongly staking out a genuinely disabled person. Next day Natalie throws herself at Karl whilst Tom, having rejected Trisha when he found she was older than she claimed, stages a demonstration to show he still loves her.

Janette and Paul become unlikely heroes. Trish loses her phone and Natalie gets into trouble with one of the job seekers.

The staff attends a mandatory Saturday morning work-shop on health and well-being with employees from the Kingstanding branch. In the exercises Karl is hoping to be paired with Natalie but ends up with irresponsible Tyler, who gets him high whilst Natalie is teamed with Trish's opposite number Denise, who is keen to poach her. Trish overhears Denise asking Natalie to be her deputy but gets locked in her office. Natalie accepts the offer because she is fond of Karl and the rules state that colleagues cannot date. However Trish escapes in time to change the rules and ...