A desperate unemployed forklift operator has blamed ageism for his fruitless job search in the UK.

Matt Earl, 39, wrote an open letter to the Northampton Evening Telegraph, which read:

"I am currently unemployed and at the age of 39 it seems my chances of employment are diminishing every day.

"I have been to countless agencies who advertise numerous forklift operator jobs and, once registered with an agency, the jobs are no longer available.

"I have nearly 15 years' experience in warehousing and am constantly overlooked for even an interview at companies, and can only assume this is due to age.

"The sooner companies realise the wealth of experience that is available to them by taking a chance on the more mature applicant, the easier my job search will become but I will not be holding my breath."

If you can help in Matt's job search, write to www.forkliftaction.com and we will pass along your details. Let's see if we can find Matt a job!