Dole claimant takes government to court

[Gary L]

for being forced to work for her dole money.

YES!!!

I think the courts will have to find in her favour on this one, and everything will have to be changed.

“My adviser told me that there was an open day to find out about retail jobs. When I actually found out that it was a work experience placement that could take up to six weeks of unpaid work, I approached her and told her i wasn’t sure whether I wanted to go ahead with it. At which point she said “Well it is mandatory and if you don’t complete it you will lose your JSA benefits.”

She said that being forced to take unpaid work in a field unrelated to her career plans was “frustrating” – and raised questions about who was really benefitting from these mandatory placements:

http://graduatefog.co.uk/2011/1786/g...nd-internship/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ngham-16037332

[Taf]

"Career plans" have nothing to do with the real world.... I'm still waiting on my "career" as a playboy millionaire but have to get on with other work until it turns to fruition.

"Unpaid" work is a bit of a downer though, free workers taking the place of paid workers for a few weeks at a time?

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by Taf

"Unpaid" work is a bit of a downer though, free workers taking the place of paid workers for a few weeks at a time?

Yep. thousands if not millions of pounds in the system and all in the name of "work experience" as a cover.

I expect someone in the know is going to blow their whistle soon.

[denphone]

Originally Posted by Gary L

Yep. thousands if not millions of pounds in the system and all in the name of "work experience" as a cover.

Another word for it is exploitation.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by denphone

Another word for it is exploitation.

Well done denphone. you're learning

[denphone]

Originally Posted by Gary L

Well done denphone. you're learning

'Can l leave class early Sir?

[Chris]

Originally Posted by Gary L

for being forced to work for her dole money.

YES!!!

I think the courts will have to find in her favour on this one, and everything will have to be changed.

“My adviser told me that there was an open day to find out about retail jobs. When I actually found out that it was a work experience placement that could take up to six weeks of unpaid work, I approached her and told her i wasn’t sure whether I wanted to go ahead with it. At which point she said “Well it is mandatory and if you don’t complete it you will lose your JSA benefits.”

She said that being forced to take unpaid work in a field unrelated to her career plans was “frustrating” – and raised questions about who was really benefitting from these mandatory placements:

http://graduatefog.co.uk/2011/1786/g...nd-internship/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...ngham-16037332

AFAIK these 'internships' are supposed to be voluntary in that you go into them knowing and agreeing what's involved, but once there you're not allowed to back out without losing benefit.

If the claimant was deceived into taking the placement then the job centre has broken the rules and the courts should find against them. There was something about this on the tellybox a few weeks back, alleging that job centres are using these sorts of tactics to try to shove people out the door.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by denphone

Can l leave class early Sir.

You can. if you can place these ? , in their correct places

[Anonymouse]

If she's been on the dole more than a year, she's supposed to do a 4-week work placement as a condition of getting dole at all. I know, I've been sent to three "employment providers" who were supposed to help me secure such a position.

Guess what? I fell through the net, the way I have my entire damn life, it seems. I didn't get one, and believe me, it's not as if I didn't try. I did everything I was expected to do; don't ask me why it didn't happen.

But I disagree with it anyway; it's only a short step from 4 weeks to 13, isn't it? Then 13 to 26? Before we know where we are, the government has gotten round the minimum wage legislation - legally - and everybody wins:

The government wins because, hey, look at those shrinking dole queues!

The employers win because they don't need to pay their staff a damn thing and thus greatly increase their profits - and, therefore, the amount of tax they pay. Hey, the government wins again!


Of course, the poor saps who've been turned into slaves in all but name aren't happy, but, well, you can't please everyone, right?

- oh, sorry, I forgot the <heavy sarcasm> tag. Oops.

Let's get this straight: I want to work. But I bloody well want to be paid for it.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by Chris

AFAIK these 'internships' are supposed to be voluntary in that you go into them knowing and agreeing what's involved, but once there you're not allowed to back out without losing benefit.

But you make it sound like the person has a choice in knowing and agreeing beforehand. but they don't. everything is mandatory and compulsory.

a placement is compulsory. working for free is compulsory. doing what the government says you must do for your dole money is compulsory.

---------- Post added at 15:40 ---------- Previous post was at 15:29 ----------

The DWP says that candidates who ‘express an interest’ in doing unpaid placements will lose their JSA if they pull out after the first ‘cooling off’ week on the scheme. But Miss Reilly says she was not informed about any cooling off period.

That's because there is no "cooling off period" or an "express an interest". they're covering their backs about the volunteering, having a choice, no sanctions, it's up to you, we're not forcing you to, bit in the courts.

I bet good money that there is no such cooling off period, and I bet better money that nobody on the dole knows about this "cooling off period" either.

unless they misprinted the mandatory and compulsory paragraphs.

then again if it is true and it turns out that all these jobcentre staff have been lying to thousands of people. the dole claimers are not going to be very happy across the board of jobcentres up and down the country, are they?

more security guards please, Jill.

[v0id]

Originally Posted by Gary L

...
...
more security guards please, Jill.

Perhaps that's why G4S are one of the providers of this new Work Programme scheme.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by Anonymouse

If she's been on the dole more than a year, she's supposed to do a 4-week work placement as a condition of getting dole at all. I know, I've been sent to three "employment providers" who were supposed to help me secure such a position.

In any of them, did anyone mention at anytime about a cooling off period?
try to remember, and speak clearly for the members of the jury

But I disagree with it anyway; it's only a short step from 4 weeks to 13, isn't it? Then 13 to 26? Before we know where we are, the government has gotten round the minimum wage legislation - legally - and everybody wins

The government wins because, hey, look at those shrinking dole queues!

And the mass propaganda in the run up telling us that all dole/benefit claimants steal our money and are scum. helped them win.

[Maggy J]

It's just a regurgitated version of the old Youth Training Scheme which was good for adjusting the stats but actually did BA for getting anyone into an actual job.

[Gary L]

Originally Posted by v0id

Perhaps that's why G4S are one of the providers of this new Work Programme scheme.

I can imagine that the question asked for the security guard placements is, have you ever been sanctioned with your benefits? are you unhappy to be here?

if the answer's yes, you don't get the jobcentre placement

[New to cable]

I think the work for your dole scheme is disgusting. I hear people say make the unemployed sweep the streets or do community work.

But the thing is in this country anyone who works is legally entitled to be paid a set minimum wage. Now someone on a dole work placement could work a full working week but only get the £80 a week of whatever the current dole/jsa rate is.

I'm all for sending these people out to work, but pay them the legal minimum wage atleast like you would have to pay anyone else BY LAW. Or does claiming dole somehow mean you're exempt from the basic protections any other working person would get.

It must be illegal,