I've made a complaint about my Work Coach

There really isn't any excuse for any able-bodied person not to have a job at the moment. Companies are literally crying out for staff.

I've said this on another thread, but given that you have a car and drive - Amazon Flex are always hiring. There is no interview. All you have to do is download the app and sign up. It takes about a week to get approved. Then you can do as many or as few shifts as you want in your own car and your own time. They also pay weekly. It's quite an easy job to earn extra money. You can also sign up for petrol discount and pay for petrol by direct debit, so you can fill up when you need to work but pay later.

You guessed wrong !

Because these companies choose to be excessively selective. I was very recently sacked and have been applying for jobs left right and center but its difficult. Have had a few rejections as well despite a solid 15 year work history.

Some work coaches can be utter a-holes, some follow the guidelines to the letter and some are aware that sometimes stuff out of your control happens.

I have to use the bus to get into town, I usually plan it so the bus gets me there with 30mins spare - to take into consideration traffic jams etc. One week that bus was running over 30mins late, which in turn made me late. I messaged my work coach and arrived 5 minutes late. Fortunately my work coach was still able to see me, otherwise it would have been a sanction.

This week I've missed my appointment due to covid, my work coach knows that if I don't make it then I must be ill. They're also the very much by the guidelines type of person, so am very careful about attending appointments and following up on their suggestions of jobs.

I won't be replying anymore to this thread as its clear some people don't listen.

By saying no then she is lying yes but this does not automatically make it fraud. The work coach would make a referral to a DM for failing to take up work offered, but this does not become benefit fraud until someone takes up work and fails to declare income.

There is a difference between not adhering to your commitments, and committing fraud. Not sticking to your commitments can lead to a sanction which varies depending on whether it's first offence and the circumstances which lead to a sanction. Failing to take up offered work would never get as far as a fraud investigation, that's the reason that it would be a dm referral as investigators are too busy dealing with other things to worry about if Mrs Jones failed to take a job,

Fraud is above and beyond a sanction, this can lead to an overpayment, admin penalty, civil penalty or prosecution.

If a fraud referral was made and the allegation was that work was not taken up, the fraud admin would chuck it back to the work coach and state that a dm referral is needed.

If all the op has done is fail to take up paid work, then a dm referral would be made and the dm would then decide if a sanction is applicable, it would NOT be sent to the fraud department

Source: I'm a benefit fraud investigator.

She would have been explicitly asked if she has searched for work, and if offered a job.

saying no means she then received the benefit under false pretence

aka fraud

I would assume that they worked out the figures as so many do, and forget to add back in the wages they receive. Used to see that a lot when people would query why they should be working and it simply turned out they worked out what they would receive wrongly

That wouldn't be an issue for OP though. She can do part-time with or without extra hours. And as PPs have said, she wouldn't be out of pocket for working. So something in OP story isn't adding up.

I agree, but it still would not be benefit fraud that would get investigated by a Fraud Investigator. Not adhering to the commitments agreed is not benefit fraud

It is if she did not tell her WC she had been offered a job as she would not be keeping to her UC commitments

Some of those jobs will be part time. When I was job seeking years ago, there was a company constantly advertising. It was 12 hours but they didn't want you to have a second job jus in case there were extra hours they needed you for.

Forgot to say, it would only be fraud if the OP got the job, and started receiving income without declaring it, getting offered a job and turning it down is not benefit fraud

For clarity, it is NOT classed as fraud for failing to take up work. It is sanctionable but certainly not fraud.

I worked the figures using 400 monthly income

Standard allowance 334 with no work allowance. 400 wages × .55 = 220
334 -220 = 114
Plus 400 wages =514 each month.

With work allowance

334 award
400 wages
344 disregarded so 66 × .55 = 36.30
334 - 36.30 = 297.70 plus 400 wages = 697.70

So no way can someone be worse off by working when claiming uc

You are fucking joking right

the op failed to tell her WC she got the job - so currently it is benefit fraud

had she told her WC - they would have said she must accept and have enlightened her (although I am surprised she didn’t know already considering splashed all over news when the reduced the tapering to 55p) re how much she’d taken home (pretty much all of it, if not all of it!)

Yes but that doesn't mean they automatically get the work allowance, you need to be responsible for a child or have LCW to get the allowance, but either way she would be better off as the uc is only reduced by 55p for every £ she earns, it would be impossible for her to be worse off

I honestly thought there were jobs available for those that want and need them. We have staffing crises in most sectors. Dreadful shortages, causing businesses to close, or reduce working hours.

Help me understand why it's not as easy as I'm seeing it?

for clarity

www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-work-allowances/universal-credit-work-allowances

@Allthegoodnamesaregoneffs

the op is in council housing and receives HB so…

The monthly work allowances are set at:
£344 If you are getting housing costs as part of your Universal Credit award, or housing costs from the Local Authority because you are in temporary accommodation
£573 If you do not receive housing support

and these figures are after all deductions ie take home

so she would receive £344. both our mistakes. But 12 hour job with BM - in her pocket

And it's 594 if you don't have housing costs, less if you do for the work allowance

Haven't read back to check, but you only get the work allowance if you have kids, otherwise its 55p in the £ off your total allowance with no allowance.

But there is no way someone would be worse off by taking a job, that isn't how UC works.

By turning down that BM job on the basis that you would have been worse off is benefit fraud.

Because it is utter nonsense. UC take nothing off your earnings until you have taken home or after any tax etc £564 and then it takes 55p off the pound.

so every last penny you would have earned in that BM job would have gone in to your pocket.

face to face appointments have only been in place since beginning of 2022, so the 3 you have missed over 3 years would have been in very close proximity to one another!

Op - you don’t get any deductions from UC for the first £564 and then a 55p off the pound.

so really - no excuse for you to refuse low paid work because Uc would take it all. They most certainly would not