Fed up of my cousins comments about benefits and UC

A UC claimant earning over the tax threshold, paying £1000 a month for the childcare needed would have to work an extra 10 hours a week to just break even (if they are lucky enough to not commute). So I can't see why a single mother with no support would want to work more than part time as it currently stands.

Agree its the system that needs changin, in my opinion work needs to pay.

One over the tax threshold you only take home .32p in every pound earned. So at nmw your only taking home 3.90 a hour.
factor in high childcare costs and or commute, and you would be lucky to actually take any money home.

Yes but this is exactly what I mean. 18 hours minimum wage equivalent is very part time. Especially if you earn more an hour, and can work less than that. But you are topped up to a full time wage for half the work, with no further work commitments

Where she would be 3 hours travelling time from her entire family, her child's father and paternal grandmother and all her friends, and would have to find a new job!

And as for leaving the children with the men it’s a fucking good idea and more people should do it because the level of support they receive when they’re single parents would blow your mind.

Perhaps the advice wasn’t aimed at you then ?

Depending on claimant commitments, DWP can encourage increasing hours and impose sanctions if someone is not taking steps to increase their hours (e.g., looking for a new job). There is also a minimum threshold requiring claimants in work to be earning the equivalent of 18hrs at NMW unless exempt (e.g., disability, caring commitments).

I replied in the comment straight after. The minimum income limits are ridiculously low, which is probably causing the resentment from those that don’t claim. The limits need to be amended, as they adversely encourage behaviour, and very part time working. It is the system which needs changing

It’s not exactly helpful advice when kids are already here is it? How does your advice help anyone on this thread in a similar position? It comes across as patronising and superior which of course you already know.

And the idea that women should leave their kids with their useless exes is hilarious. You think men who get out of paying maintenance would agree to have their kids full time? Do you think that’s in the best interests of the kids?

How is that tearing anybody down?

It’s advice, People can take it or leave it, but it worked out well for me.

I hope tearing others down makes you feel better about yourself 👍

Correct and that was definitely judgement not luck

There is a benefit cap so people receiving the equivalent of £3.5k a month are either in receipt of disability benefits or are working and earning over the minimum income floor.

Both my brothers and my sisters exs paid their maihtance until aged 21 ( crap at being married but OK at being financially decent). Our mother would have whipped their bums if they didn't. We had no idea my niece would be left living in poverty but the abuse was horrendous. She did 5 years. He was still filming her until recently.
We all try to help her out and she is intending to go back to work full time.
There are a lot of shit guys out there.
Attachment to earnings is usually the only way to get any money out of them. They should be ashamed but they're not hence the crazy ex stories.

Presumably you didn’t marry a man who had always been employed, for him to move out then quit his job to become self employed after he was chased for maintenance.

Well yeah shock horror, its track record is abysmal.

Obviously, I think that was the point. I was making very clear.

Each to their own, but not for me back in the day when I was considering who the father of my children would be

So you regard self-employed people as a bad dating prospect?

I understand that. I work for a small family business where the boss is constantly worried, and if it wasn't for her pension she couldn't manage!
But if a genuine living wage was mandated then all your DMs competitors would have to raise their prices too, so the playing field would still be level.
And we would have to raise the cafe prices, all adding to the COL and eating up some of the increased wages.

I don't pretend to have all the answers, but making sure that people who are working hard for a living can actually live on their wages seems a good starting point.

Not a strong point about NI this week, when it is clear pension entitlement is in the sights for savings/cuts

Shock! Horror! Not… SOCIALISM?! 😱🙄

I work full time, pay a lot of tax. Could I that as a single parent of 2 kids, dad not involved/contributing, and no family help with childcare if paid childcare is out of reach? Could anyone?

Sounds like you’re doing your best OP. Anyone could find themselves in more difficult circumstances.
I’ve been a single parent but luckily me ex had the kids 50-50 so I just worked as much as I could on those days , shorter hours on the kids days with my mum helping with pickups. It was hard and I got no benefits but appreciate I couldn’t have done that alone.

If she uses the roads, NHS and schools, she's still "taking" an awful lot more than she's paying into the system. One child in school is £5000-8000 paid by the taxpayer for starters. Giving birth alone costs hundreds if not thousands to the taxpayer.
She can whinge all she wants, but is being massively supported by the state indirectly.

It’s socialism the back door isn’t it? We are living in a socialist state but haven’t realised
it.

@allthemiddlechildrenoftheworld I’m so very sorry for your loss. and yes I think we will be working till your ages too - at least we have a business that’s interesting. Yes we ourselves didn’t plan on having a business go bust in our mid 40s due to 2 suppliers going down owing us large amounts, meaning we had to start again and hence couldn’t buy a home as by the time our credit was ok again we couldn’t get mortgages as ‘too old’ nor have we inherited - lovely in laws still around.
people are very judgemental - I’m actually really socially minded, I’m not right wing but I changed my mind totally on the fact that people will work the system to their advantage and don’t give a shit when a lady working for me wanted only a set number of hours that kept her below being able to claim the maximum but without being hassled - single mum yes ,but her child was 11 . She was as they say ‘all there’ when it came to claiming.