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AIBU?

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Original poster

AIBU to feel annoyed by fit people refusing to work?

108 replies

Lazypeopleannoyme · 09/04/2026 13:28

I get really annoyed when I see perfectly fit people not working and then complaining that they are forced to go back to work.

I know if a woman that has lost custody of her 3 children. One was put into care with her parents because the father didn’t want to take care. The other 2 are living with their father.

She pays no maintenance for them because she isn’t working. Her benefits are being cut and all she does is complain to the fathers that she has no money and wants them to pay her living costs and her petrol to collect the children.

OP posts:
LetMeGoogleThat · 09/04/2026 14:39

So, less of an 'annoyed that fit people don't work' thread and more a 'Let's bash a woman who probably has multiple issues' thread then? Nice.

Indianajet · 09/04/2026 14:36

I just mind my own business.

DalmationalAnthem · 09/04/2026 13:59

How frequently do you see fit long term unemployed people and hear them complaining?

It's not something I think I've ever encountered.

DotAndCarryOne2 · 09/04/2026 13:50

OP do you really think the DWP gives a free pass to everyone who wants to spend a life on benefits ? I’ve worked within the area of benefits and claimant support for over twenty years and I’ve only ever come across the attitude that fit people have the choice not to work on forums like this. The reality is that if there are no health problems involved, claimants are expected to engage with jobsearch, preparation for work and job application. There are sanctions involved where claimants don’t comply, up to and including loss of benefits. We all need a safety net when things go wrong.

Whyarepeople · 09/04/2026 13:47

I would not call a woman who has lost custody of three children 'fit.'

smallglassbottle · 09/04/2026 13:43

Not everyone is employable. There'll always be a percentage of the population whose lives are so chaotic and out of control that they just can't cope with life and therefore can't hold down a job. There's no mechanisms to keep people on the straight and narrow now either. People are free to live how they please with few expectations from society and no one to hold them to account.

Wordsmithery · 09/04/2026 13:42

There will be layers of complexity around a woman whose three children have been taken away. It's quite possible she's not mentally fit to work.
But generally, yes, I agree. If someone is fit and able, they should work and not get benefits. I think most people would agree with that. But it's not up to us to judge whether they fall into the fit or unfit category.

Acutissima · 09/04/2026 13:31

I'd mind my own business personally. Clearly, her lifestyle isn't something to be envious of. I would say there's something out of the ordinary going on with her, in a serious way, that's led to her life being so fucking awful and her kids lives upended so terribly like that. I would pity her, and hope that mental health care and whatever else can improve life for people who are falling apart. Which may actually lead to people being employable.

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