... to think the gov can eff off if they think I'm going to do voluntary work?

[woollyideas]

I'm really fed up with reading about this hypothetical army of volunteers who will run our libraries, patrol school crossings etc., etc. as part of the old Big Society thingmy. AIBU to think that if I was to be made redundant due to government cuts, I would prefer to lie in bed a bit later than usual, write, paint, read, bake cakes, stick two fingers up to the Condems, etc., after 30-odd years of working? Or do you think I should just pop along and be an unpaid slave happily work for nothing in a local school or something worthy?

What would you do?

Interesting that litter picking is used as an example by quite a few posters... there is an organisation that helps to set up litter picking groups on river sides! It has more than 1,000 volunteers working in nearly 50 groups.

RiverCare's facebook page

RiverCare details

The long term unemployed that many poeple feel should be compelled to undertake unpaid work in return for their benefits don't just suffer economic poverty. Many suffer from a poverty of education, social and moral attitudes and expectation, are these the right people to provide essential frontline services to vulnerable children and adults.

Quite, expat. It amazes me that after WW2, we were able to set up the Welfare State but now, after a completely preventable collapse in the financial services sector, we're penalising the most vulnerable people in society. Our greatgrandparents must be so proud...

And where is the mandate for these changes?

The only thing I'm likely to volunteer for, tbh, are protest groups against the cuts to DLA, libraries, Forestry Comission, tuition fees etc. (Is that what you had in mind, Dave? Not sure I'll have time for anything else after that...)

I don't want self appointed do-gooders and activists running my services, I want well-paid, well trained and invested professionals. I'd go further, actually, and say I would really like all services currently run by charities and volunteers to be state-run and organised, and properly funded. (or maybe that thought belongs on unpopular opinions thread )

What is the point of local council, and ultimately the system of democracy itself if if we are all 'doing it for ourselves', organising ourselves and volunteering for essential services? It's a route to anarchy imo (and not in good way)

I have been thinking on the economic and future prospects of the less "equal" for sometime and feel that this government and subsequent governments will fail to make investments into public services when they realise that they can rely on a "free workforce"

I'm off to find like minded people with the will to campaign against this move to enslave economically and educationally deprived people to a life time of slave labour whilst the fat cats sit pretty and not so much as make a charitable donation.

Did anyone read recently that Goldmansachs had reduced it's charity fund by 300million this year.

I used to volunteer for a charity that helped the long term unemployed into work. I taught them interview skills, helped write application letters, CVs, find appropriate jobs, the caharity even had a fund to buy nice interview clothes and subsidised travel to and from work in the first month if they were successful.

The funding has been cut and the council building they used it to be sold off.

Spectacular own goal there Dave.

YANBU. I am so frightened about the future. My job is set to go in 6 weeks, and my husband is a library assistant. We are being fucked over, royally.

I cross posted with you yellow, I agree with you entirely.

yelolowvan - its a nice thought, but completely unrealistic. Even in boom times, the country could never afford to pay a proper wage to replace all of the thousands of volunteer hours given every week in this country.

I'll join your campaign, Queen Bathsheba. And couldn't agree more, yellow.

HighPriestessBoo, I am so sorry, it's unforgivable to make people unemployed and then stack these services to the rafter with free labour.

It worries me that as there is less and less 'government' it must mean less and less central strategic planning, accountability, organisation, joined up thinking, investment, safety nets like welfare and support back into work, In short, less of what makes it a civilised society to live in. It makes it 'broken britain'

plus of course less actual secure work avilable, so less taxes which feeds back into less investment. It's a disaster.

Lesley, no one wants to limit volunteering, its a valuable resource and noble too.

I think societies most vulnerable need well regulated services offered by a trained and professional workforce that takes pride in being able to make their contribution and feel pride in being able to "keep their own" famillies and pick up a pay check. It's fundemental to the health and social mobility of our nation.

A mass of slave labour will undermine paid work in many sectors if this is allowed to happen.

Yellow makes it clear what I have spent many words trying to convey

Plus, if the role local government are pretty much being made redundant because the private sector now provide the services, its not exactly democratic is it? We can't vote the private sector providers out can we?

madamimadam, that would be great if we could find more like minded people. I am more than happy to campaign for better public services and end this idea of exploitation.

If anyone does want to campaign, PM me.

I feel like screaming every time I hear about this Bog Society. My local (Tory) council is currently rtunnign a big ad campaign (presumably at some expense) asking us what we can do for our borough.

I want to scream: 'On top of doing a full time job, studying part-time, raising a young family and supporting elderly relatives on a crap public sector wage, I am also volunteering with young offenders...what are you doing?'

The answer to which is: cutting key front line services by up to 80% while giving themselves pay rises.

Cameron can take his wishy washy Big Society and shove it where the sun don't shine.

Big society. Although Bog Society would be better

The NHS is another area of concern, if much of the essential work is put out to private tender there will never be the will to invest in the NHS.

I used to work in adult services for WSCC many years ago. Most of the work was tendered out to private proffit making companies. It was cheaper to start with but once the inhouse service was burried, these same companies had the council over a barrel. They dictated terms and costs, how they would or might not train staff, what services they would provide. Its been a disaster for elderly and frail adults.

my pet tory seems to think the plan is to cut everything and then it will become apparent who is in most need and who is capable of getting by on their own, so that services can be rebuilt around them.

Sort of like a ducking stool then. The needy can just drown and the ones who were skiving will float.

I work for a homelessness charity. is v scary.

I also really fear for the NHs. Look what happened when they put meals and cleaning out to tender. I can't watch.

Okay - i've been un-employed for just over a year, my daughter is coming up for 7 and i have always worked.

I decided to take the time off to care for my daughter, and had the funds to do this for just over 6 months, after that i have had to claim Income Support, and claim for DLA is still in the works, although i do work two mornings a week (i know it's not much)
DD needs regular medical treatment, and is hearing impaired. We attend hospital once a fortnight at the very least.

At the moment i've just been told by the job center i have 3 months to find a FULL time job within the next three months or they'll stop my payments.

Fair enough i think if you disregard my dd's disabilities, I've got 6 years experience as a credit manager, and despite applying for every part time job that comes up (over 16 hours) i've found nothing. I can't have a CM look after DD as if there is an emergency i can't expect them to have to take DD to hospital when i could be 30 odd miles away. Thats not fair, and no CM would do it anyway. I'm lucky enough to have some one who can look after her Part time during the holidays.

I'd be only too happy to volunteer if i had no experience with anything else so it helped me get a job, and coincided with school hours. But, i have lots of experience & apparently training in a different area is off limits as i already have a degree in credit management! So catch 22 whats a girl to do. Stupid government!!!

Put very simply, volunteering is no longer, well, voluntary if you have to do it, so the term in itself is being incorrectly applied by the ConDems.

Not to mention the fact that, as stated here in several different ways, the whole thing is a cynical mess anyway. Forcing people to 'volunteer' in return for benefits, in Dave and co's blinkered (and wildly incorrect) view, it makes the massive levels of redundancies (and therefore cuts) viable.

As such, it's not really about who is willing to volunteer already (as admirable as you all are, even the Tories ), because the masses will all have to do it eventually anyway.

This whole Big Society shit will collapse, it's just about when and how spectacularly it will happen.

'At the moment i've just been told by the job center i have 3 months to find a FULL time job within the next three months or they'll stop my payments.'

They'll only stop until your claim for income-based JSA goes through. That's because your child is turning 7.

Once the DLA app is approved, take it to the Job Centre and have a copy of it put on file so they understand your needs whilst jobseeking.