I haven't committed any crime like this woman has, so why do I have to do 120 hours of unpaid work?

[DeadWomanWalking]

Woman sentenced to 215 hours of unpaid work for committing benefit fraud. I'm currently having to do 120 hours of unpaid work (30 hours a week for 4 weeks) or I'll lose my benefits. So what's my crime? Being unemployed? Being poor? Completely baffled by this governments policies.

Dark its called targeting people you believe not to have the skills or support to challenge it.

Serving or helping in a charity shop is voluntary work, helping out at your local school is voluntry work, serving the community, helping to decorate a disabled or elderly persons house or clearing a local beauty spot counts as voluntary work.

swelling the coffers of a cheapskate store chain which should be employing people on the minimum wage or more DOES NOT!

OP, I've not read all the thread, but I got up to the bit where you said you would like to retrain, but you would lose your JSA.

There are now grants available for age 24+ students in post compulsory education courses, so further education etc (I don't mean the grants that go to students studying degrees). I'm not sure if you would qualify for this to retrain as a legal secretary, and if you do, whether it would be enough in replacement for the other benefits you will presumably receive due to your DH also being out of work and with you having dependants.

It might be worth going to see somebody at your local further education college. Going by what we have at our college, we have a dedicated 'student finance and support' person who advises students on their fees/grants/loans etc.

Like I said, I'm not totally sure because I work in higher education in an further education college, so I just saw something in our weekly newsletter, but I didn't get anymore details because it's not applicable to me.

Either way, good luck with your search for work and I do hope that you get some positives from your 'slave work experience'.

How did today go OP?

Couthy is correct they are a bad thing on a cv AND most refuse to provide a reference.

And yes she is effectively working for free but at the same time she's reducing employment and allowing companies to exploit workers and costing the tax payer more and she has no choice about it.

This! What sock said on Page 2.

If it was a handful of Companies involved I would say the OP was being unreasonable but it's not and so she isn't. www.boycottworkfare.org/?page_id=16

Oh and do you know you can't find your own Work Placement? I'm a Single Parent who was offered Work Experience related to my Degree, The Jobcentre told me I couldn't do it because the Company isn't being paid to take me off the Unemployment Figures registered with the Jobcentre!

OP Good luck with your Jobsearch and I hope you and or your Dh find something soon ~

Sounds awful - I thought we paid taxes so if we are unfortunate enough to be made redundant we get JSA. It is out of order IMO. Good luck.xxx

It went very well today Darkesteyes. I am now officially a carer, on income support, off JSA and no longer have to complete the rest of my MWA. The relief is immense.

Told you so,womanwalking.

Glad you went down there

Hope things improve for you from here, DeadWomanWalking.

Well done DeadWomanWalking glad things worked out well for you.

Hurrah to that, Deadwoman, what a relief!

I don't have a problem with requiring people who are able to work to work/retrain for at least some of their time in order to get benefits, but it is apparent to anyone that this is just not working the way it is set up. It has nothing to do with punishing people, I'm not interested in that in the slightest, I do think it is reasonable to ask people to work the number of hours a week that it would take them to earn that money if they were being paid NMW (or longer hours over a shorter time that come to the same number of hours). I do think that a certain amount of studying should also be allowed instead of this work if it means that a person can retrain for a needed career.

Perhaps businesses should only be able to take workers for two months a year (not including their busiest season) and perhaps they should not be allowed to take people if they have reduced their staffing levels. Perhaps as someone posted only work that would otherwise be done by volunteers would count. Do businesses have to prove that they have trained these people instead of just putting them on the most menial job they have?

I'm hoping the benefit fraud hours are a red herring...? That that person would be expected to work those hours on top of what the OP is expected to do, not instead of...?

OP best of luck to the both of you, I hope one of you finds a job soon. I have been in the position of wanting a job, any job and it can really be frustrating and miserable.

Just saw your latest post, thank goodness! Now hopefully your DH will get some good news soon too.

Pleased for you DeadWomanWalking. I wish you and your DH the best of luck and hope he has some good news soon as well.

That's really good OP. At least that isn't hanging over you anymore.You had some really good advice on here. Don't give up. Take advice on your CV, and all the best x