to think JSA is insultingly low amount

[brt100]

I mean 72 pounds a week is a joke, and you will loose 20% of that if you had an average paying job for half of the tax year.

Around here the daily rate wouldn't even cover the daily bus ticket to get to interviews.

Miaow.

"Contribs-based is 72 a week for an adult"

No it isnt. If that's true then the DHSS are robbing me.

Show me any evidence that contrib-based jsa is the amount you claim and I will be happy to admit being wrong.

lemonmuffin

I am quite certain the DHSS pay you a different rate. What's it like back there, under Thatcher?

www.gov.uk/jobseekers-allowance/what-youll-get

Are you under 25? Under twenty-fives are only eligible for a lower rate of £57.35.

The point is its not a safety net if the amount is no correlation to your previous job.

The government says pensioner s must have 150 odd a week plus bus pass etc to live off, even though they have less outgoings than working ages people mainly due to no mortgage.

Well it's still better than nothing.

In lots of countries there is nothing, no help whatsoever, if you have no money you beg for it.

We should feel very privilaged that at least we live in a country where no one has to beg for money or food.

There is no perfect solution. Life is not fair for everyone. Life is not easy for everyone. Sometimes life is a struggle. We shouldn't loose sight of that and think that somehow we deserve more or better. We are just animals living on a planet, insignificant and meaningless in the grand scheme of things, no different to the ants and flies that have all come out in this lovely weather.

Exactly brt100. I'm sick of hearing about impoverished pensioners when they get twice the allowance of a younger person, and three times the amount of a very young person.

Maybe it's manageable if you have 3 kids and the associated child benefit and tax credits, but if you're young, single and childless, you're fucked.

Blatant age discrimation which should be illegal.

But we don't live in a country where no one has to beg for food.

The cuts to disability benefits left a whole raft of people eligible for no income benefit at all - they're deemed too well for disability benefits and too ill for JobSeekers.

If they don't have children triggering Income Support, they don't get any income. (NB they may still get housing benefit, but that goes straight to housing).

Actually mostly you read about them killing themselves, not begging...

This cut happened in the last few years, so I can understand some people not realising this has happened.

And that's before we get into the failure of the DWP to do things on time, meaning that people have weeks (sometimes months) long gaps in payments.

It actually means the taxpayer can pay twice - the backpayment to when the person finally gets paid, and the donations to the (highly inefficient but increasingly essential) food bank to keep the person alive in the meanwhile.

I'm a full time carer and I find it sad that carers allowance is less than JSA.

Yes.
The idea is short term support while you seek a job, therefore job SEEKers allowance. Not to tide you over for many months.

I didn't think it would be long before people started whining about how much Pensioners get AGE DISCRIMINATION are you serious ????

I totally agree that a pensioner who has worked 30/40 years and now is too old to work should get more money then someone who has only worked for a few years and is young enough to get a job if they cant survive on JSA.

It's fine if it was for a short time but at the moment, it's highly unlikely that you'll stay unemployed for just a short time. There's hardly any jobs going and you also have to compete with others already employed looking to switch jobs to. I feel very bad for people having to claim JSA at the moment, it's difficult and I agree, JC staff are usually rude and talk down to you.

"I am quite certain the DHSS pay you a different rate. What's it like back there, under Thatcher?"

Oh for goodness sake! do you want to see my bank account details?

Do some research on the amount of income based JSA that you can claim when you are living with a partner and then come back and argue with me.

lemon if your partner is earning or has income then of course your JSA payments will be lower what's why its income based, that's why my Aunt who has worked for over 40 years cant get income based JSA as her husband gets his pension (which he worked 45 years to get) which takes them (just) over what the law says they need to live on she gets nothing after all those years of work.

Oh, so now you have a partner with a job? Anything else you'd like to drip-feed? Money in savings over £6000, perhaps?

I gave you a government link, which meets your request for 'some evidence'.

mumtoateen, the point is it can take months to find a job.

anybody who thinks a single person on JSA can manage on £72 a week please do a break down on here so we can see how this is possible

also in this thread there seems to be a fare few with degrees,good education etc which will go on to get a decent wage and benefits package ,many people havent got that and are left with min wage jobs,0 hours contracts,and no security,proper holiday pay etc etc these are the ones that are getting a kicking in the current climate

rant over for now

Not all pensioners have worked all their lives, especially the women. People don't suddenly become saints just because they reach pension age.

Secondly, whether a person is capable of working or not doesn't actually change the price of food, heating, electricity or anything else. If the person can't get a job, the fact they are capable of working doesn't make them any richer.

Finally, the 'age discrimination' comment was actually aimed at the fact that under 25s get less money. Again, food is not cheaper just because you are younger.

So yes, I was deadly serious. Older does not equal more deserving.

God some people do talk shit! I second what theywillgrowupsays please enlighten us on how £72 is liveable. DP is skilled and was out of work for ages and he is STILL on a zero hour contract, luckily, there is a constant stream of work but it's always a worry that it will just stop suddenly. The climate at the moment is just shit.

Why should the Government have to pay out large sums of money to people who aren't working? I appreciate that the majority of people on benefits are desperately looking for work but many others are just happy for the handout. Why should they get loads when others have to work hard for it. I was in JSA for 8 months after uni so I do know what it's like but I think it's a fair amount considering all the other available help.

Why should we pay so much into the government then in that case?? We pay tax on everything, it's not as simple as us just paying income tax, there's NI, council tax, tax on everything we buy. We pay an awful lot and JSA takes up a teeny, tiny percentage of spends yet people seem to think every JSA claimaint is a lousy scrounging bugger. Yes because it must be jetting off to Florida every week on £72!! Nobody is saying it should be large but £72 is very, very low really.

JSA is enough to survive on - that's the whole point! It is better than Fuck All, you should not starve on it, but it is a temorary measure till you get a job and start looking after yourself again.

What the hell is wrong with that!

But what if you can't find a job? It's maybe doable for a few weeks, but definitely not long term.

I'd like to know how many of the people who say others are lucky to get it are actually living hand to mouth? People (rightly) argue that it would be undignified for pensioners to live on a minute amount of money. Some argue that they do anyway. So why is it ok for younger people?

For the record I've never claimed JSA and am in a reasonably well paid job, but I know that I could end up there at some point and many are struggling there now.