Morrisons offering 10% discount to students, but not to OAPs when many will starve to death this winter

[user1474095534]

I think this is a really bad idea for Morrisons to offer 10% off to students, but fuck all to pensioners. This comes just as the winter arrives and respectable charities like Age UK are warning that 1/4 of pensioners are living in poverty and many will have to starve or freeze to death this winter.

According to statistics, around one in seven pensioners are in poverty. Yes, still shameful, although not as many as you are suggesting. I'm not saying the older generation don't suffer, but they do tend to have a lot more in the way of support such as winter fuel allowances and bus passes.

A bigger scandal might be the thousands who have died after having their disability benefits cut off: www.theguardian.com/society/2015/aug/27/thousands-died-after-fit-for-work-assessment-dwp-figures Should Morrisons give a discount to the disabled? Those on benefits? Those in minimum wage jobs who are technically still in poverty? Sadly, we don't live in a society where people only pay what they can afford. Morrisons are a business, and by gaining brand loyalty from students, they can make a big fat profit from them in the long term.

What is a respectable charity ? Which charities are not respectable .....and why ?

According to statistics, around one in seven pensioners are in poverty. Yes, still shameful, although not as many as you are suggesting

It is shameful. At the same time, there are many pensioners who are very well off.

But Government policy is to offer allowances, bus passes etc to all rather than means test them. Maybe that's something that needs to be addressed?

As an aside, given the housing issue, cost of living, people living alone, lack of pension provision, lack of final salary pensions - I bet there will be a lot more 'them and us' in the future - with a lot more people living in poverty.

Pensioners only struggle if they are told/ don't want to claim all benefits they are entitled to.
With pension, pension credit and housing benefit,free tv , winter fuel payments they are more than 60% better of than someone on jsa or even ESA.
A healthy pensioner can afford to their homes , a forty year old with arthritis and diabetes receiving ESA often can't.

Which supermarket do you work for OP?

1/4 of pensioners are living in poverty and many will have to starve or freeze to death this winter.

Since that statement is clearly bollocks, then yes, YABU!

A Morrison's promotion is not going to lead to pensioners keeling over and dying this winter.

Pensioners have been the most protected throughout all the cuts. despite being the largest proportion of all welfare costs and ohs costs. A pensioner that is claiming all they are entitled to will be much better off than a student. or in fact anyone else on benefits.

ohs= nhs

Pensioners only struggle if they are told/ don't want to claim all benefits they are entitled to

Do you think that's true? We do hear a lot about pensioner poverty in this country but are you suggesting that it would be ok for them if only they claimed all the benefits out there?

She will have an income of £9k to last her the entire year. Out of that she has to pay for her lodgings, food and car running (she will be on placement at various hospitals).

Lucky her! That is a lot compared to other students. DS2 gets just over £5k. He's had to give up his car and rely on buses, often leaving at 5:30 am for 12 hour shifts. He's a student nurse and his placements are up to 60 miles away, so sometimes he we have to pay for two lots of rent then claim a little bit back. He's, also, had to get a part time job, we've cut back so that we can pay for his food. If he had £9k to live on he'd not be moaning.

Maybe you'd be better spending your time supporting Aged UK than moaning on the internet.

Me and my NUS card are off to Morrisons.

The stats you've given are absolute nonsense.

There was a very comprehensive report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation a couple of weeks ago (very widely covered in the media, so slightly surprising you didn't hear or read about it if you are so concerned with pensioner poverty issues...) which showed that pensioner poverty has fallen dramatically from 41% to 13%, which child poverty remains at around 30%

And poverty among working people with dependent children has risen to 20%
www.jrf.org.uk/report/we-can-solve-poverty-uk

So of all the groups most likely 'to starve to death' this winter, OAPs are the least likely. So I'm not sure why you think they are the most deserving of discounts...

My in laws are the "poor" pensioners of which you speak. Both have state and private pensions,own their home plus a holiday home,a car and go away 4 times a year. They also get free public transport and the winter fuel allowance. My mum retires in 3 years and will be considerably better off than either myself or dh. I don't know any poor pensioners to be honest,they all do very well.

I don't know any poor pensioners to be honest,they all do very well

Well - 13% or 1 in 7 are in poverty so maybe you haven't met those ones.

DF is the same. He is doing very well thank you. But I don't doubt there are pensioners in difficulty. As there are MANY people in this. Saying you don't know any poor pensioners does not mean they don't exist. Just not in your circles.

It's not a bad thing that students are getting a discount! I often see student discounts from computer software to clothing. Why are you picking on Morrisons?

While there are poor OAPs, some of them are very wealthy. Many paid off their mortgage before prices went insane, sent their children to university for free and have final salary pensions.

If Morrisons is to survive it needs to remain competitive against Lidl and Aldi.

spare I think it will take much more than one article to make people realise not all pensioners are on the bread line.
But that a level of 30% of children under the poverty line is completely unacceptable.

Ego 13% is still much much less than the number of children under the poverty line though.....

Or the 20% of working people with children.

But somehow we still have in our heads that older people are 'all' poor and 'all' need allowances etc to be able to 'survive'

Whereas you never hear about children and working parents shouldn't have had children if they can't afford it, should work more etc etc... Not one word of 'oh poor them'....

13% is still much much less than the number of children under the poverty line though

Indeed. And that's what I've said on this thread. There are MANY groups who are in need.

1/4 of pensioners starving or freezing to death. My 86 year old grandmother had six kids lived in rented accommodation and on a low income all her life but she is doing just fine. She doesn't drink or smoke or buy any of the latest gadgets but she certainly has enough food and her house is cosy warm she even runs a very old car.
Not all pensioners are isolated living in poverty never seeing anyone from one week to the next. But that won't make a good headline would it.

But somehow we still have in our heads that older people are 'all' poor and 'all' need allowances etc to be able to 'survive

If people suggest that pensioners allowances should be means tested, there's often an outcry about 'pensioners who fought in the war, why shouldn't they get them, they are too proud to claim etc'.

DF is a pensioner. He never fought in WW2 seeing as he was born during the war. He has done fine, got a great pension and does not need all these allowances.

But it's difficult to challenge them as politicians are not keen to upset the 'grey' vote - as they are also the ones who are more likely to vote.

A Morrison's promotion is not going to lead to pensioners keeling over and dying this winter.

As a student, I gear my shopping towards mostly - if not all - places that offer a student discount. Will always check if they offer one before going and will always choose the place that does over the one that doesn't.

Students are at a weird place economically, because they have little income but still spend. Morrisons have, imo, made an excellent business decision and I will probably continue to shop there after my degree when I'm in 50k of debt

Practically it's easier to check if someone's a student with an NUS or uni/college card. Aside from bus passes for OAPs, how is Morrisons supposed to check someone is on a low income, or disabled, or working but with too little pay etc etc. I would love my ASD DB to be able to get a discount on his shopping, but I realise this isn't possible for businesses.

pensioners who fought in the war, why shouldn't they get them, they are too proud to claim etc'.

DF is a pensioner. He never fought in WW2 seeing as he was born during the war.

Yes it is a very seductive myth. To have 'fought in the war' a pensioner would have to be 90 so they are a small proportion of the pool of pensioners.

Even more absurdly I've seen means testing rejected as it would bring back the means test in the 1930s and the stigma would prevent folk claiming what they were entitled too. They'd be pushing 100 to remember the means test.

The real and rather more ignoble reason that pensioner benefits have been protected whilst working age benefits have been cut is that pensioners are more likely to vote and disproportionately likely to vote Tory.

I dont think many pensioners starve to death because they can't afford food. Malnorishment is quite often a problem and is sometimes related to poverty but more often to health conditions that diminish the appetite, or things like dementia when self-care fails.

None of this is down to the supermarkets to solve. Food is actually very cheap in the UK already.