To think there's little point taking on extra shifts at Christmas as it will mess up my benefits and I won't get any more money

[Ginzjam]

Sister thinks I'm being selfish not taking on the extra shifts at Christmas, but if I won't take home any more money and it will cause loads of Hassel affecting my benefits. I'm not saying it's right, but im right it's good business sense to refuse them?

I would do them if I ended up with a bit more money but I won't and I would be saving the company money as I'm mjuch cheaper than agency workers to cover the shifts.

YANBU

When we were getting housing benefit and council tax benefit and tax credits, I started working part time as a nurse. I could pick up extra shifts at a rate of £30 per hour. I didn't tend to because I have children with SN, but I could. It would literally have cost me money:

£30 per hour.
Tax X20%=£6
Leaves £24
NI X11%=£3.30
Leaves £20.70
Pension X7.7%=£2.31
Leaves £18.39
Tax credits withdrawal X41% of £30 gross=£12.30

Then, Housing Benefit withdrawal of 65% of £18.39 net= £11.95
Leaves £6.44
Council Tax Benefit withdrawal of 20% of £18.39 net= £3.68
Leaves £2.76.

So, the loss of £12.30 Tax Credits would put us at an overall loss of £9.54 for earning £30 that hour.

Kevin Bridges on working for reasons other than money e.g. self esteem.

If your boss sled you to work an 10 hours for £2 and hour you wouldn't do it - it would also be illegal

So why should those claiming benifits feel they should work lingers hours for very little pay? And at what cost to childcare? additional parking or bus fare ?

Working for self-esteem is why I work in the first place - I work at great cost to my health and my family We would be materially better off if I accepted that I am a carer and claimed Carers Allowance and stayed at home. By working, I have to pay fuel, full rent, Early Bird club for my DD1, etc. I genuinely think we are worse off because I work. That's before I do stupid things like taking overtime that nets me a -£10ph wage.

Is it worth it Lougle? I don't think I could work and LOSE money.

The fact that the OP is bothering to ask the question shows that she has a work ethic. Working on wages low enough to also require benefits can’t be very easy. Judgers back off!! And the sister can get her nose out as well. OP is she always this critical and judgemental?

No one should work for free

Have you seen the impact on the low wages thread?

Ligule that's terrible! We are so desperate for nurses too. The benefits system is mad. UC should let you keep far more in every £.

I can't believe some of the stick-up-the-arse posters on this thread. It makes absolutely no sense for the OP to work extra hours for buttons, and mess up her income. The fault doesn't lie with her, it's with the system.

It's very easy for people who are financially secure to sniff about other's work ethic.

OP, no I wouldn't.

I have said this over and over again.

If governments genuinely want to reduce dependency on benefits, they need to make it easy to suspend your claim while you take on seasonal work temporarily,or any other one-off job opportunity that might lead to later career progression.

Instead, with UC, they have made it harder, as they no longer even backdate claims!

It's mad, absolutely mad.

Aren’t benefits supposed to be a ‘last resort’ when you can’t earn enough to support yourself?

🤔 not when you just don’t want to pick up more shifts. In the nicest possible way- this is the definition of sponging!
If OP couldn’t do the extra shifts because of illness or childcare then that’s one thing but openly chosing not to as ‘benefits mean I won’t get more money’ is EXACTLY what’s wrong with society!

This is the kind of situation in which benefits should be removed!!! Obviously capable of working more hours but choosing not to 😞 WOW

Knightly

This isn't about 'capability'. It's some one-off extra shifts which won't be available to do long-term.

Ah I see the idiots are out this morning, wading in with their opinions about spongers and work ethics without having the faintest idea of how the benefits system with UC actually works.

News flash, ethics won't put food on the table 🙄

We don't know the hours the OP works, or anything about her circumstances.
How rude @knightlymyman

The OP could be working 40 hrs a weeks in a min wage job.

Should she routinely work 60+ hours so as not to claim benifit? Would that make her less spongy??

Once you've done the maths, and you have you're absolutely right - it's pointless working for more.

Unless you earn way over the threshold where you are tapered for universal credit or tax credits, it's pointless working for such punitive marginal tax rates. Pointless. There is no 'work ethic' or 'self respect'. No-one should be working for effective £2 per hour.

Knightly these could be Adhoc hours that aren't long term which can impact overall income. I work part time but was able to secure child care over weekends meaning I could work more. It was only available to me in November and meant I then had benefits cut for two months. Financially it just wasn't worth it. Don't be mad at low earners be mad at the benefits system

Obviously not. Having a job doesn't automatically equate to one either, lots just do it as the benfefit payments are higher if you do just sixteen hours a week.

That is assuming the OP is on older, legacy benefits. You do realise that more and more people are on UC now?

On UC, I wouldn't bother with the extra shifts because the effect on your payments can be ridiculous.

@fatty

Yes! She should work 60+ hours if that’s what it takes to support her family and that’s what she would have to do if she was was of the thousands of minimum wage workers ‘without children’ who get basically no help from the benefit system! It appalls me that you’re asking - in all earnest - should she have to work 60+ hours when she could just get free money from the gov!
YES! My DP and I do that reguarly!

@Moomin
That’s a very fair point - I can only go off what the OP stated and it didn’t express that OP could only do extra hours as a ‘one off’ I suppose there’s a lot of ‘she could ...XYZ’ but if it’s not in the posts then we must presume not else we’d never be able to pass an opinion!

😂 I enjoy all of the ‘some terrible people on here this morning’ for expressing an opinion I believe MANY share - only most of them are probably at work and not on mums net (I have a day off) so surely the AIBU sample will be heavily bias as the majority of those answering it are, themselves, at home on a Thursday morning!

@Shepherds

Did I miss a post somewhere along the way? Did OP tell us she was a struggling single parent with health conditions? If so I’ll remosefully retract my opinion ^ I did quite clearly say above that if OP couldn’t pick up extra shifts because of health or childcare issues then that’s one thing, but choosing not to because she gets benefits to a similar amount sucks!

OP do what works for you and your family. None of the arbeit macht frei people on here are going to offer to help you out while you wait for your benefits to be reassessed so ignore them.

Knightly - if you were in the same shoes as OP, and you had run the numbers and you still chose to work, you would be martyring yourself.

I don't believe for a second you would do it. It's irrational!

Yes, of course they're ad hoc hours, thus the words "the extra shifts at Christmas".

As in Christmas overtime?

I myself love a good bit of Christmas bonus shifts, but not at the expense of financial penury the rest of the year.