Why aren't people on benefits be asked to pick fruit? Why bring in immigrants?

[quietandcomplex]

Can someone explain to me why, when there are so many unemployed and on benefits, they aren't picking fruit for the farmers? Why bring immigrants into the country to do the job? This is not a political or racist or anything other post, it does not make sense to me, what am I missing?

The OP is neither quiet with their opinion nor is their level of critical thinking complex. Suggest a name change to maybe IgnorantAndBitDim.

For those posters saying that some people who don't have a job want a job. Ehhh???

Of course some unemployed people want a job. But that doesn't mean they want any old job. It needs to be suitable.

I wouldn't want those types picking fruit though. Can you imagine their attitudes ay being made to WORK?! How dare you suggest they do something, they'd probably spit on the fruit out of pettiness.

Op was clearly meaning people like this, people that could work but refuse to for no good reason. Not those on disability or with low paying jobs. Don't know why everyone is getting so defensive over it to be honest. And as someone else said, the location argument is just daft, we can bring in people from another country but not an hour away? You know what buses are right?

The lazy ones though like above won't do a good job. They are useless people. They have no purpose in life. They aren't sick, they aren't disabled, they don't have kids, they have no reason to not work other than they don't want to and it's easier for them to sit on their arse and do nothing. And there are a lot like that out there, people on here seem to refuse to believe that for some reason. But they would be useless for fruit picking too, they wouldn't do a good job. They would half arse it, like everything in their lives.

Many unemployed are youths with no caring responsibilities, no ill health, just plain lazy so perfectly capable of living in caravans and picking fruit

Says who?

"By historical standards, unemployment levels for young people remain low"

And of those who are young & economically inactive 76% are in full time education.

'You've outed yourself as a DM loving Tory'. When did it become the normal way of things to shut other people down by throwing things like this out into the world?? Why can't we have proper conversations that say 'well I don't think it would work doing it that way, so how about this as an idea' and grow from there?
It doesn't have to be fruit picking? Aren't you able to reframe it by thinking 'OK I can see that the time of year has made the OP think of fruit picking and these are the reasons I don't think it would work but I'll be intelligent enough to have a grown up conversation and suggest this way of doing things rather than use inflammatory language'

It's a lot less easy and immediate but contributes a whole lot more,

We have a farm at the bottom.of the road he has just ploughed his crop in he didn't advertise for pickers didn't get his usual overseas pickers just ploughed it in the locals were pissed off he could have asked the local community (because they have approached him for work before and been turned down) if his crop had been rejected could have told people to help themselves rather than plough it in but his field his choice 😉

I was on benefits.
Mon - Friday I worked at a day centre for autistic and disabled adults, had to be there for 8:45. It was a 2 hour bus ride. So my son was dropped off early to a child minder or friend, before breakfast club opened. Otherwise I'd need to pay 14 quid for a taxi, which was over 2 hours pay.
I'd collect my DS from after school club, walk home with him through the park so he could burn energy, cook dinner, homework, some TV, bath & bed.
Weekends when he was with his dad I worked on an agency as an HCA in nursing homes, often 15 hour shifts.

Those jobs were emotionally draining, but physically fucking insane.

Getting beaten up. Having poo thrown at you. Endless personal care. Vomit. Death. Snot. So much cleaning. So much strain on my lower back.

All for minimum wage. I'd get about 200 p/w for childcare costs in benefits.

My life was just being sore, always getting violent service users or lifting and rolling bedridden ones.

If you'd have asked me to pick fruit as well, I'd have punched you in the throat.

How do you know? Do you have statistics?

Realistically because Brits won’t do that work because benefits pays a similar amount, without the early starts

Also as a pp said the "motivation" the migrant workers have isn't some inherent trait, its pure economics. Those wages won't support a family in the UK, but seasonal migrant workers will live in bad conditions to spend as little of the wage as possible knowing it buys far more in their own country when they go home. It's why you will notice) few come from the eurozone - they come from the countries with weaker currencies, where the money saved as a youngster from 3 or 4 years of seasonal work in the UK pays for a house.

I worked in a factory as a student that hired a lot of polish people. It had hired local labour for years but realised the migrants were students & youngsters with no families who would happily work long hours, they changed the shift pattern from 9-5 to 6-2 & 2-10 and would let you work a double shift sometimes if you wanted to.

I worked with the poles and they were all bright and well educated. I got friendly with a couple my age, they had both just graduated university and had jobs lined up back home, one was going to be an accountant and the other in IT, they worked in UK every summer and what they saved would buy them a house.

Where's your evidence for this?

Because people such as the OP believe that unemployelment in this country is costly and takes money out of their hands to pay for it.

It's an over simplified, misguided and poorly researched stance to take. One that has come from biased media and those pushing division.

Here's an oversimplification for those that need it:
The tax in a workers pay packet goes to a general pot. The same pot as VED, VAT, Inheritance and lots of other forms of taxation.

It's then spent on various things by the government. Education, health, defense etc

Out of all the bills the Government pay using tax, Unemployment is, in reality, a very small percentage. It's around 2% of the welfare bill, which itself.

But the government and media have pushed a demonising of the poor. Labelled them Scroungers, pushed programs such as Benefit Street, Benefits By The Sea etc etc.

People fall for it, get angry at the tiny relative amount paid to the unemployed and ignore the huge sums paid to MPs and people connected with the MPs. (Billions lost in fraud and PPe could have paid the unemployment bill for 5 years+..)

is OP demanding the MPs pick fruit to pay it back? Or the profiteers to return that defrauded cash? Nope.. it's the tiny tiny percentage of unemployed people that get...
Now wait for it here..

£343 a month.. that's it. That's what unemployment is in this country.

They add on housing and child etc, but those in work can claim those too. The actual figure that the government believe an adult of 40 years old needs to survive is £343 a month. Food, electric, gas, council tax, internet, insurance, travel, clothing, haircuts, personal care. Etc etc etc.

And there's OP, begrudging them that.

I think if you'd ever picked fruit yourself, you'd see what you need to be extremely fit and bodily supple to do it. Especially strawberries. We did it as school children in the holidays for pocket money pay, and it was back breaking!

Wasn't there a scheme a few years ago where unemployed people were made to work in tesco and the like in return for their benefits?
Only it was stopped because it didn't work?

And as someone else said, the location argument is just daft, we can bring in people from another country but not an hour away? You know what buses are right?
And as plenty of people have said we bring people in from other countries who live on site. They work long hours.

Sure. Some people in the UK could also live on site. A lot can't.

MOST PEOPLE ON BENEFITS ARE ALREADY WORKING

NMW does not apply to live in jobs like fruit picking

This is what a lot of people dont realise sadly

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/society-and-culture/pick-for-britain-advert-how-to-apply-pay-uk-fruit-and-veg-picking-jobs

£7 quid after various deductions, shitty accommodation and incredibly long hours.

No, we should be helping people get properly paid NMW jobs, not just a summer job.
JSA is a tiny amount, they shouldn't give up their time looking and interviewing for jobs to go work in the fields, they will be back where they started in a couple of months, so it helps the farmers, the UK people who want their strawberries but not the people job searching.

Honestly don’t know why people are posting on this thread. The OP is a goady wind up merchant and impossible to have a sensible debate with some of the views on here, when anyone with a single brain cell could realise there are no farms in cities and unemployed people tend not to have hot tar just hanging.

@AyeUpMeDuck exactly, but reality is unwelcome.

Workfare

It was likened to modern slavery.
Companies getting the labour of the poor without actually paying them for it.

The MPs are on summer recess - maybe they can do it?

Just an idea. Maybe if the government bought in a work allowance for single person/couples without children/limited capability for work then actual work, especially casual, would be both appealing and worth it.

If they keen they would get to keep say £200 plus 45% it would give those who are unemployed a good incentive and simplify it all

THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS

Of all the things said on this thread you pick on this? Have you seen the comments stating unemployed people are a lazy waste of space with no purpose? Funny how you’ve missed those and commented on my ‘inflammatory’ comment. Read the thread carefully and see if there’s anything much more concerning than picking out my comment.

Yes there are lots and lots of people in the benefits system. Of these the largest group are pensioners.

However, assuming that you are talking about working age benefit recipients. Of these they are:

• on benefits because too sick to work;

-on benefits because despite being in work don't earn enough to live on; -have caring responsibilities;

• have primary responsibility for a child under the age of three.

Very few people on benefits are long term unemployed without any other factors