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?

It's not a deprived area, or at least it wasn't back then, it is now as it's too far north and of no benefit to the Scottish government. But there are jobs, and they are actually good paying jobs with good benefits, but they won't do it. It's sad, but they would rather sit around doing nothing. They'd get more doing the job. It does also happen all over the place. As I say though the good ones outweigh the bad, but the attitudes of the bad ones is quite horrible.

I've thought about this a lot over the years as I feel it's a real shame with missed opportunities for young people to learn new skills and have the opportunity to meet new people outside of their comfort zones.

The only way I could see something like this working is if people had a permanent contract for all year work in different areas meaning they would travel to where the work is.
So farm work when needed, summer work in tourist areas, hospitality work during winter months/Christmas period etc

Wages would have to rise to compensate employees for moving around and being flexible.
I can't see something like this working without huge political change and as things stand it's unfeasible.

People are not commodities to be judged on productivity, they are individuals who deserve to live their lives as they choose.

Oh stop playing the fucking victims. It's not some obviously commonsense notion shot down by those metropolitan elites you all get so excited by because you can't bear that people know things you don't.
It's an ignorant, fact-free, typically dense Brexiteer comment (not political?HA.) which has been demolished time and time again by all the factual points which will already have been made .
But you're patriotic, commonsense martyrs. Suuuure.

Well the pp said fruit picking so we shall go with that.
Job seekers is £77 so at minimum wage she will do 8 hours a week.

How she will get there is a mystery. I just googled my nearest fruit farm its 8.1 miles away. I guess she could walk?

I think you should do the number of hours that would equate to a minimum wage role for the amount you receive

Is that the whole amount someone receives or just their personal allowance (ie not the child element or housing part)?

Please be satire. Please be satire.
Because if it isn't, you badly need a history lesson. It didn't even work on its own terms. Ever.

We have a shortage of labour and very little unemployment.

The vast majority of people receiving benefits are either disabled or working and on low incomes (or both). Or carers.

I feel it's a real shame with missed opportunities for young people to learn new skills and have the opportunity to meet new people outside of their comfort zones

it's funny how it's only ever young people who need to do grunt work and step outside their comfort zones. It's like when people call for national service - when they are too old to do it themselves.

I said I didn't expect anyone to have to travel miles but is 8 miles too far? People with actual jobs travel that to get there, many also on minimum wage. Why shouldn't anyone else. Obviously if there is no affordable transport fair enough do a different role, but I don't think getting a bus to do a bit of work is that far fetched.

Any amount up to say 40 hours per week or a full time role. I don't expect people to do 80 hour weeks

The problem with that is the farms by their nature tend to be in rural areas where there isn't much public transport, so the idea that there's going to be a bus to a farm is pretty optimistic. It's really not like a person in an urban area travelling to a different part of the city. Sure, there will be the odd farm where there's a bus stop outside, but when talking in generalities, it's reasonable to assume public transport won't be an option.

"I have no idea but they should. Anyone who is able should do some sort of contribution to earn their money. Whether it be litter picking, gardening, public spaces etc or other jobs which seem to be done less and less now and would benefit the community."

Many people on benefits do earn their money either by working for shit wages or through caring responsibilities which would cost the state a lot of money if people were paid to do the same role.

They should. However farming margins are so tight, largely due to supermarket dominance, that underpayment and gang working is rife.

I'm not just talking about fruit farms. Any role that is needed and not currently done or has a shortage of workers. Litter picking, tidying local parks, putting books back in libraries. There's loads of areas where services have been cut. Yes ideally it would be a proper permanent job but while it's not use them as work placements for people to earn their own money and get some work experience.

Because people can't be arsed. They'll come up with wonderful sophistry for the reasons why.😂

@AyeUpMeDuck

👏👏👏👏

Although few of the people who need to read and understand this will want to. It will mean having to admit they've been conned, and that.'s just too much of a dent in their pride.

This is the most stupidest idea on a thread I've seen in a long time.

🏆

Is this going to be a new Tory policy by any chance? A vote winner for the brain dead.

QED.
None so dim as those who not only don't want to know, but don't even want to take the chance to consider knowing

Ok I agree that the time taken to get to work isnt a huge issue so I googled, it will take me on public transport 1hour 42minutes. That's assuming buses are plentiful, regular, never late, not on strike as they have been recently for several weeks.
The journey goes
Walk 3 minutes, bus 20 minutes
walk 5 minutes, bus 45 minutes
Walk the rest.
Both buses are not from the same company
One bus for that distance is £19 a week or £5 a day adding for clarity £2.70 each journey
The other bus for the distance done is £2.40 each journey, or £5 a day or £22 a week.
So assuming pp only has to do one eight hour day of work for her jobseekers, she has to spend a minimum £9.80 to get there and back. Who pays for this?

If she had to do a week, it would be £41 bus fares. That's a lot of money out of your £77

Ok. If I worked 40 hours @ min wage, I'd still get about £1300 per month in benefits.

You couldn't reasonably expect me to work 40 hours at minimum wage and not get the top ups other people are getting. That wouldn't be fair.
In which case I wouldn't be working 'for my benefits' I'd just be working.

Disclaimer I am currently to ill to work (but not ill enough to qualify for any extra help). I fully intend to go back to work by Christmas.

Is that you Priti?

Well done @SilverDragonfly1 this is the kind of creative thinking we need. As fruit farms are inaccessible, maybe we should build some nice blacking factories in city areas so these layabouts people have no excuse.

You & I won't need to pick oakum - due to our genius & social responsibility, we'll be policy wonks at the Home Office. I can see the motivation posters now "picking oakum is better than deportation to Rwanda, hurrah!"

I wouldn't expect you to lose the top ups. Minimum wage not being enough to live off is a seperate issue. If you are working full time I have no issue with top ups. Its people who can work and don't but expect to be provided for by everyone else. It may be a small number of claims but they are the people I'm talking about. Not minimum wage workers.

Then you should've been clear about that, because the example given was about fruit picking. And the fact is that the remote location of most agricultural work is a very significant reason why the whole premise of the thread, not even just this one example, is incorrect.

Although it's not like it isn't applicable to some of the other sectors experiencing significant vacancies, even in urban areas that are quite well provisioned. Anything that might require unsocial hours such as care or evening hospitality sector is also going to be impacted by the availability of public transport. Meaning that simply taking into account distance from work isn't sufficient.

Meanwhile, who will be supervising the people who are forced into the roles you mention, how will they be recruited in the current labour squeeze and how will you be paying for that?

I used to know people who would pick veg in the season they did it every summer got bussed in to local farms and paid cash in hand so it didnt interfere with their benefits. That work got less as more immigrants came and there wasnt enough work to make it worth their time.
Maybe if they offer cash in hand and lay on transport again it would start up again.