To think work no longer ‘pays’

[Cuppasoupmonster]

This is a controversial topic so I’m expecting a few biscuits to be thrown at me so I’ve got my hard hat on. Inspired by the ‘benefits overhaul’ thread.

I often see on here that working and owning your own home is always better than claiming benefits and living in social housing. But it seems like the perks are long gone if I’m honest.

It feels like every day I’m dragging myself up at 6am to take my daughter to nursery (when I would much rather have her at home with me), just to pay our enormous mortgage and bills, before breaking even at the end. We haven’t had a holiday in 5 years. A few months ago I went into my overdraft for the first time in about 6-7 years despite the fact my spending is no different. What are the upsides again? Is it just that we get to choose the care home we die in (perhaps)? Because right now I’m feeling pretty pissed off with the whole thing and wondering if anyone else feels the same.

I work part time weekends and school holidays due to lack of childcare and my work won't guarantee me a shift even if I put my youngest into nursery. Unless I can find a job with guaranteed hours I will switch childcare with my husband and claim the help of UC. I bet many are in that situation.

I mean call me Jacob Rees Mogg but the ‘reasons’ people give for not working and expecting everything in life to be free are ridiculous. Depression is horrible but not a reason not to work in my view. Equally if there’s a local job available that the claimant can do, they should have to do it. Not make excuses about why it ‘wouldn’t work for them’ while continuing to rely on handouts. If they don’t take the first job offered to them the benefits should be stopped. Same for people choosing to work part time and ‘top up’. If there’s a full time job nearby that is available they should be made to take it, that or increase their hours.

Well, there we have it 🤷🏼‍♀️ how nice for you.

Annnnd.... this is where any sympathy I have for you disappears. You clearly know nothing about what mental ill health can do. You seem to think it is OK to force people into jobs that will leave them worse off when they are already struggling instead of suggesting that we tackle issues around childcare and housing first to make it worthwhile for people to work. You completely fail to understand how the zero hours culture prevents people from working full time. You just want to punish people because you are jealous.

If you think life on benefits is so great, you should just go for it.

Depression is horrible but not a reason not to work in my view.

Depression can render many, many people completely incapable of functioning, let alone working. Don't be so bloody ignorant.

Stop taking your advice from the DM's comments section and take some personal responsibility for your own circumstances instead of blaming pretty much anyone else but yourself.

Not if you have an adult child in work who lives with you because they can’t get on the housing ladder because it’s too expensive, and they can’t get social housing because they have a room in your house so aren’t considered in need!!

I have no family nearby so no it isn't. Trying to find a job that has hours during the school day plus after school club with space is like non existent. I doubt I am the only one.

You obviously haven't had depression.

You aren’t a psychiatrist. A psychiatrist will have to provide an opinion as to whether or not someone is too ill to work. Clinical depression isn’t just feeling a bit down in the dumps, it can leave people completely unable to function in daily life. You thankfully may not have experienced that but you are incredibly naive to think it’s easy to be awarded PIPS particularly for mental illness.
‘Equally if there’s a local job available that the claimant can do, they should have to do it.’ - I cannot believe any one would say something as stupid as this.

I’ve been watching the old Crown Court series from the 70s. They had a case where they talked about an accountant (he’d died) and listed his wage, outgoings etc. The family lived in London. He earned £9000 per year. His mortgage was £1000 per year. So a little over 10% of his income. He apparently gave his wife £30 per week as housekeeping, which was remarked on at Court as being generous! She didn’t work. The DC was at private school at a cost of £600 a year.

I looked up the average wage for an accountant now and it’s 45k a year. So, scaling up that’s a mortgage of 5k per year, housekeeping at 150 pw and private school 3k per year. 5k a year mortgage wouldn’t get you anywhere in London now. I don’t know of any private schools at 3k a year. 150 could buy your food I guess but it would depend what else had to paid from that. It wouldn’t be called “generous”.

So yes, there’s been a significant decline in the past 50 years and it is getting worse. Women being able to work has tipped over into women needing to work. For those that want to, great. But being a SAHM is now either a luxury for which you need a high earning partner, or only possible for those on benefits anyway (at which point it’s a struggle).

But your up in arms on here? Will that change anything!

And some people with depression can work, but some can't even get out of bed!
I did understand to a point until that post about how people that are very very mentally unwell are basically milking the system!
You do know there are more millionaires doing tax avoidance then people on benefits claiming fraudulently.

Hi

Most of the time I feel I’m getting a good deal.

• Social housing 2 bed flat in a desirable, green, friendly low crime part of London (but run down estate) - I pay peanuts compared to privatly renting and all repairs are free. But I don’t have the flexibility to move to a better place / area untill I find a swap which is very hard as everyone seems to be obssessed with houses in the UK. So I’m now campaigning for the restoration of my estate to start sooner (currently scheduled for 2025) and educating my neighbours (they can be ‘messy’). It was a nightmare to get here, I faced homelessness and other challenges - none was planned.

• I was in a low paid career which I genuinely loved but it run its course and I decided to start a complete new career with great progression prospect and all is going really well BUT I started from the lowest bottom which ironically still pays a bit more than my older job that had no room for growth. I’ve been consulted a number of times with the idea of a promotion with a new title and salary rise - but this is something I need to think very carefully about because as a single parent of a SEN child I need to balance my time and energy carefully - and a payrise means a benefit decrease. Do I want to have more responsibilities and more stress therefore having less energy for my disabled daughter? Just for the sake of an ego boost but essentially earning the same? At the same time I need to think long term and be progressing as the opportunity presents itself.

I get by okay, always worked full time and my top up benefits are due to GENUINE single parenting of a SEN child. I also have a very low maintanace simple life which suits my personality.

As I am aging a little bit extra money would be beneficial so I could look after myself better in the aesthetics department but I will try to achieve this through spending more carefully - though the cost of living does not make it easy.

I didn’t plan to live like this, my dreams were quite different but that is where I ended up. I’m grateful for my mental and physical health, that is the real wealth I have really.

I have experienced severe depression. I worked regardless. I wasn’t even aware signing on because I felt depressed was a thing, so I kept on.

Why does tax avoiding make individuals milking the system ok?

Most people don’t. Are you aware most people with kids in school dont only work school hours? Your case is exactly what I’m complaining about.

I am still working but paying extortionate fees for days when you are on a zero hour contract and might not get a shift doesn't make sense. The extortionate cost of childcare stops me working as much as I want. It is a well known problem. I could give up the two days work and live off your tax but I won't because I want to work.

So get a job that isn’t zero hours. It might not be something you want but there are plenty of them out there. I don’t believe anyone ‘can’t find a job’ these days.

I don’t actually think you are posting in good faith. No one could possibly be so foolish as to think and then verbalise the idea ‘well I was depressed and I still went to work so everyone else must be able to’. You realise others can be more ill than you were.

and that is why I am preparing myself to support my SEN daughter until the day I die in case she is never well enough to cope with this.

Really I think you should stop posting. Your comments are so nasty and unnecessary.

🤣 High paying jobs are just falling from the sky….

uk.news.yahoo.com/price-childcare-kept-jobs-market-122238632.html

if your depression was as severe as some other people’s depression you would not be able to sleep (or be awake), eat, drink, think, bathe etc…
Were you taking meds? Were you receiving MH support?

This is actually impossible. Because if you’d been diagnosed with severe depression, you would have been signed off work by your consultant psychiatrist and given a leaflet or sent and email with resources to help you work for accommodation at your workplace like a phased return to work, your rights having a disability and also, if you lose your job/advised to stop working how to apply for benefits.

So if you’d actually had severe depression, you would have known you could sign on. So obviously, you are self-diagnosing and most probably over-egging the mild depression you actually had.

If everyone just stops working and starts relying on benefits, who's going to pay for the benefits?
But the benefits should go only to those who genuinely need them, not to those who abuse the system.

You are complaining that it’s pointless working full time, yet bitching at another mum to work more hours. What do you even want? You could go part time etc but are too worried about ‘what people think’ so hate the system instead. Stop bitching and moaning and make some changes to your own life if it’s that miserable rather than having a go at everyone else for it.