To think people on benefits can’t win

[Flamingosareflummoxed]

I’ve heard so many people this week, in real life, moaning about people on benefits. I get it that we are all struggling. The cost of living is crippling.
But every week there are posts on here from women who were in 70K per year HR positions who are finding it difficult to get interviews for MW jobs.
There are no jobs.
The few jobs that there are will be flooded with applications, why would recruiters chose someone who has been unemployed for years?
Plus all those with long term disabilities who need reasonable adjustments.
Its like people want to bash people knowing there is no real alternative.

Maybe, that must be what it is, but I wish people had the manners to let us know and not just disappear, it makes it hard for us, and the people who genuinely do need the job because we'll be waiting around for one to start who isn't going to end up starting.

It seems from this point of view that there are many jobs for them to choose from if they can just treat jobs like this, and I do think there's never a need to just block without saying they've changed their mind about proceeding, it's really very rude. I just could not treat people like that.

Not everything can be free. In fact there’s no such thing as free. “Free” equals paid for by the tax payer. You know you do have to pay for your own children.

We know what free means in this context. Free at the point of use. Same as the school that follows the breakfast club.

If someone is using a breakfast club, chances are they ARE a taxpayer.

The answer is universal basic income, then people wouldn't lose anything when they get a job.

To be fair, employers do the same. Totally ghost applicants that were not successful, sometimes even after an interview (has happened to me).

Im on benefits and work and don't lose money from working

You really don't know what you are talking about. My DSIL is very severely disabled and gets the highest level of PIP. He is also eligible for a Motobility car, but when he investigated the options the only car suitable for his needs required him to pay a sizeable sum upfront as well as the mobility element of his PIP monthly. After three years the car automatically goes back to Motobility and the whole process is repeated in order to secure a new vehicle. It is much cheaper to purchase your own car in most cases. He is gradually becoming more disabled and really requires a WAV, but that's so ruinously expensive via Motobility or otherwise that it's out of the question.

I find the hatred and spite directed at those on benefits and the rubbish people spout about it completely enraging, to the extent that I really hope they took will one day fall prey to the fickle finger of fate and experience for themselves what a life on benefits is really like. I think they'd change their tune PDQ!

People really should treat each other better than this in both situations, whatever has happened to make people so rude to one another?

Exactly this i have my own car that I actually own. Significantly cheaper and a lot more secure. Its mine they can't just decide to take it

Yep, I saw that job vacancies are at an all time low, a symptom of our struggling economy under this useless government. I do feel for anyone trying to get a job at the moment, especially new grads.

People who have absolutely no intention of getting a job are giving a bad name to those who are trying hard.

I think many people would benefit from a simpler system focused more on universal support rather than complicated means-tested benefits. Universally free childcare, for example, could make it much easier for parents to work without the stress, delays, and bureaucracy of reclaiming childcare costs through benefits systems.
I also think a shared two-year fully paid parental leave system could give families more stability during early childhood while allowing both mothers and fathers to be involved.
In theory, reducing the size and complexity of welfare administration could also reduce government spending in some areas, potentially allowing for lower taxes, higher wages, or more investment into public services. The current childcare reimbursement system already appears far more administratively expensive than simply funding childcare directly. I suspect similar inefficiencies likely exist across other departments too.

This. For any years, it’s been a case of persevering with job applications. My education leaving kids had to persevere in the 80’s
]
Sitting back, moaning, does nothing, 🙄

As someone who’s not long done some of the recruitment activity for apprentices for the company I work for, I wholeheartedly agree!

Why are some on this thread assuming that those who are moaning about lack of jobs aren't also applying for them? The two activities aren't mutually exclusive and the job market is tough out there atm. Personally I don't begrudge people the odd moan so long as they are also doing what they can to help themselves.

(Not talking about myself btw - I'm self-employed, thankfully, wouldn't like to be jobhunting in the current climate!)

Once more for those at the back and hard of understanding. Disability benefits are nothing at all to do with the ability to work. It’s nothing to do with not having ‘perfect health’ either. The assessment looks at the severity of the disability or health condition and assesses the impact on everyday life through a range of essential life activities. The higher the impact, the more likely the claimant is to experience financial disadvantage because of the extra cost of disability. Disability benefits are universal and paid regardless of other income or the ability to work. The assessment does NOT cover the capability to work, that’s for out of work sickness and unemployment benefits. The two are totally different.

An alien concept on MN as far as I can see. The reason that a proportion of disabled people are allowed to stay on disability benefits and some out of work benefits without reassessment is because their disability or health condition is considered so severe that they should not be forced to work. That doesn’t mean they can’t engage with work search activities if they want to, but there is no compulsion. And nor should there be. As with all of these threads I get the feeling that those shouting the loudest about all things disability are the ones who have the least experience of it, and even less knowledge about what disability benefits are actually meant to achieve. Conflating them with out of work sickness benefits is a good indication that this poster has no idea what she’s talking about.

They develop a bad back and switch to sickness benefits.

Have you applied for a job in say, the last five years?

As I said earlier, I’m highly educated, well qualified in what I do and have never previously had any issue securing work. Always had either the first job I applied for or at worst the second. Around a year ago, when I decided I wanted to change jobs, I started applying sporadically for jobs as and when I saw one I liked. I rarely heard back, let alone secured an interview - despite only applying for jobs in my field, in which I have 15+ years experience. If I do hear back it’s at most “we’ve gone with someone more suitable” despite the only information they have about me at this point is my CV which matches exactly to the jobs I’m applying for.

I can’t even begin to imagine how much harder it is if you’re younger or looking for something more generic, where even more people are likely applying.

That’s not to say securing any job wouldn’t be possible, but it’s certainly not an easy thing to do like it was 5/10 years ago.

Yes but Labour promised free breakfast clubs for all and haven’t fulfilled this so far.

Except I haven’t aimed one jot of hatred towards anyone on benefits. I just pointed out how the scheme works because someone said the cars aren’t free and of course they lose one element of their disability benefit so it’s £80 a week lost but they get a car for that, my car definitely costs more than this to run! And yes, some aren’t suitable so people pay a cost towards it which we already established.

Again, to reiterate, I don’t much care about people claiming benefits. I grew up with a mum in a low income job, we lived in a council house, I got FSM etc so I wouldn’t have eaten as a child without the benefits system.

There’s about 1250 schools so far but the pilot scheme has only just ended. It takes time (and money) to roll things out nationally, but there’s no reason to think their promise won’t be fulfilled, it’s on track as planned.

Motability cars still require petrol/electric like any other car, that’s not covered by the £80pw 🤷🏻‍♀️

Have the Government lost their ever loving mind ffs.
Youth unemployment as it is as they want to bring more youth in.

People coming here on work schemes still need employers willing to hire them. Those jobs are already open to people living here now too. If businesses are struggling to recruit, bringing in workers doesn’t magically take jobs away from people who weren’t applying for them in the first place

But that's not what they promised. They said there would be free breakfast clubs in every school, not a select few.

The purpose of a pilot project is to establish whether something is effective. If they were unsure whether it was a good idea, why did they promise it in their manifesto? 'We promise to do something which we are unsure is a good idea or not, so we are going to do a half hearted attempt'