AIBU to be surprised someone on £34,000 receives Universal Credit?

[Balicious]

I was listening to BBC Radio 5 Live at work yesterday morning. They were discussing the Conservatives’ proposal to stop people spending benefits on alcohol, cigarettes, etc.—but that isn’t what my question is about.
One caller said she earns £34,000 a year as a trainee social worker and receives an additional £500 a month in Universal Credit. She didn’t mention having children, paying rent or having a disability—she simply said she struggles to live on £34,000 and needs Universal Credit to top up her wages.
What is going on? That’s more than I earn! Could I apply for a top-up too? Has anyone else heard of someone working full-time and earning well above minimum wage having their salary topped up by Universal Credit? I just couldn't get over what I was hearing!

She must have children or receive pip. A healthy single working adult without children wouldn’t receive any benefits if they earn over something like 11k

Well as she didnt explain her circumstances no one can say.

Oh calm down
you obviously didn’t listen carefully
she did confirm she had children

you were just too busy typing about this daft thread in fury

She did
she has children
the Op was too over excited about starting a Mumsnet thread to listen carefully

I'd guess she is a parent. 34k doesn't go far with a family. She's working in the public sector, if they paid better people wouldn't need to be applying for benefits to top up their income.

Why don’t you apply and find out? Or use a benefits checker?

the chances are she has children

lol op this backfired didn’t it

Why the outrage? UC also took over from the old tax credits system to help working people

This is toe curling

HEADS UP I listened to this and the woman has children. The OP just got over excited at the thought of her Mumsnet thread trying to whip up a debate

As someone else has suggested, there is nothing stopping you finding out if you too can claim benefits if you too earn £34000 and rent / have children...

Here are 2 websites you can put your info into

https://benefits-calculator.turn2us.org.uk/

https://www.entitledto.co.uk/

Why the need to be rude? I said I was working, so yes, I obviously missed that detail. It’s easy to be unpleasant from behind a keyboard.

The right, predictably, frames the conversation about reducing the welfare bill as 'life-style choice', an updated version of 'benefit scroungers'. What we should be talking about is how much of the welfare bill is subsidising employers paying low wages and private landlords raking in high rents. 11% of the total welfare bill goes to landlords and 44% of Universal Credit claimants are in work.

I don't think £34K is a lot these days. I would have agreed with you 10 years ago. Even 5. YABU.

I don't think PP is the one being unpleasant.

Except you were being unpleasant and yoh know it - trying to whip up fury against benefits claimants.

I work in this sector - I calculate benefits and advise on them for a living. Trust me when I say it’s no picnic.

The vile mouth foaming isn’t needed.

£34K is approx 2300 take home. Rent round here would be approx 1700 for a v small 2 bed house so that leaves 500 left for everything else which isn't really enough.

Something needs to change with the staggering cost of renting.

Oops! Mystery solved then.

End of thread really 😂

Quite, and I don’t mean pp…

You're posting to ask whether it's reasonable to be surprised at something that you know you didn't fully hear/understand.

Why not just ask for details of the full picture, instead of describing your reaction to the partial picture? Establish the facts first rather than your reaction?

You missed a key detail, how convenient.

Despite not knowing all the details you still felt the urge to start a thread on Mumsnet about it?

We all see what you’re trying to do here OP.

@IdaGlossopIt’s absolutely inevitable that there are poorly qualified people doing low paid work. Always has been the case. At no time were shop workers well paid. As for a trainee social worker? It’s a trainee wage and much better salary available through the career structure. Plus the envious pension provided by local government which is a big lift in earnings. The council might even be paying for the training. Another boost if she doesn’t need a loan. Local government wages come out of taxation and of course there must be controls on expenditure.

Going to get flamed here. But when someone on £34k gets topped up to the equivalent of a nearly £50k pre-tax salary, aren’t we admitting that £50k is the minimum amount needed to live on if you have kids? So what does that say to a teacher, nurse, midwife who works for 20 years and never earns more than £50k? Isn’t it crazy that someone who earns £34k actually earns the same as some on £50k? It feels like the world of salaries has gone mad.

I earn just over that with 2 kids and receive about £200 pcm UC

Would you like a pitchfork ?

@Baliciouswhat was the point of starting the thread and leaving out important details?
Yes you may be able to claim. Have you checked?
She earns the same as me. If I was a single parent and renting (or paying a mortgage) I would struggle.

I'm a private landlord who can only work part time due to various health issues. That rent is my lifeline as I'm not eligible to claim any benefits.... there is a mortgage on my rental home so please don't think that all private landlords are raking it in. Not me.