Coronavirus and contribution based job seekers

[KittyMcTitty]

So I got made redundant during maternity leave and signed up to contribution JSA which only pays out for a maximum of 6 months (which ends this month for me) I secured two job offers last month which have now been withdrawn due to Coronavirus as the businesses aren’t in a position to currently take anyone on - does anyone know if they will extend job seekers due to this or if it’s tough tits?
I’m not eligible for anything else. But the outgoings are based on two incomes.

I don’t know sorry but if you don’t ask you don’t get, as they say! I’d give your JSA advisor a call to explain the situation and take it from there.

It’s not the same situation obviously but they’ve been really helpful for a friend of mine who has had to sign onto JSA in the last week or so.

Thank you 😊 I’ll give them a call (no meetings at the moment!) but imagine it is very busy!!!

They won't extend contribution-based JSA for you, no. It's 26 weeks and that's it.

UC is going up on 6th April so you should recheck your entitlement using the online calculators (Entitledto, Turn2Us).

If you're not entitled to UC you'll just have to review all your outgoings and be brutal. If you have a mortgage you could consider requesting a payment break, reduce other debt repayments or put them on hold, obviously cut down on as many bills as possible.

Thank you @anotheremma

Is contributions based JSA going up as well? Or is it just UC?

No. UC and tax credits are going up. But no other benefits that I know of.

Sorry I forgot to add housing benefit is also going up for some people (some private tenants)

Changes to how much you’ll get

From 6 April the government is increasing the standard allowance in Universal Credit and the basic element in Working Tax Credit for one year. Both will increase by £20 per week on top of planned annual uprating. This will apply to all new and existing Universal Credit claimants and to existing Working Tax Credit claimants.

This means that for a single Universal Credit claimant (aged 25 or over), the standard allowance will increase from £317.82 to £409.89 per month.

From April, Local Housing Allowance rates will be increased to the 30th percentile of market rents. This will apply to all private renters who are new or existing Universal Credit housing element claimants, and to existing Housing Benefit claimants.

From www.understandinguniversalcredit.gov.uk/coronavirus/

Ah, right. So punished for being a contributor again.

Diddums

Sorry for paying tax and NI so other people can live off benefits, as benefits appear to be your area of expertise.

You do realise that if it weren’t for people like me, then there wouldn’t be any benefits for you and your friends to take?

Oh do fuck off

Jealousy is not attractive. I don’t live in poverty. Just enquiring to see how much tax I could back (not much by the sounds of things).

@anotheremma

You’re very welcome for all the tax I’ve paid to subsidise your lifestyle choices.

Back to the daily mail comments section, dear.

I prefer the FT.

It's funny really that you assume I claim benefits and you believe you're superior for supporting my "lifestyle choices".

Ignorant and arrogant.

I'm sure you pay so much tax that you single handedly pay for all the public services that you use AND all the benefits of everyone who claims them

It's irrelevant but the only benefit I claim is child benefit. Not that there is any shame in anyone claiming any benefits they're entitled to.

I am not a dick and I am therefore able to recognise that I am one of the lucky ones precisely because I don't qualify for means-tested benefits or disability benefits.

LouQoo, AnotherEmma is an advisor for UC for a living I think. I am sure I have seen her giving brilliant advice to worried forum members.

“I'm sure you pay so much tax that you single handedly pay for all the public services that you use AND all the benefits of everyone who claims them hmm”

Except I didn’t say this. You are lying.

It’s great that you are so excited by a temporary rise in benefits (for some people) but this largesse won’t last. It will have to be paid for and that will be by future austerity - it’s likely that the government will want to cut tax to get the economy moving again, so the only option will be to reduce costs to pay for it all. Who do you think will be picking up the costs for this longer term?

Thanks BadTimes. God forbid some obnoxious high earning Tory would think I'm a "benefit scrounger" eh

I don't make much of a living from my key worker job as a supervisor and adviser (on benefits and other topics) so it's clearly a terrible "lifestyle choice"

@BadTimesAtTheElRoyale

Her disrespect for tax payers is even more shocking, in that case.

Well that was a silly derail. Sorry OP. Best of luck in your job search.

@AnotherEmma

As I said above, your blatant disrespect for taxpayers is even more disgusting, if that’s your job.

Why should people who have contributed get less than those who haven’t?

Looqoo why are you derailing the OP's thread to bash Anotheremma?

Are you quite alright?

@Schoolchoicesucks

It’s the other way round actually. I questioned the fairness of contributions based benefits being lower than non contributions based benefits and a benefits advisor (AnotherEmma) replied with “diddums”.
Demonstrating her impartiality.

Oops, posted too soon.

That was supposed to say - demonstrating her ability to do her job with impartiality.