I STILL think Tesco should fucking well PAY THEIR STAFF. Workfare is wrong!!!!

[TapselteerieO]

Still angry, I hope the protests on the 3rd of March all over the country really keep this campaign lit, it makes me furious to think people seem to assume it has been sorted.

I will boycott every company that uses schemes like this until they are ended completely.

Pickgo - fail to understand your point, please explain?

1400 people did work placements at tesco. Of which 300 were given jobs. Does that sound like half to you?
youngermother1 i take it you would be perfectly happy if they brought in a "work for your Child Benefit scheme.
And it isnt just young people on these schemes as several mumsnetters (including me) have mentioned several times.

Pickgo thats disgusting appalling. I dont know what to say.
I wonder if anyone at the Guardian newspaper have seen that document.
I wonder how many of those people became even more ill or died because of being sanctioned. CHRIST ALMIGHTY!

Stella yes there is, search epetitions, then type in workfare

Thanks for the list of companies participating, I will definitely be boycotting.

It's also effective to email customer services at the ones that have dropped workfare and let them know that you are happy to shop there again.

I think people can do voluntary work for charities without these schemes, so no we don't need to be paying companies like A4e millions of taxpayers' money to implement these schemes. Surely a job centre employee could do that? And charities being involved in this kind of coercion is wrong - the reason charities are involved is because they are struggling because of government cut backs - but to be forcing disabled and sick people to do permanent voluntary work just to massage the governments unemployment figures is sickening and surely goes against the ethos of these charities too?

Good idea RunnyGrobbles.

ThingyDoDa I apologise, but I think you and most people know what I mean, these schemes have constantly changing names, I can't keep up. If you have a suitably catchy name for the next thread please go for it.

I also have never owned a Hoover vacuum cleaner but I use my meile to hoover my floors, I just can't say vacuum, it doesn't feel right even though it is correct. I know I am deviating from the point of this thread too.

here is the link to the e-petition about this scheme

I'm no expert, but speaking from the point of view of someone who is reliant on benefits but would like to work, I would love an option to go and get work experience from companies like this, but I would hate for it to be enforced and mandatory, because what the government don't always take into account is that the framework for these work placements and sanctions is so rigid, that it can be harmful to people even if they are willing to make the effort. As a single parent with disabilities, I need time and support to ensure that getting back into work is possible, but I also need some flexibility to take my personal circumstances into account.

It seems to be all about the punishment and making those work shy fiends toil for their money, rather than what I am desperate for, which is working experience and access to training so that I can provide for my family. Last time I tried to go back to work, I ended up with massive debts trying to afford childcare up front, work clothing, transport and adjusting to a different life and schedule etc. Now I want to go back again and I find myself with massive obstacles to overcome (single parent, disability, lack of current experience, lack of qualifications) in a difficult environment where unemployment is rife, competition is high, and I have lots of things to overcome to get anywhere, but there is little to no funding to support me to do this any more.

I've tried once, I was at college and manage to almost complete an access course to go to university, it was delayed by my unavoidably becoming ill, but I was ready to go back and redo the course the next year, had managed to arrange with the college that they would waive my paying the fees again and would be able to use the work I'd done before in my portfolio, but the government slashed their funding and I couldn't afford the childcare on benefits, and it had to be shelved.

The politicians keep harping on about the young, I can't find the link now but the biggest number placed on these schemes are actually the over 25's.

WRAG is mandatory and included people who are disabled and terminally ill. As Pickgo post illustrates, 10,000 + ill claimants recieved sanctions and this is going to get worse.

We could do with a thread purely for links, I am finding it hard to keep track.

They still think it is acceptable to have people working for them for £2 an hour for a 30 hour week, you think we should stop ranting?

The new tesco policy means that whilst on work experience if you come off JSA you can't claim tax credits or get any other kind of top up. You need to be paid for FIVE weeks for that not FOUR.

If you stay on benefits how are you going to pay for childcare with £67.50 a week?

This new scheme isn't all that.

AND

on these very boards the following was posted

"In response to those saying that people in work should be worried about being replaced I disagree (again). The vast majority of jobs could not be replaced by someone doing an 8 week stint as a volunteer. Most jobs require more experience, and skills than that"

Well... I don't know about anyone else but in my work life I've worked in retail on four separate occasions, as a teenager and again after leaving school. Each time I don't think I had more than two hours' training for my job. So yes, people on the work experience scheme ARE replacing paid employees and contracting the job market.

"So yes, people on the work experience scheme ARE replacing paid employees and contracting the job market."

Only if the company is using work experience instead of paid staff rather than in addition to.

I've worked with work experience staff and they were i addition to normal staff members. No one would have been employed on a "proper" basis instead of the work experience person.

I work for a small charity, and our policy (like quite a lot of others in the sector) is that we won't accept unpaid volunteers looking for work experience. This is for understandable ethical reasons - essentially, a lot of people feel that you need to do an unpaid internship in order to stand any chance of getting a post in the field, and that this means the field only available to the well off - but means that we can neither get help from volunteers, or help them get experience. We did take a graduate intern for a month last year, on minimum wage, but it took so much of my time to manage him that the costs outweighed the benefits. I suspect that a lot of other charities wouldn't really feel able to take on volunteers or 'Workfare' candidates for these reasons.

Lately I've heard of a couple of graduate internships for major employers which sound downright bizarre from the employers' point of view. They'll take a graduate on for 6 months, pay them, train them up, and then have to let them go, with no option of giving them permanent jobs. Both the young people I know walked straight into jobs with related companies, so the internship worked very well for them, but seems odd for the original employer.

Is the whole of the UK participating in this or just England?

It isn't a guaranteed job at the end, it is an interview and job if they are successful, they won't all be successful. If you come off benefits to get paid for four weeks and don't get the job at the end, then it takes weeks to get back into benefits, all the while these people have mounting debts/rent/bills to pay. There is no choice and all the while Tesco/Asda/Boots etc make more money out of not paying a fair wage - if they give someone a job they get money from the government scheme - why not just give people jobs? There are 8 people looking for work for every available job at the moment.

I know the scheme is in Scotland, even some Scottish charities are involved.

Ah, its just that i've not heard about 'workforce' anywhere apart from MN so quite suprised that its happening in Scotland as i know lots of friends and family who are on JSA and not been told about this. Yet.

Found this "The Edinburgh office of A4e, headed by manager Dorothy Hewatt, is notorious for bullying and disrespectful treatment of claimants. Edinburgh Claimants have made several official complaints that employees, including Hewatt herself, have made untruthful statements to the DWP to try and get claimants' benefits cut."

Hi, we've moved this into Politics. Thanks.

Edinburgh coalition against poverty - ?We encourage all unemployed people sent to A4e or any other workfare provider to join together and collectively stand up for our rights. We need to oppose the Work Programme and all work-for-your-benefits schemes. They're nothing but slave labour - and they attack all workers' wages and conditions.?

?We invite anyone sent to A4e, Ingeus, JHP or any of these work-for- your dole schemes to get in touch ? anonymity guaranteed.?