Job Center wasting my time

[willman 10]

Missing an interview gets you sanctioned. Not having your jo search can get your sanctioned. I agree its not difficult and you should, but I also think it is draconian in nature amd disproportionate to sanction someone for between one and six months money for a missed interview that was probably pointless anyway.

 

But you sign up and agree to attend the interviews.You're being paid to attend them after all.

What would be the consequences of failing to turn up for work in the first month or two.?

 

The job centre have never professed to find you you're preferred job - they are targetted in helping you get back to work.That doesn't just mean getting a job, they've provided internet access,cv stuff for a friend of mine and they've provided me with funds to travel to interviews that i couldn't afford to attend.

I've been given 13 weeks to find the job of my choice THEN i would have to start attending interviews they may arrange just to get me any old job.(its probably not a coincidence that the 13 weeks is the time for the JSA that they must give me).

[999tigger 10]

But you sign up and agree to attend the interviews.You're being paid to attend them after all.

What would be the consequences of failing to turn up for work in the first month or two.?

 

The job centre have never professed to find you you're preferred job - they are targetted in helping you get back to work.That doesn't just mean getting a job, they've provided internet access,cv stuff for a friend of mine and they've provided me with funds to travel to interviews that i couldn't afford to attend.

I've been given 13 weeks to find the job of my choice THEN i would have to start attending interviews they may arrange just to get me any old job.(its probably not a coincidence that the 13 weeks is the time for the JSA that they must give me).

 

Clearly not bothering to read what I wrote. I didnt disagree about the need to turn up for interviews, just that failing to miss one can result in a person losing their benefit and their home, which is disproportionate.

 

I dont really get the point of the rest of your post if you are directing it at me because im no sure what it has to do with the subject or me for that matter. Care to clarify?

[willman 10]

Clearly not bothering to read what I wrote. I didnt disagree about the need to turn up for interviews, just that failing to miss one can result in a person losing their benefit and their home, which is disproportionate.

 

I dont really get the point of the rest of your post if you are directing it at me because im no sure what it has to do with the subject or me for that matter. Care to clarify?

 

I read completely what you put - you claimed it was draconian(so obviously not a fan of it) and you made the assumption the interviews would be pointless.

 

The issue isn't whether it's pointless or not,you signed a contract to do something for money. That was my point.

 

There is no need not to turn up for an interview or a signing on OR to notify them if you can't make it.How much easier can they make it?

I'd be very surprised if a sanction was applied on a first offence. I refused to sign up to Twitter - no sanction,i didn't fill in the UJ searches correctly for two weeks - no sanction.

The loss of benefits and potentially your home whilst unemployed is always your own fault,unlike redundancy or job losses.Perhaps people should take it more seriously.

 

The rest of it was a response to comments made in the thread about the job centre not finding them a job.

[999tigger 10]

Nowhere have i said you shouldnt attend because those are part of the rules. You seem to be trying to press a point which I have never disagreed with.

 

I said probably pointless because these interviews normally are and inneficient.

 

Notwithstanding they can sanction you, my point was about disproportionality. You lose 1-6 months money and can be made homeless as a result and in contrast they cancel appointments without bothering to let you know. I dont think its unfair to consider them to be draconian.

 

Notwithstanding it being a persons responsibility (a point I never objected to) then you have the resulting mess of someone being made homeless, which will end up costing the state more in the long run. People should take it more seriously, but there you go.

 

Sanctions are applied on the first offence that's the whole point of the new regime.

 

As for the rest of your post I was a bit mystified as it covered areas I hadnt commented on at all.

[Trev38 10]

Missing an interview gets you sanctioned. Not having your jo search can get your sanctioned. I agree its not difficult and you should, but I also think it is draconian in nature amd disproportionate to sanction someone for between one and six months money for a missed interview that was probably pointless anyway.

 

I agree with your comments

[feederfil 10]

I applied for JSA after working all my life,but unfortunately I was drawing a couple of private pensions.They said I was due JSA yippee until I saw the amount 0.65 a week. I went back and signed off. Have you found a job? Nope but it costs more in shoe leather to come here every week than that amount. So now I am one of the lucky ones that Cameron boasts has come of the register so must have found a job. They also issued me with a P45 with the totally wrong tax code on it,it will get sorted out next April eehh!! Never mind onwards and upwards.

[monkey69 10]

How many actions a week does your agreement say you have to do?

 

Have the place you on the work programme?

 

Try this site for nearest internet access

 

http://www.sheffieldhelpyourself.org.uk/simple_search_cat.asp

 

its twelve actions a week, thats not so bad, BUT you have to provide proof of your actions eg- the print outs you can get from the kiosk machines. then i provide copies of the emails i have sent for jobs, then (if any) replies.

telephone calls, at least four attendances at the various jobcentres a week.

i am hoping they will put me on the full time 40 hours a week course at the jobcentre, but i guess they are struggling to fit us all in.

[Epic Fail 10]

its twelve actions a week, thats not so bad, BUT you have to provide proof of your actions eg- the print outs you can get from the kiosk machines. then i provide copies of the emails i have sent for jobs, then (if any) replies.

telephone calls, at least four attendances at the various jobcentres a week.

i am hoping they will put me on the full time 40 hours a week course at the jobcentre, but i guess they are struggling to fit us all in.

 

It must differ depending on who you see.

 

Whenever I've been they simply ask me if I've looked for work. I say yes, then that's the end.

[Ms Macbeth 75]

I applied for JSA after working all my life,but unfortunately I was drawing a couple of private pensions.They said I was due JSA yippee until I saw the amount 0.65 a week. I went back and signed off. Have you found a job? Nope but it costs more in shoe leather to come here every week than that amount. So now I am one of the lucky ones that Cameron boasts has come of the register so must have found a job. They also issued me with a P45 with the totally wrong tax code on it,it will get sorted out next April eehh!! Never mind onwards and upwards.

 

Have you made sure you don't need any more NI contributions towards your state pension? You can sign on just for those. You've had the same experience as friends of mine re no JSA when taking a private pension. (see earlier post) Fortunately he'd got the necessary contributions so when he does eventually retire, his state pension won't be reduced. Plus he got another job after a few months.

[LeMaquis 10]

To be fair to the job centre...you don't have a job so you do really have quite a lot of time to waste.

 

I mean, they are paying you.

 

Yo...I wasn't aiming that at you necessarily......

 

Of course you weren't.

[haggis 10]

I read completely what you put - you claimed it was draconian(so obviously not a fan of it) and you made the assumption the interviews would be pointless.

 

The issue isn't whether it's pointless or not,you signed a contract to do something for money. That was my point.

 

There is no need not to turn up for an interview or a signing on OR to notify them if you can't make it.How much easier can they make it?

I'd be very surprised if a sanction was applied on a first offence. I refused to sign up to Twitter - no sanction,i didn't fill in the UJ searches correctly for two weeks - no sanction.

The loss of benefits and potentially your home whilst unemployed is always your own fault,unlike redundancy or job losses.Perhaps people should take it more seriously.

 

The rest of it was a response to comments made in the thread about the job centre not finding them a job.

 

i dont post very often but to compare signing up to twitter or uj searches which involve no penanty to being sanctioned for one offence and threatened with hardship is not in any way relevent