ESA Work Related Activity Group

gutbrod10

hi to all thanks for reading this post

I have been awarded esa and put in to the wrag (work related activity group) one of the conditions of being in this group is that

customers with potential capability for work enter the work related activity group. This means them carrying out reasonable steps to manage there condition

i would like to no what they mean to manage there condition

any thoughts ?????

Indie_Kid

Do you have any treatment for your condition> medication, physio, etc?

healy

gutbrod10 wrote: »

hi to all thanks for reading this post

I have been awarded esa and put in to the wrag (work related activity group) one of the conditions of being in this group is that




i would like to no what they mean to manage there condition

any thoughts ?????

It means to cope better with the condition.

yellowduck_2

You will have to attend "work focused" interviews with which ever organisation that has been contracted to offer this service. Where I live it is a company called "Work Directions" tho they have recently changed their name to Ingeus. Where I live they offer wokshops on thing like Pain Management, Confidence building, Coping with Rejection, CV writing and stuff like that. You will be asked to attend 6 work foucused interviews with a personal adviser. I have found this all a total waste of time, my adviser is very nice and is up to speed on the "in work benefit" calculations but I find sitting in a huge open plan office having to discuss personal health problems and being overheard by all the other advisers and "customers" a bit disconcerting. All this seems to count as "managing" your condition. I have a 30 year work history and actully the most help I get is from the traditional sources of health care, my GP, consultant and CPN who I guess would be helping me prior to the inception of ESA. By the way do not know why I am a "customer" as I am not buying anything!

gutbrod10

Good point, about the " customer " bit i hadnt thought of it like, that just looked the definition up

customer : someone who pays for goods or services

I will have to remember it when dwp / jcp or pathways refer to me as a
customer .

celinepatricia

My husband is off work and has been for the past 9 months due to illness. he has got to attend a pathways to work interview, but, he has already got a job, and, when he is fit enough, will return to his job... why would he need to attend this pathways to work, what good will it do??

dmg24

celinepatricia wrote: »

My husband is off work and has been for the past 9 months due to illness. he has got to attend a pathways to work interview, but, he has already got a job, and, when he is fit enough, will return to his job... why would he need to attend this pathways to work, what good will it do??

They may be able to help him and his employer with reasonable adjustments to help him get back to work more quickly.

celinepatricia

But, he wont be able to return to work until his consultant, his doctor and the works doctor agree that he is fit enough to return.. not somebody in an office..

dmg24

celinepatricia wrote: »

But, he wont be able to return to work until his consultant, his doctor and the works doctor agree that he is fit enough to return.. not somebody in an office..

As well as the help the medical professionals can give, he needs to look at helping himself to get better. The JCP can help with this side of it. If he/ you do not like it, you are free to close your claim.

celinepatricia

i didnt say we didnt like it.. why should we close our claim, we both work full time and pay our national insurance. my husband has had major sugery which is going to take some time to recover from and I dont think dragging himself to the job centre is going to help his recovery!!!!

yellowduck_2

Ihad a "pathways" interview, you have to go as they will sanction you if you don't. I have to say it was a total waste of time as I was waiting for the results of a lot of test and also waiting to have the dreaded Atos medical. The woman I saw was totally unhelpul and quite rude to me. As for "reaonable" adjustments, well my employer was unable to make these as they were a small organisation and it was not an ecomonic proposition. I find some of the responses on this board quite judgemental, very different from the responses on the "debt free wannabe". Like celinepatrica I have worked and paid tax and NI for a significant number of years. I am now facing the prospect of neurosurgery and have only 6 years to go before I retire, I find this whole ESA thing really stressful.