It's STILL tough and not getting better - so how are we coping?

AnnieG

Esther, you could try using mashed banana instead of the egg, a lot of vegan cake and biscuit recipes do this. I've never tried it myself so can't vouch for it, but it's a very common egg replacement ingredient.

smileyt_2

RANT ALERT!

:mad: Had a letter from the dole this morning - because I missed one adviser interview (due to being upset because I had my hen put to sleep) they have docked me TWO WEEKS' money! I've not missed any signing-on days, and the adviser has already admitted they can't do anything for me because I'm too qualified for the kind of jobs they have coming in.

Fortunately I have some savings so I can cover the loss - I save any 'extra' income I earn that's over and above my budget, which is fairly frugal, thankfully. And I heard yesterday that I can start back at work next week as they have some hours they need covering. But imagine if I wasn't in that position? How do they think any normal person can survive with a 50% cut in their money? Bl**dy robbing dogs.

Anyway, as I won't be paid until the end of October, I shall tell the Job Centre to fluff off and they can have the money back at £2/week as I will only be working part-time.

And now I will have the joy of sorting out the resulting housing benefit mess, where they will tell me I'm not entitled to any HB because I'm not on JSA, and I will have to tell them that actually for those two weeks I didn't have any money so I am entitled to HB. Then because my hours and wages will vary, my HB will either be vastly overpaid or vastly underpaid and I will have to write to them fifty times to get it sorted .....:eek: They still haven't paid me properly for the time I have been unemployed over the summer (four months) ......

Aaaarrrggghhhh.

jackieglasgow

I completely undrstand where you are coming from smileyt, my sister missed one of those when her MIL was dying - in fact she died the following day - and they still docked her money!!! She has two children in the house, too! I was incandescent for her, they did finally pay her CT and housing benefit but refused to give her the jobseekers for the period!

purpleheather2810

What a big mess smileyt! Very fortunate that you were able to squirrel away some money so that you can keep afloat while these loons sort themselves out!

hellsbells45

Smileyt- my friend went through this (she has 3 kids at home) luckily child tax covered basic bills, but she ended up having food parcels delivered. It went on for 6 weeks!!!!!

Kitcaboodle

SmileyT - very sorry to hear that. They do tend to be quite strict about getting in touch/coming in within five working days of an appointment though. If it was after that then I'm afraid they probably won't pay up for that period. I'm afraid that they have to have strict rules because some people do take the P but unfortunately that means that well intentioned people fall foul of them too.

Jackieglasgow - that is awful. If she'd written and complained (and escalated it if necessary) then it should have got reversed so that she got paid. If something is due to a death and the person gets in touch within a reasonable period then they ought to pay out.

A little tip - if it is a situation like that and any reasonable person would think it was unfair that she didn't get paid and if you've already complained to the jobcentre with no success, write to the local MP (I believe you can do it via e-mail) and they will write to the job centre and the job centre will have to respond to the MP and you will find that your case gets looked at by higher level staff who will have to make sure that they have done the right thing. In cases where it's down to one person's decision whether or not the money gets paid, this can really help!

I believe that if someone is in a position where getting their benefits stopped means they can't feed their children, then there are hardship payments that they can apply for. Not just crises loans but some kind of reduced payments (though I may be wrong, I have seen people filling in forms someone referred to as being for hardship payments - not sure what the situation is for people without children). Speak to the job centre if you get your benefits docked and you need money to survive, they ought to be able to point you in the right direction for what you can do in the meantime.

Edited to add - here is some info on hardship payments: http://www.advicekit.info/advicekit/Benefits/A_to_Z_of_benefits_and_tax_credits/Jobseekers_Allowance/Hardship_Payments/Default.aspx

Craftyscholar

prophecy_grrl wrote: »

I wish I could be a housewife / sahm fulltime - I think that must be the best, most rewarding, most fulfilling job in the world.

Interesting how times change.

Fifty years ago my mother was a SAHM, child, plus her mother and dad's father :eek:
If your husband was seen as 'management' you didn't go out to work.

Her GP finally said she had to get some interest outside the home for her health. She ended up getting an unpaid admin post at a charity and was a much happier person.
Nowadays she could be running her own business and it would be regarded as normal.

JulieGeorgiana

SmileyT - Completely understand where you are coming from... they are a NIGHTMARE!!

I went there yesterday and the woman was so RUDE, about me being a mum... How dare I have the audacity to limit the hours I am willing to work because of childcare!!!

She looked at me and said ' What about your Husband, does he ACTUALLY work? '

I nearly punched her there and then!!

I could go on...........

charlies-aunt

smileyt wrote: »

RANT ALERT!

:mad: Had a letter from the dole this morning - because I missed one adviser interview (due to being upset because I had my hen put to sleep) they have docked me TWO WEEKS' money! I've not missed any signing-on days, and the adviser has already admitted they can't do anything for me because I'm too qualified for the kind of jobs they have coming in.

SmileyT - isn't there something JCP can do to help you? - On JSA, I thought that you were allowed to miss 2 or 3 times in any one year because of extenuating circumstances. It seems that they don't seem to have any common sense (or humanity) sometimes when applying the rules.

Kitcaboodle

Unfortunately the missing appointments due to extenuating circumstances thing applies to when you notify them in advance and get a form to say you can miss the signing on appointment, it doesn't work in retrospect.

As someone who worked in a Jobcentre I can say that not all of us are cold, insensitive and heartless individuals! I used to go to great extents to sort out problems for people that were nothing to do with the job I was doing (calls that came through to me in error), just because they weren't getting their money and I knew they needed help.

I'll admit that there are some a**holes there just as there are in any office - but there are also a lot of decent people who want to help others and are just doing their job! Unfortunately in the first instance when there is a problem, there is often nothing the person you are speaking to can do. It is the rule that if X happens then Y must happen - but there is always scope to appeal & that is the stage at which common sense and compassion often step in to correct what would otherwise be an unfair decision.