JSA Sanctions

pixykid

Hi, I'm a regular user under another username, but posting under a new username to protect my privacy.

I've just been to the jobcentre to sign on (as much as I hate it, I was made redundant and have struggled to find a job for months). I made a silly mistake and yes, I'm not disputing the fact that I deserve all I get, but I'd advice on dealing with the matter itself.

I was "job-matched" to a job that wasn't relevant to the level of experience I have in the job sector or even relevant to the course I am training for in the job sector in which I want to work. I was honest and said I didn't apply for this job as I did request the information to see if I could apply for the job, the job description wasn't suitable and it was wasn't reasonably accessible from my home. Iwasn't told I was job-matched, and now the advisor said I face a sanction, even tho I only requested further information on the vacancy itself :eek:

I would have slight difficulty getting there as I know the exact location of the job, yet according to the advisor's journey planner software, it would take 11 minutes from stepping foot outside of my house, getting on/off a bus and walking there... a grand total of 11 minutes!! Now, seriously, it is under estimated. As it takes me 15 minutes to walk to the correct bus stop to get a bus service I didn't even know existed in my village! She filled in a form stating that "I looked at the application and did not apply as I was concerned about the distance to walk from the location of the bus stop to the business itself." This was putting words into my mouth!! :mad: I didn't sign anything declaring that the statement was accurate, I wasn't asked to sign anything and the statement itself wasn't accurate!

The job itself isn't the type of work I'm looking for - I'm studying for a course and therefore am looking for a job in the field I'm studying, not an office job that I no longer do.

Realistically, I know that they can slap a 6-month sanction on my benefits for "refusing to apply for a job", but I didn't refuse to apply for a job... I asked for more information on the vacancy, but what's the worst they can do? Well, it's slightly reassuring to know they can't hang me for it.

But really, will they sanction me? Or was the woman in the jobcentre just having a bad day and decide to take it out on me? I feel like complaining about her, but I don't want to provoke anything in case it reflects badly on me. I'm quite upset about this!

SarEl

Possibly both! As far as I know, and there are people here more expert on the rules than me, I think that you can't say that you want a job in the filed you are studying in for the future. If your current field is office work then I think that is what you are ringfenced to - similar work and pay for a period of time, then after so long, any job/pay. I might be wrong because the rules change so much and most of what I know I pick up from clients. I know this used to be the case, and I doubt it has got any better. I think whatver that you are on a sticky wicket on the travel - unless you have a disability what you think of as reaosnably accessible and their rules are definitely different! I would suggest that you make sure that you apply for it - a bad application form (not too obviously so though) or interview isn't your fault, is it. Then you can truthfully say that you didn't refuse it, in fact you applied, but didn't get it, and the advisor must have misunderstood what you said when you were questioing the location. Misunderstandings happen, don't they?

hcb42

did this job match and sanction take place at the same time? It seems rather odd.

Although, if you have queried the journey time, and made out that this was too much, then I can see why they have been harsh. You need to travel much farther afield than that if you want job seekers paying, not can you choose the field, certainly not after the initial agreement on your JSA agreement.

I would suggest you appeal, but the best course of action of course, would be to apply for the job then appeal that it was a misunderstanding.

(and as for travel, I have just halved mine, and I am STILL driving an hour each way!)

JoJox

I turned a job that wasn't in my field down and they were fine with it. I think u should speak to someone else. Jobcentre people have no heart imo!

Lexxx

They will send you a letter through the post if they plan on sanctioning you asking you to explain why you refuse to apply for job.
I had it happen to me when the jobcentre person tried to make me apply for a job that was too far for me to travel too. it would have taken about 6 hours there and back!

I learned after that experience to nod accept what job centre staff tell you to apply for and apply, even ifs its just sending a CV, filling out a form that has experience nothing to do with the job and putting very little effort into it:embarasse

remember when you are on JSA you are not expected to have a clue, answer back jobcentre staff & you must absolutely DO AS YOU ARE TOLD:rotfl:

WPN

hard to say, they have sanction targets.

They will normally be reasonable no matter what you may hear from others, but if they are down on quota, they will pick people to trip up.

hcb42

Lexxx wrote: »

I had it happen to me when the jobcentre person tried to make me apply for a job that was too far for me to travel too. it would have taken about 6 hours there and back!

that is generally too far, although not far enough not to be sanctioned when giving up a job!

However in the Ops case we are looking at something like a 15 minute walk and an 11 minute bus ride, so that to me is a local job, not a commute.

Lexxx

WPN wrote: »

hard to say, they have sanction targets.

They will normally be reasonable no matter what you may hear from others, but if they are down on quota, they will pick people to trip up.

this makes sense, i recieved two in one week!


I wrote back to them explaining situations, both were down to job centre staff stupidity!
They never wrote back to me and my JSA was never sanctioned:D

Lexxx

hcb42 wrote: »

that is generally too far, although not far enough not to be sanctioned when giving up a job!

However in the Ops case we are looking at something like a 15 minute walk and an 11 minute bus ride, so that to me is a local job, not a commute.

I would have had to take two buses, two trains, another bus, then walk for 20 mins, when i tried to explain to job centre staff, they didn't get it!

I read original poster's times for journey, I thought there was more to the journey, but maybe not? 30 min journey time in total, I doubt that the jobcentre will look at that favourably.

Evilm

They use Traveldirect (sorry, TransportDirect.info) to see whether its considered suitable for travel. I got "further monitoring" for not considering a role that was on an out of the way industrial estate and would have required a 20+ minute walk to the nearest public transport link - which by the time I got there wouldn't be running anymore! Their reasoning was "using a taxi would still have left you better off than being on JSA".

I wasn't sanctioned but made to take in proof of my applications and all my Yes/No decisions as to whether I could do a job were questioned deeper. I found a job a few weeks later - unrelated to the extra monitoring - so didn't have to go through that for long!

Edited.. The one I was told was http://www.transportdirect.info. Apologies

ceridwen

I wouldnt have thought it was Traveldirect they use.

I imagine it would be Traveline

www.traveline.info/

Thats the obvious one for this and the one I use personally when planning how I am going to get from A to B (as it includes walking time from my house to bus-stop and walking time the other end and therefore includes every single minute of my travel time).

*******************

though I do have to say that, in this particular case, that "travel to work time" sounds reasonable - at 25 minutes each way - and it also sounds reasonable to be expected to work in one's normal "trade" (even if isnt the one one is aiming for).