Trying to mitigate the work program! Help!

Charityworker

The work programme isn't all bad. A friend of mine said she wanted to work with horses. They got her voluntary work at a stables which she loved and stayed on as a volunteer even after the work programme ended. Then she was offered paid work. Another friend said he wanted to work with the theatre and was given voluntary work in a theatre.

dandelionclock30

This board by and large isnt a place for the unemployed looking for tea and sympathy regarding working for nothing and often being exploited by big companies.
Lots of people who come here, have worked hard all their lives, paid taxes and dont want to hear moaning from basically- dossers. Indeed lots of people have taken any job, from wringing chickens necks to excavating coal with their bare hands instead of signing on.
Therefore, you should be gratefull of any opportunity to get off your scrounging bum. If you were a worthy person you would be in work anyway or working for nothing already. Dont even think about a career or doing something of interest.
Thats the attitude Im afraid.

Mr_Falling_Star

As a person who has experience with the Work programme I can tell you it is very much in the providers interest to get you a Job you are going to stick at so go in their with your CV, a open mind and a bit of flexibility and you may well get a result!

persa

Mrcrimbo wrote: »

HI'm not going to bore you with my circumstances but you'll have to believe me when I say that I've sent off untold amounts of applications, had loads of interviews etc. And, I am still trying of course.

Now this work program crap is only going to further zap what little energy and determination I have left to fight on. Plus, if I'm being forced into poundland or mcdonalds thats going to decimate my self esteem entirely.

There is nothing better for your self-esteem than being in paid employment (and I speak as someone who was out of work for three months this year). Working in Poundland or McDonalds may not be your ideal job, but if you've been unemployed for long enough to be referred to the WP and you've been sending off untold amounts of applications, clearly you need to widen your search.

My advice is to keep looking for work in your spare time, as you normally would do and whilst participating in WP activities, keep an open mind.

My job centre advisor suggested I went on a course which I genuinely believed would be 100% pointless and it was a direct result of that course that I found a job. I don't think she knew at the time that it would have such a positive result, but the point is, you need to stay open to doing different things and meeting different people, that's how unexpected opportunities for employment arise. You've clearly tried the traditional route of sending off applications, now is the time to try networking. Networking doesn't just involve going to special business evenings, it involves meeting as many new people as possible and keeping your eyes and ears open.

Mrcrimbo

There's some good advice here, for which I am grateful.

But, hang on.....there's some real sweeping statements being flung around from people who know nothing about me! I could be a 68 year old who is ill or a PhD holder. Or even a 17 year old with more kids then people who've actually got decent jobs these days. I really don't remember asking for peoples 'opinion' here. Dear Daily Fail....Erhm sorry I meant Daily Mail.

Typical DM people. Quick to critise, never able to come up with the goods about how to fix the real problems. Keyboard warriors, hot air. Puff. Again, just how the bankers and politicians have engineered the system. Well done to them because they can come on the MSE forum and see their dirty propganda is working. As someone who has studied history, it is indeed an impressive feat as others who have tried engineering the social enviroment have eventually ended up dead (Gaddafi is a good example of that!)

In terms of the work program, I will make myself clear. It is not working, period. I'm not interested in doing anyones home work for them regarding the matter other that making this fact clear.

Further to this, I am an 100% conscientious objector to it. And as someone who've HAD friends work in McD who have been treated by their managers like nothing but (censored), I know where I stand in regards to working with them.

In fact, I go OUT of my way to not eat there. As for the free food, about watching that documentary about that guy who ate nothing but Mc'Ds for a month LOL. Liver packed up. So they can shove their free food ...exactly where you guessed it

thistledome

ILW wrote: »

If find that attitude rather insulting to all the people that do work in McD and Poundland, and have tax taken off them. Some of which is handed over to people like the OP as benefits.

/\ This!

OP, do your WP and get it over with.

Btw, If your friend allowed the mcdonalds manager to treat him like sh@t, then more fool him. You don't have to take abuse from employers nowadays.

Uncertain

Mrcrimbo wrote: »

I could be a 68 year old.......

No, you couldn't actually as you wouldn't be eligible for JSA!

Mr_Falling_Star

Mrcrimbo wrote: »

There's some good advice here, for which I am grateful.

But, hang on.....there's some real sweeping statements being flung around from people who know nothing about me! I could be a 68 year old who is ill or a PhD holder. Or even a 17 year old with more kids then people who've actually got decent jobs these days. I really don't remember asking for peoples 'opinion' here. Dear Daily Fail....Erhm sorry I meant Daily Mail.

Typical DM people. Quick to critise, never able to come up with the goods about how to fix the real problems. Keyboard warriors, hot air. Puff. Again, just how the bankers and politicians have engineered the system. Well done to them because they can come on the MSE forum and see their dirty propganda is working. As someone who has studied history, it is indeed an impressive feat as others who have tried engineering the social enviroment have eventually ended up dead (Gaddafi is a good example of that!)

In terms of the work program, I will make myself clear. It is not working, period. I'm not interested in doing anyones home work for them regarding the matter other that making this fact clear.

Further to this, I am an 100% conscientious objector to it. And as someone who've HAD friends work in McD who have been treated by their managers like nothing but (censored), I know where I stand in regards to working with them.

In fact, I go OUT of my way to not eat there. As for the free food, about watching that documentary about that guy who ate nothing but Mc'Ds for a month LOL. Liver packed up. So they can shove their free food ...exactly where you guessed it

Stand on your own two feet like a grown up then and start looking at every option to get a Job or sign off then. BTW I have never heard of anyone doing a non voluntary work placement without a job on offer on the WP. It simply costs to much in expenses etc.

ILW

Mrcrimbo wrote: »

There's some good advice here, for which I am grateful.

But, hang on.....there's some real sweeping statements being flung around from people who know nothing about me! I could be a 68 year old who is ill or a PhD holder. Or even a 17 year old with more kids then people who've actually got decent jobs these days. I really don't remember asking for peoples 'opinion' here. Dear Daily Fail....Erhm sorry I meant Daily Mail.

Typical DM people. Quick to critise, never able to come up with the goods about how to fix the real problems. Keyboard warriors, hot air. Puff. Again, just how the bankers and politicians have engineered the system. Well done to them because they can come on the MSE forum and see their dirty propganda is working. As someone who has studied history, it is indeed an impressive feat as others who have tried engineering the social enviroment have eventually ended up dead (Gaddafi is a good example of that!)

In terms of the work program, I will make myself clear. It is not working, period. I'm not interested in doing anyones home work for them regarding the matter other that making this fact clear.

Further to this, I am an 100% conscientious objector to it. And as someone who've HAD friends work in McD who have been treated by their managers like nothing but (censored), I know where I stand in regards to working with them.

In fact, I go OUT of my way to not eat there. As for the free food, about watching that documentary about that guy who ate nothing but Mc'Ds for a month LOL. Liver packed up. So they can shove their free food ...exactly where you guessed it

Fine if you are not claiming any benefits.

imatt

We will have to wait 10 days to see if the WP is doing as well as Duncan Smith thinks it is. That is when the delayed WP results should be published. Many think the figures will be dire. In fact, preliminary figures obtained by CH4 News and others show that A4e has achieves success rates of just 4% from a govt target of 5.5%!!! Actually worse than the govt leaving it to the Job Centre!

See:

http://blogs.channel4.com/factcheck/factcheck-why-leaked-a4e-data-suggests-work-programme-isnt-working/11729

To add insult to injury, many economists (and those working in the W2W sector also) strongly believe that the WP providers such as A4e, Serco, G4s, Ingeus, Working Links, etc will need more cash. So it's up to the taxpayer to prop up a failing program with EVEN MORE readies!

See;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/local-government-network/2012/nov/07/interview-olliff-cooper-a4e-work-programme

Whatever people here think of Jobseekers and the general employment situation, the fact is that most of these WP providers made a lot of money with previous govt schemes (New Deal and Flex New Deal) and failed. It would seem they are failing yet again. And are doing so with PUBLIC CASH. The money these companes make comes not from making a useful product or offering a vital service.