Jobsearch 35 hours, 30 actions

fedupfreddie

Hi does anyone know which is more important when on JSA.
I have been told to search for 35 hours a week and do 30 actions a week.
It is possible to do 30 actions in far less than 35 hours for instance I have done 10 actions in 3 hours this morning.so what is considered more important?

HappyMJ

30 actions...35 hours...are you serious? I've never heard of a JSA agreement which is so demanding. How long have you been out of work for? What work experience do you have? You do not have to agree with whatever they tell you. The JSA agreement is negotiable. If you don't think you will be able to do 30 actions a week then tell them and appeal your JSA agreement. How do they know that you have spent 35 hours a week looking for work? I'd forget about that bit and just whatever time you think is appropriate looking for work.

fedupfreddie

I have to use Universal jobsearch to prove hours and actions taken. To be honest I don't have much work experience, at 58 my only skill is tailoring and there is not much demand for that now.
Tried the self employment route but that did not work out.
Seems the 35 hours is part of the new universal credit laws.

HappyMJ

fedupfreddie wrote: »

I have to use Universal jobsearch to prove hours and actions taken. To be honest I don't have much work experience, at 58 my only skill is tailoring and there is not much demand for that now.
Tried the self employment route but that did not work out.
Seems the 35 hours is part of the new universal credit laws.

Are you sure it's not having to be available to take a job which is 35 hours or more? It's nothing to do with UC...that's ages away yet.

Sorry but at 58 I would not be spending 35 hours a week looking for work unless you really wanted to. I have never had a JSA agreement which has specified that and I have loads of experience.

Yes log on to Universal Job Search each day and browse that...but that really should only take...15 minutes. You cannot get to 35 hours a week looking at the same jobs over and over again. I spent about an hour a day looking for work and if I found something I liked and was suitable for I spent another hour customizing my CV and applying for the job. The rest of the time I was looking at ways to save money such as cooking from scratch every day and browsing MSE looking for free things to do.

Elzmumof3

fedupfreddie wrote: »

I have to use Universal jobsearch to prove hours and actions taken. To be honest I don't have much work experience, at 58 my only skill is tailoring and there is not much demand for that now.
Tried the self employment route but that did not work out.
Seems the 35 hours is part of the new universal credit laws.

i use Universal Jobmatch, how can they tell from that how many hours you have been looking? I have to log on everyday, i think i have 13 actions a week i have to complete, inc apply for 3 jobs, and log into Universal Job match daily, as well as using loal paper, dropping cv and using other internet sites!

fedupfreddie

I was unemployed for a year then tried self employment which did not work out. Claimed JSA again last week and was told of the 35 hrs 30 actions.

fedupfreddie

They want permission to look at your activity on UJM to see that you have spent the time and done the actions

Morlock

fedupfreddie wrote: »

They want permission to look at your activity on UJM to see that you have spent the time and done the actions

You can withhold consent and provide written evidence instead, which I would advise. The UJM website is designed to trip claimants up in order to impose sanctions.

fedupfreddie

Morlock wrote: »

You can withhold consent and provide written evidence instead, which I would advise. The UJM website is designed to trip claimants up in order to impose sanctions.

That's what I am concerned about, trying to prove the number of hours spent searching.
I could do 100 actions a week but still not be able to prove the number of hours spent.

Who?_me?

I put down how long I have spent on some applications / prep for interview. If you are UJM it is literaly one click and I don't like that because a CV can't reflect your ablities / how you can meet the job. Application forms and personal specifications take at least an hour, and prep for an interview should take at least a day if not longer.

306chris

My agreement says that I have to do two applications a week. I do a lot more than this.

To apply for 30 jobs a week around here would ne nigh on impossible to sustain.

Mind you they say actions, and an action could be as simple as asking a friend about jobs where they work.

As for the time issue you can always send out a speculative CV and hand deliver it. I could spend a good 5-6 hours walking to the local industrial estate and then hand out a CV. It doesn't say I cant do this on numerous days.