April JSA changes

Morlock

busy_mom wrote: »

British heart foundation and salvation army still participate in 8 week WEX schemes.

But work experience placements are entirely voluntary, until the claimant signs up to one, then sanctions can be applied for non-participation.

If mandatory community work placements are ever implemented, the organisations participating will have to deal with a lot of backlash from the public, which is why most organisations pulled out of the mandatory work activity scheme.

mattcanary

AP007 wrote: »

I am applying for treasury/finance roles which are not advertised in the widow as they are either home based or in their head office.

You can still go into the shop and ask. I'm sure there would be siomeone there that can put yoiu in the right direction.
This would mean you minimise the bureaucracy and cut out the number of steps in reaching the person that has the decision of hiring volunteers.

mattcanary

AP007 wrote: »

Just out of interest how will a reference from a chairty shop be better for me than one from my old MD, office manager, another MD, the MD of an agency that placed me at my last job (and have known me for 10 years) and one from a CEO of a major hotel chain in the far east ? A charity shop reference will not tell a company what I can do accounts wise. Yes it may say she was on time and dressed well but nothing else.

I have 3 years retail experience though working for an upmarket jeweller and a large retail company. None of this experience comes in handy when applying for office jobs.

I am applying for a volunteer accounts role for a chairty in the city of London but will have to check if the JC let me do it as I have to be available for a 35 job search and be able to return a call 5 days a week.

JC have told me that I can do as many hours as I wish volunteering.

They did say that I must still spend 35 hours a week searching for work each week.

But in reality, who spends that long applying for work on a regular basis? For example, this last week has been very poor on the jobs front in my area with a lack of vacancies.

The Jobcentre advisers have been very trusting of me at my last two signing-on sessions. Neither adviser read my booklet. They just processed my payment. Well, I'm trusting they have processed it this week. The adviser didn;t say -- he just initialled my booklet and pressed some buttons on his computer!

KevInChester

I volunteered in a school as a one to one helper. I was assigned some children, some who were behind with reading/writing and some that were considered 'gifted'. I then read with them, made stories up and played games. A lot of fun and very rewarding. The childrens faces lit up whenever I went in, a lot of the children were asking the teacher if they behaved and did their work could they go with me next week. That feeling is amazing, does wonders for self esteem and can make you some good contacts.

Also done some voluntary work helping out at a computer centre, helping people to use the internet and teaching them how to do things.

I was about to go into a placement whereby I would be assigned somebody with a disability be it physical or mental and help them go out and do fun activities. Transport and associated costs were paid for you.

Volunteering can be a great deal of fun and can definitely be more than working in a shop. Even if it doesn't meet your career aims it may still be something that is beneficial to you. Looks good on a CV too - if you are doing something that you don't usually do, it can show you are multi faceted and willing to do tasks you wouldn't normally do.

AP007

mattcanary wrote: »

JC have told me that I can do as many hours as I wish volunteering.

They did say that I must still spend 35 hours a week searching for work each week.

But in reality, who spends that long applying for work on a regular basis? For example, this last week has been very poor on the jobs front in my area with a lack of vacancies.

The Jobcentre advisers have been very trusting of me at my last two signing-on sessions. Neither adviser read my booklet. They just processed my payment. Well, I'm trusting they have processed it this week. The adviser didn;t say -- he just initialled my booklet and pressed some buttons on his computer!

I do. Every day, all day till I go to bed. Sourced 10 companies yesterday to email and chased 60 job applications as well as applying for jobs (cv and cover letter) and started to fill in a large application form where I have one competancy question left to answer to compiling the answer over the next few days. It has to be between 2000- 4000 words for each reply!:eek:

mattcanary

AP007 wrote: »

I do. Every day, all day till I go to bed. Sourced 10 companies yesterday to email and chased 60 job applications as well as applying for jobs (cv and cover letter) and started to fill in a large application form where I have one competancy question left to answer to compiling the answer over the next few days. It has to be between 2000- 4000 words for each reply!:eek:

Well, I do voluntary work two days a week.

Since starting it in early February, I have performed tasks that I can include in new job applications and hopefully lead to me getting interviews (which I perform poorly in, unfortunately). That demonstrates to employers that I am learning new things and getting out there, even if I am not being paid.
So that means that even though I do not regularly spend all day and night applying for jobs, I feel that I am more likely to be successful than if I had done just this, and nothing else.
I would just be talking in my application forms / CVs and interviews about hypothetical situations or things that I did at work years ago, if that was all I did.

Will be forwarding job applications I make by email on to my JobCentre Plus adviser in the next couple or so weeks as I have my review on two Wednesdays time. I want to prove that I am not just dossing around, and that I do have skills that will help me find work.
Adviser replied back to one I sent today saying she was very impressed by an application I had made this morning.

I will be asking whether there are any local Jobclubs as well when I attend my review. I did ask that yesterday but the adviser I saw then looked totally clueless when I asked him, and he was unable to help at all. I tried to do an internet search to find out for myself but for some reason, the website wasn;t proiding me with any such information. I assume that means there aren't any near me, but I will still ask.

Adviser replied back to one I sent today saying she was very impressed by it.

busy_mom_2

melysion wrote: »

My brother has never been sanctioned He is, however, most definitely long-term unemployed (ten years or more) - due primarily to a criminal conviction. I keep trying to encourage him to start his own business, as I don't think he will ever work otherwise but it's difficult without any money, obviously. I could weep really seeing as he was progressing well in retail management but there you go. As much as I like to think otherwise, I can't imagine any scheme (or form of bullying) will ever get my brother into employment.

But none of his unemployment is down to JCP, he did a crime now at some point that has to be acceptd and move on.
JCP do an NEA scheme but money can be an issue for people employed just as much as unemployed. If he does what he is asked then how is that bullying? If he hasn't ever been sanctioned then he is doing, or saying what is needed.

tomterm8

busy_mom wrote: »

But none of his unemployment is down to JCP, he did a crime now at some point that has to be acceptd and move on.
JCP do an NEA scheme but money can be an issue for people employed just as much as unemployed. If he does what he is asked then how is that bullying? If he hasn't ever been sanctioned then he is doing, or saying what is needed.

For him all he needs to do is beat £72 profit a week to be better off. That's just not that hard. Ladder plus bucket = window cleaner. £100 investment, at most.

makeyourdaddyproud

tomterm8 wrote: »

For him all he needs to do is beat £72 profit a week to be better off. That's just not that hard. Ladder plus bucket = window cleaner. £100 investment, at most.

Really?

Can you clean my windows please, 5th floor.

Show me your indemnity insurance too before you start.

tomterm8

makeyourdaddyproud wrote: »

Really?

Can you clean my windows please, 5th floor.

Show me your indemnity insurance too before you start.

You go round knocking on the doors you can do safely. It's pretty simple, really. And you're pretty safe from the indemnity point of view because there isn't a lawyer in the world that's going to sue someone on income based jobseekers allowance.

Once you're making enough money to sue you're also making enough money to buy a water pole system and insurance.