35 hour a week work search is becoming difficult. How to not get sanctioned?

gomer

donnajunkie wrote: »

I think I should clarify some more. The best thing is to just say tasks took a bit longer to ensure you fill 35 hours. Its not about avoiding looking for work.

Try telling that to some of the people on this thread. If you went to college you wouldn't have to do a job search. You don't have to sign on either while you study. But some of them seem more interested in staying on jobseekers then in improving their own prospects of finding better jobs.

Frankly the attitudes I'm seeing here don't deserve anything better then a chip shop.

Farmer_Johnson

JonVarnas wrote: »

Just apply for any old crap - that's what I do. Most work coaches are so overworked they won't delve too deeply into your work search. Apply for anything that doesnt't need specific qualifications with a below par CV and most employers won't even get back to you, but you'll have the proof that you've applied.

Why not apply with a CV tailored to the job?

Is the aim here not to find a job? Why would people sabotage their chances like you suggest?

Farmer_Johnson

Deleted%20User wrote: »

I always used to think this - until, my nearly 50 year old friend who can't drive approaches their 4th week unemployed.

All the agencies spin her a line about how it would be so much easier to place if she was a driver. (I don't think it's responsible of them really) As they have said come back when passed test etc - my friend won't hear how I think some of these agencies must be stringing her along. There was an agent recently who after 2 (one included trying to get me in with an ex employer only 12 months on!!) attempts to place me simply said shall we carry on and have long since moved on. They do lose interest very quickly. People who cannot drive are totally stuck.

She really has no-one else to blame if she has not learned to drive, and should make learning a priority, but the key point here is not to restrict yourself only to agencies.

Why has she limited herself with not driving by the way?

Farmer_Johnson

donnajunkie wrote: »

No, its just understanding the first priority has to be to cover yourself. People have not argued against doing useful tasks. People just say if you are struggling then you may have to resort to some fibbing. Saying sorry i didnt manage 35 hours this week for whatever reason wont end well for the claimant.

The problem is that the attitude that you display here is toxic to your chances. The first priority should be getting a job, not “covering” yourself.

A lot of people who think like you will end up long term unemployed. I hope that you never find yourself out of work but thinking about appearing to do the right thing rather than just getting on and doing it places you at really high risk of losing your job and then struggling to find another.

What is sad is that I know people who think like you do who have been out of work for months and can’t see that it is their choice to be like this, not employers, job centre staff, or agencies, who stop them working.

buglawton

Looks like OP hasn't got as far as seeing a work coach yet. Presumably it's that coach who will direct people to training options if that's the best plan.

TELLIT01

buglawton wrote: »

That's how our system is built.
I made a visit to the jobcentre in Farnborough a few years ago to get a document copy certified (they do it for the public, free). The jobcentre was near empty, more staff than customers!

I'm guessing that was quite a few years ago. When I worked at DWP they wouldn't deal with anybody who just walked in without an appointment.

gomer

buglawton wrote: »

Looks like OP hasn't got as far as seeing a work coach yet. Presumably it's that coach who will direct people to training options if that's the best plan.

Not quite. You don't need to wait to be asked. I didn't.

moneyistooshorttomention

Farmer_Johnson wrote: »

She really has no-one else to blame if she has not learned to drive, and should make learning a priority, but the key point here is not to restrict yourself only to agencies.

Why has she limited herself with not driving by the way?

Maybe because she can't afford or doesn't want a car.

I've always been poorly-paid and single and so have therefore never been able to afford a car (even if I wanted one). I managed - because I was living in a city and so therefore the vast majority of jobs I asked for were within walking distance of my home and the odd few that weren't had reasonable level public transport facilities to get to them.

Thankfully I'm now retired and, when I was working, I lived in a city. So for someone living in a city or reasonable size town - then it's certainly not reasonable for employers to expect an employee/would-be employee to cover the cost of having a car out of their own money unless (possibly) the work they are applying for is reasonably-paid career type jobs. For unskilled work or lower-level office work (ie NMW or not that much extra to that) then one can't afford a car basically. So it's either "old banger" type car and having to have the skills/know someone else well that does so to keep it on the road or forget about having one.

I dread to think how people living in more remote areas are supposed to cover the cost of having a car from their own money - and that when one adds that it basically costs more to live somewhere more remote in the first place (no free social events/possibly a dearer fuel bill etc).

moneyistooshorttomention

Farmer_Johnson wrote: »

The problem is that the attitude that you display here is toxic to your chances. The first priority should be getting a job, not “covering” yourself.

A lot of people who think like you will end up long term unemployed. I hope that you never find yourself out of work but thinking about appearing to do the right thing rather than just getting on and doing it places you at really high risk of losing your job and then struggling to find another.

What is sad is that I know people who think like you do who have been out of work for months and can’t see that it is their choice to be like this, not employers, job centre staff, or agencies, who stop them working.

I wouldn't agree - because I "think a lot like that" and had to "cover myself" during periods of unemployment (ie with all those fake job applications, as well as the real ones). But I expect you'd have been someone that would have "told me off" for sticking to basically only asking for office jobs/standard hours and expected me to ask for unskilled jobs/antisocial hours as well and take no regard whatsoever for the fact that isn't "my" type of job/hours (being skilled/experienced as an office worker and only used to office hours - and would have stood out like a sore thumb in a different type of job).

I spent a total of 41.5 years working full-time from leaving school to retiring and managed to have a total of less than 2 years of that time unemployed. The job I retired from was one I'd managed to hold onto (albeit with difficulty:cool: - trans. fighting to keep it) for over 20 years. So the periods of unemployment were in the 1980s and I retired in the 2010's.

System

Enigma16 wrote: »

I worry about lying because the work coach asks for evidence, right? I don't know how it works with the work coach as this is my first time seeing her. The last appointment I had, the woman told me the lady I am seeing is nice. How true that is, I don't know.

Don't lie, apply properly.