Are job centres contacting people to attend again?

[Deleted User]

donnajunkie said:

MarkN88 said:

donnajunkie said:

MarkN88 said:

This guidance has had a slight update so I’m thinking for the foreseeable anyway it looks like you will be asked to attend in exceptional circumstances. 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-what-to-do-if-youre-already-getting-benefits

if its over the phone then they surely still have to give you an appointment. you cant be expected to be in all day everyday monday to friday on the off chance they could call. although i suspect it may just continue to be in the form of the odd courtesy call rather than a set fortnightly of right what have you done to look for work.

I speak to my mum, relatives and friends that still claim JSA and they say all there courtesy calls have been on their usual day of signing so you wouldn’t need to be available everyday of the week. 

As the email my mum received suggests, there is still support there if you need it and you can be expected to attend a JC in exceptional circumstances but even the work coaches are pointing out, even though the opening of job centres are happening it’s not going to be business as usual for a while yet. 

Even if just your usual signing day if you aren't expecting it you may not be in.

You are only required to sign 1 day out of every -4, if you want your benefits I’m sure you can keep that 1 day free. 

tomtom256

donnajunkie said:

Not everyone though. Even if you do it's a good idea to say you don't if you don't want them to expect to be able to have you on call all day every day. 

But with Universal Credit this is a moot point, as we can send you a journal message and it will be received instantly and you are alerted to this new message. Same if we set a to-do.

What would you do if an employer was trying to get in touch with you or they had a solid job offer for you?

TheShape

donnajunkie said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

donnajunkie said:

poppy12345 said:

donnajunkie said:

MarkN88 said:

This guidance has had a slight update so I’m thinking for the foreseeable anyway it looks like you will be asked to attend in exceptional circumstances. 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-what-to-do-if-youre-already-getting-benefits

if its over the phone then they surely still have to give you an appointment. you cant be expected to be in all day everyday monday to friday on the off chance they could call.

I would imagine the majority of people have a mobile phone these days, so there's no need to be "in" all day, everyday.

Not everyone though. Even if you do it's a good idea to say you don't if you don't want them to expect to be able to have you on call all day every day. 

No, it's never a good idea to lie about your details when claiming benefits.

I'm not really sure why you think they expect people to answer calls whenever and at whim? Of course it's in their interests to give you a heads-up about when they plan to call anyway so they don't waste their time phoning when you happen to be unavailable because you're using the bathroom or driving or at a medical appointment or something. If you're expecting a call then you'd make sure be available unless there's a sudden emergency.

Yes in general if you're looking for work you should be contactable (similar principle to how you should be contactable for when people offer you job interviews) but that's within reason - we're all human with things to do in everyday life and are not expected to just sit by the phone for the whole of the working week!

Obviously it's not good but people need to look after themselves. I have heard of people who give their mobile number being sanctioned for missing a call because you can't really excuse not answering a mobile in their view. At least with a home phone you can be justified if you miss a call because you are out.

If you've been appropriately notified of an appointment you would be expected to be in (to answer your landline) at the time of the booked appointment.  If you were not available then it is likely that a referral to a Decision Maker would result in a sanction.

GHolmesAdmin

we can send you a journal message and it will be received instantly and you are alerted to this new message. Same if we set a to-do.

Who is this 'we' you speak of - are you an official spokesperson for the DWP?  Are they aware you are speaking for them?

[Deleted User]

Remember too, not everyone is on UC, still plenty on JSA so therefore they don’t have a journal so they will be relying on a phone call without warning unless they send a letter first. 

tomtom256

MarkN88 said:

Remember too, not everyone is on UC, still plenty on JSA so therefore they don’t have a journal so they will be relying on a phone call without warning unless they send a letter first. 

If an appointment is booked without a letter, legacy customers should get a text message sent to them about the appointment, but only if a mobile number is held on the system. Only downside is its generic, so will probably say it's a face to face appointment and not a telephone appointment.

[Deleted User]

tomtom256 said:

MarkN88 said:

Remember too, not everyone is on UC, still plenty on JSA so therefore they don’t have a journal so they will be relying on a phone call without warning unless they send a letter first. 

If an appointment is booked without a letter, legacy customers should get a text message sent to them about the appointment, but only if a mobile number is held on the system. Only downside is its generic, so will probably say it's a face to face appointment and not a telephone appointment.

I Would imagine they would need to make that clear to people though otherwise people will think they need to attend the job centre. 

calcotti

MarkN88 said:

tomtom256 said:

MarkN88 said:

Remember too, not everyone is on UC, still plenty on JSA so therefore they don’t have a journal so they will be relying on a phone call without warning unless they send a letter first. 

If an appointment is booked without a letter, legacy customers should get a text message sent to them about the appointment, but only if a mobile number is held on the system. Only downside is its generic, so will probably say it's a face to face appointment and not a telephone appointment.

I Would imagine they would need to make that clear to people though otherwise people will think they need to attend the job centre. 

Even before COVID I have heard of someone failing to be available for a telephone appointment on their landline because the communication had told them to go to the JobCentre!

donnajunkie

MarkN88 said:

donnajunkie said:

MarkN88 said:

donnajunkie said:

MarkN88 said:

This guidance has had a slight update so I’m thinking for the foreseeable anyway it looks like you will be asked to attend in exceptional circumstances. 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-what-to-do-if-youre-already-getting-benefits

if its over the phone then they surely still have to give you an appointment. you cant be expected to be in all day everyday monday to friday on the off chance they could call. although i suspect it may just continue to be in the form of the odd courtesy call rather than a set fortnightly of right what have you done to look for work.

I speak to my mum, relatives and friends that still claim JSA and they say all there courtesy calls have been on their usual day of signing so you wouldn’t need to be available everyday of the week. 

As the email my mum received suggests, there is still support there if you need it and you can be expected to attend a JC in exceptional circumstances but even the work coaches are pointing out, even though the opening of job centres are happening it’s not going to be business as usual for a while yet. 

Even if just your usual signing day if you aren't expecting it you may not be in.

You are only required to sign 1 day out of every -4, if you want your benefits I’m sure you can keep that 1 day free. 

You are missing the point. Currently people have no scheduled expectation to either attend in person or over the phone. As and when they are expected to then they should be informed. You cant be penalised for not attending an appointment you have no knowledge of. I doubt many people have spent the day waiting for a phone call once a fortnight over the last few months incase they get a call.

donnajunkie

tomtom256 said:

donnajunkie said:

Not everyone though. Even if you do it's a good idea to say you don't if you don't want them to expect to be able to have you on call all day every day. 

But with Universal Credit this is a moot point, as we can send you a journal message and it will be received instantly and you are alerted to this new message. Same if we set a to-do.

What would you do if an employer was trying to get in touch with you or they had a solid job offer for you?

How do you send a journal message to a person who does not have a mobile or the internet at home at the moment?