28 Jul 2017 08:45:49
Thanks Ed33
So I have a situation and it's really getting on my nerves.
I was on Jobseekers allowance up until a few weeks back as we are having a baby in September so they transferred me to Income Support for the last 11 weeks of the pregnancy and then 15 weeks after the baby is born, after this I go back onto Jobseekers Allowance.
I hope of course I can get a job by then, applying for loads and getting nowhere at the moment but fingers crossed something comes up. I'm unemployed through no fault of my own and I'm no 'lazy bum' like a lot of people call those who are claiming these benefits, I'm willing to work anywhere with any hours immediately.
Point is, at a time like this, first child coming, it should be an exciting time, it is, but it's not at the same time. I'm dreading the thought of going back onto JSA.
My reasons? -
I had to 'officially' move into my partners house in around April time, we wanted to do everything legit. By doing this I got a new adviser or as they call them these days 'work coach' even though they don't try and help you one bit but there you go.
This new adviser has a serious problem with me and I have no idea why, I do everything they ask, and a lot more to be honest. I'm meant to apply for 3 jobs per week, now that to me is pure lazy and stupid you should have to apply for a lot more and I do, I was taking in my job booklet with 20 jobs per week written in it (at least) .
This wasn't good enough for her. The very first appointment I had with her she told me I had to create an online government gateway account, I explained to her I had already, she told me I was wrong because she couldn't see it on the system. I attempted to recover my password but I didn't get the email for it so I assumed my account had been deactivated, somehow? So I went to make an account again for it to inform me I already had an account. Every time I tried to request a new password it just wouldn't send me the details I needed.
The next time I went in I explained it to her and told her as I previously said, I do have an account and there's proof of that when I try to make another it won't let me because there's already one linked. Bare in mind, usually i'd of had these account details noted down but my previous adviser told me it wasn't necessary to use that website and just do my log in the book. But anyway obviously this proved her wrong for previously saying I didn't have this account and she ended up incredibly nasty and said 'make a new account with a new email address or I will have to sanction you today, it's up to you'.
To me you just don't talk to people like that. It's purely disrespect and there's damn right no need for it. I created another email account, did what she asked to then be told I should think out the box more and not have to be told what to do. I explained in the most respectful way I possibly could that if she knew what she was doing on her computer a little more maybe we wouldn't have to have gone through this whole malarkey.
The appointment after that one, I was waiting to be seen and heard her speaking to a couple of other claimants who were on the computers before seeing me. She was polite as hell with them, I have nothing against foreigners not at all. But they were foreign. I thought to myself, maybe she's in a good mood today. I went and sat down and it was the same old nonsense, giving me hassle.
In the end I said to her you obviously have a big problem with me, I use the online account like you requested, I apply for around 7 x more jobs then I'm supposed to, I have multiple CV's for different fields of work, I have a lot of experience elsewhere yet you still have a problem why is that? she responded to me and said it was all irrelevant and that I should try more because what I'm doing obviously isn't working. I said yeah, and the two foreign fellas over there are still here yet I didn't hear you having a go at them.
I feel like she was trying to wind me up to the maximum so I kick off and get sanctioned, nothing would make her happier. Nothing would make me happier to give her a few home truths as well but I can't afford to do that. I'm constantly worrying about going back onto it after the 15 week mark because she'll be my new adviser.
Is there any way I could request a new adviser? or can that not be done? or maybe somewhere I can write to and complain about her?
I think these advisers have to give people some hassle to a certain extent because there's a lot of people on JSA not willing to work and they simply need a kick up the arse. But to be nasty about things is wrong in my opinion and she is brutal.
Apologies for the huge post, the things I have wrote are the basics there's a lot more to it, I even have recordings on my phone of some of the conversations, not all but some.
If you've got this far, thank you for your time.
Sorry before posting I remembered something else - Since we changed made a 'joint' claim, obviously as you well know, money automatically goes into your account fortnightly. Well since I had this adviser, we wasn't getting paid when we should of done (Wednesdays) We had to call up the benefit number and ask why, to which they explained they had no idea why we hadn't been paid automatically and it'll be in by 5pm the same day. This might not be the advisers fault but it does make me wonder because I never had this problem before and it happened every fortnight until we went onto income support.
{Ed033's Note - How about this:
If you’re over 25 then you should stop claiming JSA and claim Tax Credits instead. By starting a private business (sell stuff on Ebay?) and telling them you are working 40 hours a week on it, you can claim full tax credits. That way there's no signing on each week and no job interviews/form filling on a regular basis to get benefits (or there wasn't last time i looked), and if you get a job, you can stop the private business.
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28 Jul 2017 14:02:00
To be honest ed33, I had been told this by somebody i know who is doing exactly that, your another person to tell me this so it seems like a wise thing to do?
I love the idea of the ebay excuse. that's brilliant.
Thanks for your time and advice ed33 it truly is appreciated and if needs be i will go down this route.
{Ed033's Note - If you didn't know, people who work in the Job Centres get bonuses if they can manipulate you into breaking their rules because it leads to them being able to remove some benefits from you.
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28 Jul 2017 15:26:06
Yes very true, I also heard they must keep up to targets, sanctioning a person will, as you say give them bonuses. Whether there's any truth to it I don't know but somebody told me they must sanction a minimum of 3 people per week. As I say, this I don't know about, but it wouldn't surprise me if this was the case, wouldn't surprise me in the least.
These advisers are puppets for the people up top. I can just imagine it 'you do as we say or you go from been an adviser to being a claimant'. I suppose it's easy to point the finger at them (the advisers) because that's who we deal with when we go in there but the reality of it is they are doing it to either save their job or to get their bonuses. If it's the latter then shame on them.
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