Just got back from my local Jobcentre.
Met a man who has not been paid any benefits for 3 months. He had missed an appointment because he was attending his father’s funeral, speaks little English and has nowhere to go for help. He had come to the UK because he had a job , but it only lasted a few months and he found himself unemployed.
A few minutes later I went in to the Jobcentre, where someone was being told that he had to come back tomorrow at 2pm. He explained that he had a job interview the other side of London at that time. He was only picking up a form, could they not just give it to him? No, says the Jobcentre manager, our system is not that flexible. Outside, he said he will have to cancel his job interview or they will sanction him for not attending the Jobcentre appointment. But there is also a chance he will be sanctioned for not attending the job interview.
At the same time someone was there making an official complaint: his Jobseekers Allowance claim has been stopped because he was doing part time course of 5 hours a week. Even though the same Jobcentre had told him last September that this course was fine, and had given him permission to do it.
All this in 20 minutes at one local Jobcentre.
Argotina
Benefit tales 
Ridiculous. I remember my son having to go on the bus (£5+) to attend a course on how to use job search, which he already did daily from home. He then had to return the following day (more bus fare) to sign on. If they hadn’t closed our local job centre he would have saved more than £11 – a lot from job seeker’s allowance!
Everyone should claim ESA and boycott JSA.
Reblogged this on Britain Isn't Eating.
Wow. I wonder what would happened if you stayed a full hour… How many more job interviews & employability improving courses would have been sabotaged by then? Visiting Job Centres nowadays is like witnessing prisons. Except that criminals get more protection & legal rights than job-seekers. The latter group are not even allowed to use toilets, let alone to get the support they need with their job search.
Every person deserves to be treated with respect & dignity. How comes we become so uncivilised as a society?