New Government Proposals on Welfare

This is taken directly from ‘The Coalition: our programme for government’ paper. It is still lacking a lot of details which need filling out, so a proper analysis can’t be made of it just yet. But it does show there are some major changes coming, which seem to be aimed at continuing to force people off incapacity benefits or training people on pointless courses for non-existent jobs through private companies. We should also note that there are massive plans to cut public spending and I think its safe to say, this is one area the government will be targetting.

The Government believes that we need to encourage responsibility and fairness in the welfare system. That means providing help for those who cannot work, training and targeted support for those looking for work, but sanctions for those who turn down reasonable offers of work or training.

• We will end all existing welfare to work programmes and create a single welfare to work programme to help all unemployed people get back into work.
• We will ensure that Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants facing the most significant barriers to work are referred to the new welfare to work programme immediately, not after 12 months as is currently the case. We will ensure that Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants aged under 25 are referred to the programme after a maximum of six months.
• We will realign contracts with welfare to work service providers to reflect more closely the results they achieve in getting people back into work.
• We will reform the funding mechanism used by government to finance welfare to work programmes to reflect the fact that initial investment delivers later savings through lower benefit expenditure, including creating an integrated work programme with outcome funding based upon the DEL/AME switch.
• We will ensure that receipt of benefits for those able to work is conditional on their willingness to work.
• We support the National Minimum Wage because of the protection it gives low-income workers and the incentives to work it provides.
• We will re-assess all current claimants of Incapacity Benefit for their readiness to work. Those assessed as fully capable for work will be moved onto Jobseeker’s Allowance.
• We will support would-be entrepreneurs through a new programme – Work for Yourself – which will give the unemployed access to business mentors and start-up loans.
• We will draw on a range of Service Academies to offer pre-employment training and work placements for unemployed people.
• We will develop local Work Clubs – places where unemployed people can gather to exchange skills, find opportunities, make contacts and provide mutual support.
• We will investigate how to simplify the benefit system in order to improve incentives to work.

Taken from HM Government website

The Unemployment Business

The latest edition of Corporate Watch

It has almost become a self-evident truth that unemployment has been growing progressively over the last two decades, both in scale and in its significance for social and economic policy. How and why are often ignored but a vast industry to ‘manage’ this ‘crisis’ has developed. From flourishing private companies, such as A4e, contracted by the Department for Work and Pensions to deliver what Jobcentre Plus has apparently failed to achieve, through tens of subcontracted employment services providers, to a growing sector of so-called voluntary organisations that depend on this reserve army of unemployed people to source their ‘slave’ workforce. This double issue of the Corporate Watch Newsletter takes a look at this relatively new ‘unemployment business’; its protagonists, ideological, political and economic premises and how it is being utilised by the New Labour government to dismantle what’s left of the welfare state.

The ‘unemployment crisis’ has certainly been exacerbated by the recent economic downturn, with many employers going bust, but that’s not the whole story. Many big businesses have also exploited the current climate to push for compulsory redundancies. More importantly, the recession and the rising number of jobless people have been skilfully employed by politicians and government officials. By introducing new schemes and increasingly coercive measures to ‘help’ the unemployed get back into the job market, they have put yet another nail in the welfare state’s coffin.

The first article, The Welfare Crisis, discusses these deployments in more detail, providing some historical background on New Labour’s welfare reforms. Two other articles take an in-depth look at the New Deal programmes, both old and new, which have been at the core of these reforms, providing some new details and figures about the winners and losers, or the private contractors and their victims. The voluntarism business is discussed in depth in a separate article, again with some interesting details and figures. These are complemented by a shorter article on prison slave labour, which bears striking similarities to the increasingly coercive benefits and employment system, both in how it is working out and in the reasoning behind it.

Readers may notice, or be annoyed by, the rather excessive use of inverted commas in most of the articles. This is because one of the aims of this issue is not only to demystify the business jargon used to talk about employment and benefits, but also to pause and question the official terms and euphemisms that have come to be used by almost everyone without much questioning. To that end, we have included a list of the most common words and terms in this ‘benefits newspeak’, along with their real meanings.

Our other aim of this issue is to highlight how the reformed welfare system is being used by the state and the market for social control. During interviews conducted for the purpose of producing this newsletter, one of the “Jobcentre victims,” as he described himself, commented: “If they gave the money they spend on finding work for people to those people [on the dole], there wouldn’t be a crisis, would there?” No, there probably wouldn’t but, of course, it’s not only about money. Keeping people busy with work or looking for work also serves another political agenda: preventing time for politics, uninstitutionalised creativity and other ‘dangerous’ activities.

With all the talk about ‘flexibility’, people nowadays appear to have less freedom to choose what they really want to do, particularly those with less marketable skills. Forcing people to do whatever is available on the job market to survive means subjecting them to ruthless market mechanisms (everyone seems to accept terms like the ‘labour market’ as normal!). We have included an article about the rather small-scale acts of resistance by the unemployed and benefit claimants, but we are aware that much more could, and should, be done. We hope this issue is a useful contribution to this growing movement.

The rest of the magazine can be found online here and a full PDF here

Britain ‘most unequal society in western Europe’

A high-profile philanthropist has labelled evidence that poverty affects children’s ability to do well in school a “a tragic indictment on modern society.”

Sutton Trust chairman Sir Peter Lampl described as shocking the findings of a study by his organisation to be released on Monday which show that the language skills of the poorest children in Britain are almost a year behind their richer peers.

Of 12,644 five-year-olds who were monitored in 2006 and 2007, just 45 per cent from the poorest fifth of families were ready to read daily by the age of three compared to 78 per cent of children from the richest fifth of families.

The study also showed “the stark educational disadvantage experienced by children from poorer homes before they have even stepped into the school classroom” – the poorest parents in the survey had no GCSEs at grade C or above, while four in five of the richest were educated to degree level.

Sources said the report confirmed that after 12 years of Labour government Britain is the most unequal society in western Europe.

Against a background of over half a billion pounds worth of cuts in higher education – unparalleled in the public sector – Mr Lampl warned against reducing funds that helped disadvantaged children to go to university.

“It is a tragic indictment on modern society that our children’s future life prospects depend so much on their family background, not their individual talents,” he said.

But he also claimed that “good parenting” – such as reading to children on a daily basis, or taking them to libraries, museums and galleries – could “overcome some of the negative impacts that poverty can have on children’s early development.”

The study found that wealthier parents with more free time would be more likely to take their kids on cultural activities.

Left-leaning think tank Compass highlighted the way in which poverty and wealth is inherited by subsequent generations last month.

It found that university graduates are disproportionately more likely to be from better-off backgrounds.

A mere 4 per cent of pupils eligible for free school meals go on to higher education, compared to 33 per cent of those who are ineligible.

Taken from Morning Star

Nursery costs go through the roof

Some parents are paying more than £22,000 a year for nursery places as the cost of childcare continues to rise faster than inflation, the Daycare Trust has warned.

Sending a child to nursery in the country’s most expensive areas can now cost more than private school fees, the trust claimed.

The cost of a nursery place for a child aged over two in England increased by 5.1 per cent last year – almost twice the rate of inflation.

A full-time nursery place for a child under two cost an average £176 per week, or £9,152 a year.

In London the figure rose to £218 weekly, but some nurseries in the capital charged £425 a week – the equivalent of £22,100 a year.

Average gross weekly earnings nationally are £489.

The rises were condemned by Daycare Trust joint chief executive Alison Garnham as increasing the burden on families already hit by the recession.

Taken from Morning Star

Action needed for young jobless

Britain faces losing thousands of potential plumbers, mechanics and nurses due to unemployment and underinvestment in young people, the Prince’s Trust has said.

A survey of 1,000 people aged 16 to 24 by the youth charity found that many young people were finding it hard to get out of the unemployment trap, citing lack of money as a key issue.

Two out of five of those questioned said that they could not afford to buy smart clothes for a job interview and over half thought they would never be able to buy their own home.

The long-term unemployed were nearly twice as likely to fear that they “will never amount to anything” and three times as likely to believe they don’t have any skills or talents.

Presenting the findings, Prince’s Trust chief executive Martina Milburn quickly contradicted any notion that young people were to blame for their situation.

“Every one of Britain’s unemployed young people has skills and talents that could make a real difference to this country,” she insisted.

Campaign group Youth Fight For Jobs chairman Ben Robinson criticised the government for cutting back on vocational education courses and putting the financial burden on students in post-18 education with higher fees.

“£1.2 trillion given to bail out the banks.

“And now the budget for young people and their future is being cut in the middle of a recession. It is devastating,” he said.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow added that report highlighted “further evidence of the dangers of a lost generation similar to the dark days of Thatcherism, being the victims of a recession manufactured by casino capitalism.”

Taken from Morning Star

Rich-poor divide ‘wider than 40 years ago’

The gap between rich and poor in the UK is wider now than 40 years ago, a government-commissioned report says.

“Deep-seated and systemic differences” remain between men and women and minority groups in pay and employment, the National Equality Panel found.

It said in areas such as neighbourhood renewal, taxes and education, policy action was needed to limit inequality.

The issues raised would need “sustained and focused action”, Equalities Minister Harriet Harman said.

“But for the sake of the right of every individual to reach their full potential, for the sake of a strong and meritocratic economy and to achieve a peaceful and cohesive society, that is the challenge that must be met,” she added.

Earning power

Apparent discrimination against people from ethnic minorities was revealed in the report, with those from nearly every minority group less likely to be in paid work than white British men and women.

The panel – set up by the government in 2008 – found that despite women up to the age of 44 having better qualifications than men, men were still paid up to 21% more per hour.

But the authors pointed out that some of the greatest differences come within social groups.

Among women, many work part-time, earning less than £7.20 an hour, much less than the median pay of £9.90 across the country.

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“Most political parties and people subscribe to the ideal of ‘equality of opportunity’,” panel chair Professor John Hills, of the London School of Economics, told the BBC.

“The challenge that our report puts down to all political parties is how do you create a level playing field when there are such large differences between the resources that different people have available to them.

“Things that allow you to buy a house in the catchment area of a good school or allow you to help your children get on the housing ladder. These are very big differences.”

The study said that the type of job and pay a parent had could have a cumulative effect throughout a person’s life, setting them on “tracks that make all sorts of differences”.

By retirement, the difference between rich and poor can be “colossal”, the report added.

The panel pointed out that half of those who have worked in the top professions have net assets worth more than £900,000, while a 10th of those who have had unskilled jobs have property, savings and possessions worth less than £8,000.

BBC social policy correspondent Gillian Hargreaves said the report would make “awkward reading for the government” as Labour had made tackling inequality a priority.

Theresa May, shadow minister for women and equalities, told the BBC that Labour’s policies had failed.

“It is shocking that after 13 years of a government that wanted to focus on child inequality, we’re still in this situation,” she said.

“Labour has had a one-dimensional approach, looking at the symptoms, not the causes. For example, one in six children are growing up in a workless household. We need policies that can make equality a reality.”

The Liberal Democrats’ children, schools and families spokesman, David Laws, said Gordon Brown’s government had “run out of ideas for tackling the lack of opportunity for so many children and the chasm that separates the rich from the poor”.

Full report – An anatomy of economic inequality in the UK [4 MB]

Summary – An anatomy of economic inequality in the UK [1.79 MB]

Taken from BBC News

Young people stuck on the dole

Shock figures released last week showed how young people have been hit hard by the recession. Ken Olende and Viv Smith spoke to some of those who have struggled to find work

Nearly half of young black people in Britain are unemployed. This stark figure comes in a new report from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think-tank.

Its findings undercut the government’s celebration of the first official fall in unemployment for 18 months and its belief that racism is no longer a central cause of “disadvantage”.

Two weeks ago communities minister John Denham launched a government report, Tackling Race Inequality.

It said, “Socio-economic status and poverty affect people’s chances in life regardless of race or ethnic background.”

Poverty and class do indeed affect quality of life – but race adds a very real extra burden.

The IPPR report looked at 60,000 households, including 7,200 young people aged between 16 and 24. It presents the more complex picture.

Racism

Unemployment for young white people is high, at 20 percent. For Asians the figure rises to 31 percent and for African Caribbeans it reaches a truly staggering 48 percent.

The greatest increase in youth unemployment has been among people from mixed ethnic groups.

Some 35 percent were unemployed in November last year – up from 21 percent in March 2008.

Racism is embedded in every part of society. In schools, black children are more likely to be excluded and marginalised.

Sometimes discrimination is less subtle – as a recent Department for Work and Pensions survey found.

It sent out almost identical job applications to a wide range of companies. Some had names suggesting the applicant was from an ethnic minority, rather than white British.

Those applicants who were perceived to be white received a positive response after nine applications.

Yet ethnic minority candidates had to send 16 applications before receiving a positive response.

All of this makes it hard to believe the government’s claim that racism is now peripheral.

It is also wrong to use the fall in official unemployment figures to claim that the recession is over. There are still 2.46 million out of work and this is likely to rise.

The number of people working part-time jumped by nearly 100,000 in the three months to November, while the number of full-time jobs fell by 113,000 over the same period.

The number of workers who say they have been forced to take a part-time position after failing to find anything full-time was close to 1.3 million, a rise of almost 40 per cent on the same period last year.

Some 46 percent of young women with no qualifications are unemployed.

Some employers have sacked fewer staff because they (and some union leaders) have convinced workers to take pay cuts or work shorter hours.

‘You live in fear all the time’ – Wil Vincent, 21, Birmingham

‘Being unemployed was really bad.

My landlord was only interested in getting the rent, so when I lost my job I found myself on the street.

When I found somewhere to live and was trying to find work, I had to spend my time trying to keep the job centre people happy.

But they kept telling me, “You need to look harder,” even when there was no work available.

I have GCSEs and A-Levels, but even with qualifications nothing was available.

I was looking for full-time work, but the job centre would say, “This is only 12 hours a week, but you should still do it.”

A lot of the jobs on offer are temporary. So it might be 30 hours one week, then nothing for another four weeks.

I was living like that for a year. I didn’t know if I’d have 20 quid the next week – enough money to feed myself and put electricity on the meter.

You live in fear all the time. Will the bank charge you extra for going too far overdrawn?

You’re just stressing out all the time and you can’t stop thinking about it.

I have a British name and passport, so you can’t tell on an application that I’m not white.

Often I’d turn up for a job interview and see them stepping back.

Then it always seemed to be me who didn’t get my calls returned and didn’t get the job.’

‘I won’t accept that black youth are unemployable’- Sean Orefuwa, 26, south London

‘Unemployment is higher for young black men because we are not treated equally.

I refuse to accept that nearly 50 percent of black youth are unemployable, that they are all useless or bums.

I’ve got a degree and I’m finding it really hard to get work.

It’s hard coming out of university into this economic climate. I’ve had to move back in with my parents.

I’ve tried everything from manual labour, unskilled work, call centres and supermarkets – but I still haven’t got anything.

And most people don’t even bother to let you know you didn’t get the job.

I think there is a social stigma, particularly about young black men. The way we are portrayed in the media and society means that you don’t hear the positive stories – you always hear the bad stuff.

When you are judged before you step into the interview room then it’s going to be an uphill struggle.

I think it is easier for society to blame black youth for problems rather than challenge stereotypes and look at the real problems.

We need to be more aware of why we have the problems we do – and of how to challenge them.’

‘They won’t employ you because of skin colour’- Johnny Moaonzele, 22, east London

‘I came to Britain from Congo as a young child. Then I was kicked out of school. They thought I was mental, but I just wasn’t coping.

School was one of the worst experiences of my life. When I first came here people used to abuse me because they knew I couldn’t speak English well.

I didn’t have the words so I could only defend myself by fighting.

There was no support in the school for me – only when I got kicked out did I get help.

Some schools in Hackney put all the naughty kids together in a special class and brand them as bad.

That’s why lots of them quit school – they get into gangs, end up in jail or dead.

Most of the time in schools they don’t care about us, or our talent. It’s all about targets. They invent activities for us – it’s not about teaching but keeping you busy.

I got involved in a gang.

I decided to change my life. I went to university and did a degree in graphic design

But I can’t get a job, nothing is coming through.

Racism is all around us, especially among powerful people.

It’s really hard. People ask, why don’t you just come with us and sell drugs on the street? I’m trying to resist that.

I have a good CV, good references.

But they look at you and think, I’m not going to interview you or give you a job because you are black.’

‘It’s hard to be motivated’ – Ged Colgan, 19, Leeds

‘I lost my job in Leeds so I’ve had to move back to Coventry to live with my parents. It’s really frustrating.

It’s hard to be motivated – it’s like there is nothing to get out of bed for.

I’ve been to so many companies handing in my CV, filling in application forms. But there are hardly any jobs and everything that is available is part time.

It’s demoralising. When they take your form you know the minute you leave it will go in the bin.

I applied for a job that had 150 applicants for only two positions. I keep getting told I don’t have enough experience.

I’ve managed to get a few hours a week working in catering. They are hiring people under 18 to pay them less.

They use the threat of losing your job to make you work harder.

I don’t know what I’m going to do – my life is in Leeds but I’m stuck here in Coventry.’

Taken from Socialist Worker

Dole ‘damages young people’s health’

Young people face becoming a “debilitated generation” because of irreversible emotional problems caused by record levels of unemployment generated by the recession, a study has found.

One in 10 young people questioned in a Prince’s Trust survey of more than 2,000 unemployed 16 to 25 year olds said that being jobless had driven them to drugs and alcohol.

And one in three said they experienced symptoms of depression and feelings of shame and rejection, which the charity warned could become “permanent psychological scars.”

The study also indicated that rising unemployment was destabilising family life as 25 per cent of young people blamed arguments with their parents and other family members on their joblessness.

Economics Professor David Blanchflower warned in the report: “The longer the period a young person is unemployed for, the more likely they are to experience this psychological scarring.

“This means an unhappy and debilitated generation of young people who, as a result, become decreasingly likely to find work in the future.”

Chief executive of the Prince’s Trust Martina Milburn said: “The implications of youth unemployment stretch beyond the dole queue.

“We must act now to prevent a lost generation of young people, before it is too late.

“Young people bore the brunt of the recession last year, with one in five 16 to 24 year olds out of work today.

“The result is a generation of undiscovered skills and talents. We must invest in these young people, rebuilding their self-esteem, to ensure that today’s unemployed do not become tomorrow’s unemployable.”

Taken from Morning Star

Defending the Welfare State and Public Services

March and Rally 10 April 2010

The pensioner, trade union and other welfare movements are planning a major demonstration in central London next April, in defence of the welfare state and public services.

The National Pensioners Convention is leading the event and the TUC is giving its full support, along with ASLEF, BECTU, CWU, FBU, GMB, NUJ, NUT, PCS, POA, RMT, TSSA, UCATT, UCU, UNISON, UNITE and USDAW. In addition the BMA, RADAR and the Carers Poverty Alliance are also taking part.

In the New Year we will have a special website advertising the event at www.10410demo.com along with a flyer (attached) which you can order for distribution and a petition.

This will be a major event either just before or just after the general election. Either way it will put down a marker to the next government that the welfare state and public services are important to all of us and must not become a casualty of the economic crisis. Every effort must therefore be used to maximise attendance.

Unemployment Levels in Sunderland, North East and the UK

The Guardian has given a detailed database of benefit claimant figures today, so I thought I would highlight some of the statistics relevant to Sunderland and compare them to regional and national levels. No Surprise that Sunderland has a higher rate than both of these. Please note, that the figures are for benefit claimants and not unemployed people as a whole, otherwise the figures would be far greater.

The UK in total has 1,145,989 people who claim benefits, making up 4.2% of the working population. This is a 1.6% (612,276) increase in the last year.

The North East has 85,231 people who claim benefits, making up 5.3% of the working population. This is a 1.7% (27,890) increase in the last year.

Sunderland North has 3,103 people who claim benefits, making up 6.2% of the working population. This is a 2% (997) increase in the last year.

Sunderland South has 3,503 people who claim benefits, making up 6.9% of the working population. This is a 2.1% (1,084) increase in the last year.

This obviously shows that there is a lack of decent job, training and education opportunities in the Sunderland area, and that when the recession hit, that it has had most effect on working class and neglected areas like Sunderland. Despite this, it has been revealed this week that, there are going to be massive cuts to training schemes nationally.

Apparently the unemployment rate is slowing, but unemployment is still increasing and pay rises are now the lowest on record. And to add to this, after the next general election, all the major parties have promised big cuts the public sector, meaning many more job losses to come.

I would like to add that there are going to be huge benefit cuts in the months to come, in the form of the Welfare Reform Bill. This is likely to distort statistics like this, as these only detail people claiming benefits. So there will be many ‘hidden’ unemployed people who are ignored.

The overall picture does not look too good, despite much of the media spin things are getting better. They are not getting better for the average working class person, the single parent families, and those who rely on unsecure low paid jobs and benefits.