Shanks - what is your problem? You and Shiverkitten have clearly never been unemployed before. I was made redundant from a very high paying editorial job and like Twee's wife I am now claiming benefits- it's been over 3 months and I can assure you that I am not lazy and have been actively seeking work. I also have paid my taxes for over 20 years and so I am entitled to help. How irresponsible and ignorant to assume that people claiming benefits sit around on the sofa all day and are un-educated. Small minded people like Shanks and Shiverkitten are unbelievable.

So agree with Yorkist post im now in a similar postion having been a carer for 7 years,After my mothers death and having survived on £48.00 carers benefit for those 7 years I returned to work and now have been layed off due to staff cuts, im 54 single with a mortgage usuall utility bills so I had no choice but to sign on, I spend hours every day on the net searching for jobs..any jobs now.

Signing on is one of the most depressing things one can do and for the people that think its an easy option .go try it..and ive yet to expeiriance the help and assistance in finding a job from my so called personal advisor, As so many people are now looking for work its a case of sign here see you in 2 weeks and on to the next...

I would also like a meeting with the person that decides that £60.50 is what I need to live on...If i was 22 and living with my parents and no bills to pay maybe it would be ok but im not I have a mortgage utility bills food bills..Maybe I should have expected the local authority to house me and not struggled to pay a mortgage all these years then I would get my rent payed and not have to worry about loosing my home in the near future...

And I do hope your situation improves in the near future Yorkist... good luck.

May I tell you a little about myself? I am 52 years old and have lived with my mother, who is a 73 year-old widow, since my divorce. I left school at 16 and have been working (and paying contributions) from that time until last year. I have never before claimed JobSeekers or any other benefit.

Until March last year, I worked for the local council on a fixed-term (annual) contract, a job I loved and was very good at. Unfortunately, the council was forced to cut jobs across the board, and the first of these jobs to go, obviously, were the fixed-term contracts. Because I had been working with the council for less than 2 years (actually, 23 months), I was not entitled to any redundancy pay. However, I immediately registered for temporary work. Although I would be perfectly willing to do any kind of work (including cleaning toilets), I am physically unable to do so, because I have psoriatic arthropathy (arthritis to the uninitiated), which restricts my mobility in terms of not being able to walk for long distances, not being able to bend, kneel, climb or descend long staircases or carry heavy loads, nor even to stand for long periods of time. In short, I am fit only to tackle office-based work.

Unfortunately, I live in a depressed area of the country (South Yorkshire), and have so far only managed to find temporary work for a total of 5 months since last March (and none since September). I have spent all my savings and drawn down 25% of the value of my pension in an effort to continue supporting myself. I resisted "signing on" for a very long time (until December), partly because I was convinced that I would find another job shortly and partly, I must admit, because of stiff-necked pride, because I did not think of myself as the kind of person who claims Job Seekers Allowance.

Obviously, during this period I have applied for literally dozens of jobs and attended quite a number of interviews. I have been told several times that I "came second", or that "there wasn't much to choose between me and the successful candidate". Nevertheless, to date I have not been able to find a job, despite all my efforts (which include applying for jobs very much more junior than my last role). I am told that there are as many as 50-60 applicants for some of the posts I have applied for. Only someone who has been in this position can really appreciate how very difficult it is to keep picking yourself up from these disappointments and apply for more jobs. Indeed, I had feedback from one interview that I had "answered the questions too fully, giving the interviewers more information than they had asked for" - I guess I allowed my desperation to shine through ...

I am now, for the first time in my life, in arrears with some of my commitments. My Job Seekers Allowance is £60.50 a week - my outgoings are about £1,200 a month. My mother helps all she can - she is a pensioner, obviously, but still works three days a week (I am not from a workshy background, as you will note). I cannot sleep at night for worry about my financial situation and guilt about my mother's enforced contribution. The mortgage on this house is in my sole name and my mother had to sign a waiver when I obtained the mortgage, meaning that she can be evicted if I fall behind (which I have so far managed to avoid).

So please, before you write people off as lazy or make flip comments about restricting this measly benefit even further, give a thought for those who find themselves in my position through no fault of their own. While you are at it, give thanks for your own job (how I miss working - the days drag by without any of the satisfaction one takes for granted whilst employed), for your health, for your independence and your relative wealth. When I am at my lowest, I think of the millions of people in the world who are struggling to feed themselves and care for their children and try to be grateful for the many blessings I have.

i simpathise with you chrispy1, my partner has just had the same response. he is willing to to anything including cleaning toilets .. but even those seem to have dried up.

at least companies should have the courtesy to tell you whether you were sucessful or not. good luck with the search and hang in there

x

I also was shocked when I was informed that I would only get JSA for 26 weeks. I’m 55 and since I started work the longest I’ve been unemployed was for a few weeks in the early 80’s and have never claimed anything.

Since I was made redundent at the begining of December 08 I've applied for about 20 jobs and had 2 acknowledgements and only 1 interview.

When you sign on you show them your little book and they ask what have you done to look for work? What is the point of the of the book? and while your telling the "Job Adviser " he's looking around not taking a bit of notice of what your saying.

I live in Peterborough and apart from being a teachers and carer there is nothing.

I was researching the same matter as Twee when I came across this thread. I having worked full time since the age of 17 (now 41) and my husband (up until November 08) has done the same. Both dutifully paid our taxes and NI giving a combined total of over 48 years of contributions to the state! Fortunately, neither of us have had to claim any benefits throughout this period and neither of us had even been inside a Job Centre, but sadly following my husband's redundancy that has now changed.

I was appalled at the small minded comments made by Shiverkitten and Shanks. I only hope that neither of them after a similar length of time in gainful employment find themselves out of work. I can assure them both it is a soul destroying position for anyone who genuinely wants to work to be in. It was a shock to me to be advised that JSA is means tested after 6 months and as fully paid up members, if you like, I think it is not unfair to expect the minimum payment to be made to an individual who can actively demonstrate their pursuit of employment. Whilst there may be jobs out there, the numbers applying for them have also increased. 'Little fish in big pond.' Speaking from experience it is not as easy as suggested by these horrible people!

Thanks dafs - I feel for you - the problem is that beings such as Shiverkitten and Shanks jump to conclusions without knowing all the facts - my wife has worked hard all of her life (over 25 years of contributions) - so is entitled to assistance during the hard times - I do agree with Billy Boy though about I.I's....

why do people think that people who need to claim benefits are all spongers off society?

i am a 41 one year old man with 2 kids .....their mum died 5 year ago and i caried on working as a carpenter through the whole time

now i'm a single parent and becouse of the downturn cant find work as a joiner , being self employed i had to do something and now since yesterday i started claiming JSA

anyone who thinks normal ppl dont want to work are just B........S sorry for the lang

i hope u all are verry lucky in finding work as i hope i will be very soon

LisaK:

shiverkitten:What a bizarre question! Are you not paying enough taxes as it is? I take it you want to increase your national insurance contributions, increase your fuel tax, increase your income tax, increase VAT etcetera so that you can give money to everyone else's unemployed spouses? Or do you think just the rest of us should have our taxes increased because you don't want to support your partner? Six months unemployment benefit is far too long - it should be reduced to six or eight weeks.

How horrid are you with this response. Nasty troll! I was searching the web for an answer to a very similar question to the original poster and came accross your nastiness. Thank goodness for the other posters on here.

Horrid little person - hope you feel good about yourself.

Eh? Where was I nasty? Bizarre.

Twee:Shiverkitten - I have not said that I want to support anyone else except for my wife......

So why would one expect any benefits after six months of contributions-based? You don't want to pay for others' spouses but you expect, after six months, they should all be paying your spouse an allowance?

I really do not understand all the illogical vitriol in this silly thread. Ladies who lunch should be funded by their partners. As should male fluffets.

Many posters to this thread seem to think single people should now be taxed to not just pay for their children, we should now have our income reduced even further to pay for their spouses. Complete madness.

What a disgrace these two answers are.

I am fully supportive of the Government helping people when they loose their jobs through no fault of their own, for say a 6mth period.

What does get my back up is the money / facilities thrown at people who enter this country to just get the benefits, the majority I would imagine entering illegally.

Or the people falsely claiming invalidity payments etc.

You did Twee. My question to Shanks was rhetorical; we've already established that he or she knows nothing about the relationship, if any, between benefit rates and claimant counts. I was just pointing that out so that Shanks doesn't go away with the impression that they've done anything good by being so uncharitable in their responses to you.

Sorry - Who posed the question ?

I believe that it was MYSELF who started off this message .....

Shanks,

Thanks for another witless diatribe that bears no relation to reality.

Any chance you'll address the questions I posed?

I wouldn't be able to respond on behalf of shiverkitten so will only answer on my behalf. I am very happy with my employment, and through intelligent investing and hard work am in a fortunate position financially. I wouldn't class myself as greedy as everything we own has come from hard work, sensible spending and focus in life. Money is very simple to manage, and yes i do agree there are times when people need help, but other times when it is much easier as with most unemployed people in this country just to start claiming benefits. There is always work out there, people always need a service, part time work, evening work, know friends who can even get a foot in the door in a company, work nights while one parent is at home, leaflet packing, data entry, there is always work out there that people listed above simply cannot be bothered to find!!

For example a friend of mine has run a successful building company, unfortunately he has been severley impacted by the recession. However as opposed to accepting the fact that there is no work out there he has made it! He has used the vans he owns and insured himself to complete removals, pick ups, gone to smallers building merchants offering his services, getting recommendations and is surviving well. He is not earning the money he was previousley, but put himself in a position he would not fail and is paying his bills!! This is the difference with people in this country, some are born to work, others born to claim benefits and this wil never changed. The Family resembles something from shameless, i am pleased she found work and my Tax is not being wasted, on wasters!!!

Shanks