Back to work plan.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/employment-support-launched-for-over-a-million-people 

There's some other posts on this topic. However, there's alot to go through here I thought it needed it own thread?

https://respectfulbenefits.forumotion.com/t4909-free-nhs-prescription-and-dental-care-could-be-cut-under-universal-santion-plan#18183

https://respectfulbenefits.forumotion.com/t4917-return-of-mandatory-work-placements#18198

https://respectfulbenefits.forumotion.com/t4904p150-restart-for-jsa-claimants#18200


Seems this will be delivered on the Wednesday 22 Nov 23  Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water...

So 'Back to Work' plan (published 16/11/23). Designed to help over a million people with health conditions. 'Support & Tougher Sanctions' ( like they help, by people dropping off the radar). Formal launch of the 'Work Well Service'- to help people start, stay, and succeed in work.  4x key programs; NHS talking therapies, Individual Placement and Support, Restart (expansion), and Universal Support. Over a 5x year period, so more money.

Reform to the Sick note(fit note) processes for people to get Specialist Work and Health Support' ( no idea about the qualifications of these people?).
Again, stricter benefit sanctions - people whom refuse to engage with JCP , or take work offered them. Closing claims( have sanctions ever achieved anything???).  .

Targeting the Work shy : "Rise in people who aren't looking for work...' 🥥 "Anyone choosing to coast on the hard work of taxpayers will loose their benefits' ( so turn to crime, and cost the tax payers more...)

Expanding the Universal Support Program ( Never heard of it, more hard earned tax payers money down the drain?). ".... You are talking tax payers for a ride - we will take your benefits away"

  Stricter sanctions for ' Disengaged' claimants ( no idea of whom decides if  disengaged). A Targeted case review of Claimant's.  Restart scheme 'Extending & Expanding of the Restart for 2 x year's (Eng and Wal) until June 26... Tax payers money!! 

Introducing a Claimant Review Point - 12 months after finishing the Restart scheme. A claimant will take part in a Claimant Review Point, the Roach will decide what further work Search conditions or employment pathways (no idea what this word salad' is). No discussion between the claimant and Roach . If you don't claim closed ( making more work for the DWP then) 

This old chestnut is back again, sort of like Haley's comet.. Welfare to work, cheap labour... Why employ a person when get them to work for nothing .
Mandatory Work Placement Trails:  After Restart, claimants 'will be required to accept a job or to undertake a time limited work experience, or other intensive activity to improve employment prospects' ( duration unknown) . 

  Digital tools to track claimants attenence at job fairs and interviews ( more Big Brother then).  So more Draconian measures.


 recap.

 
Extension of the (failing) Restart scheme.
Targeting of Claimant's( Disengaged?).
Welfare to Work (work placement).
Tougher sanctions, 8x weeks plus 5x week to start new claim 13x weeks) .
Claimant Review Point: Adding work sesrch conditions/ employment pathways.
Digital tools to further track claimants.
4xPrograms Talking, Placement, Restart+, Universal Support.

As they used to say in the tv show 'Hill Street Blues'. Lets Be Careful out There...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MJDQewSMB-E&pp=ygUtaGlsbCBzdHJlZXQgYmx1ZXMgbGV0J3MgYmUgY2FyZWZ1bCBvdXQgdGhlcmUg

Over next 5 years

Does this country have 5 years?

My WC will be drinking champagne reading all that.

Surly turning up for appointments, applying for jobs is engagement, who decides your not engaging..

Expect big battles with work coaches next year.‍️

This is the wounded animal approach to governing a country. The lower they sink in the polls, the nastier they go. I hope I'm being paranoid but I think they can come up with even worse, and that they will.

Here's an article outlining a bit more about the new, revamped Fit Note and Work Well from the GP's newspaper.

https://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/news/workload/government-to-consult-on-fit-note-process-reform/

On the digital tracking thing, will this be a condition of a benefit claim? Otherwise it's no use for people who don't have a smartphone or turn-off location settings. Would such an invasion of a person's privacy be compatible with the ECHR? Maybe digital tracking is another one of those culture war things. We need to leave the ECHR because it prevents us cracking down on claimants.

For anyone interested in the planned investment in talking therapies as part of this so called 'Back to Work' plan, James Davies book 'Sedated' is worth a read if you come across it in the library. The chapter on Talking therapies/ IAPT is very interesting - these therapies were sold to the government at the time as not improving mental health but about getting people off benefits and into work.

Obviously I can't paste a link to the relevant chapter so a book review will have to do

https://www.left-horizons.com/2023/07/11/sedated-by-james-davies-a-review-by-sam-gleadon/

I would be worried about these 'talking therapies', being used against you. As we all know, some departments, have 'cosy' arrangements when it comes to sharing confidential information....

I still wondering how the DWP Roaches, measure for ' Disengagement of Claimant's?
Will they be given a 'Engagement Ruler' or an App for there phone, that they can point at you? And get a reading on a scale of 1- 10. You know a score of 1 = Houseplant / Gig economy worker. And 10= Your favourite sports team, winning the league ...

And I thought the term "Economically- inactive", was word salad' of the week....

Today's the day Jeremy-rhymes- with-Hunt provides more detail on the Back to Work plan which prompted this thread.

In normal times we all know the Daily Mash is satire, but given what we've learnt so far of these plans and the articles over the last few days telling those on sickness benefits to work from home or else...

https://www.thedailymash.co.uk/politics/jeremy-hunt-to-personally-garrotte-the-chronically-ill-20231120242636

The Catwoman wrote:My WC will be drinking champagne reading all that.

Surly turning up for appointments, applying for jobs is engagement, who decides your not engaging..

Expect big battles with work coaches next year.‍️

My roach doesn't even talk; I always tend to talk back. They shut up, so let them be scared of you.

Jeremy *unt just want voters in the next general election to be very desperate for him to cut taxes and raise the national wage to £11.44 in April. Small businesses are struggling; not every business can avoid paying tax; like Amazon, the energy cost is already way too high, let alone pay workers £11.44 an hour.

What business is going to hire people? Also, this might drive up costs, like food pubs will be gone for sure. Also, the extra pound per hour is going to pay back, so you will be getting less on universal credit during your accessment period.

As I always say to my roach, it's not up to me not having a full-time job; it's up to the employer to hire me if they don't like my face or don't fit the part of that life cockroach. If your CV has large gaps and a lack of experience, no fool in the world is going to train or hire you; their response is a valid point made.

What was announced was in line with what had been leaked the other day.

Oof.People will be referred to Restart after 6 months claiming, not the current 9 months

There was more waffle on how claimants will be "tracked digitally" to make sure they are meeting their comments, but I've not seen further detail. Presumably there's a lot of to whoever gets the contract to track us. But then based on past practice, the contract will probably be awarded to a bunch of incompetents so their cunning plan will fail.

I haven't had time to look at the changes to WCA.

Benefits will be uprated at 6.7%.

Ignatius wrote:What was announced was in line with what had been leaked the other day.

Oof.People will be referred to Restart after 6 months claiming, not the current 9 months

There was more waffle on how claimants will be "tracked digitally" to make sure they are meeting their comments, but I've not seen further detail. Presumably there's a lot of to whoever gets the contract to track us. But then based on past practice, the contract will probably be awarded to a bunch of incompetents so their cunning plan will fail.

I haven't had time to look at the changes to WCA.

Benefits will be uprated at 6.7%.

If you want to track what happens, you don't want a smartphone.6 months, my goodness, restart advisors want you gone even quicker targets are set to 5 before now 10 a month, my guessing. Hate to join restart now fresh.

The loophole in this is doing a paid job, e.g., 4 hours a week; I'm doing 9 hours a week and still receive benefits and avoid work placement, and it also stops restart appointments from becoming mandatory. I found out last week that once you are in employment, face-to-face becomes non-mandatory, so I've been wasting 4 months turning up to my appointments advisor, who didn't even tell me anything. I was daft to even turn up.

I can't find any more on mandatory work placements for those who don't get jobs after Restart. As Restart is a colossal failure when it comes to getting people jobs, that is an awful lot of placements they will need to find. Will us form signing refuseniks have to worry about this? If a provider doesn't sack you from Restart for not signing paperwork, could you eventually be mandated to a placement, and the mother of all sanctions if you refuse to work for your benefits?? I'm not even asleep and I'm having nightmares.

Ignatius wrote:I can't find any more on mandatory work placements for those who don't get jobs after Restart. As Restart is a colossal failure when it comes to getting people jobs, that is an awful lot of placements they will need to find. Will us form signing refuseniks have to worry about this? If a provider doesn't sack you from Restart for not signing paperwork, could you eventually be mandated to a placement, and the mother of all sanctions if you refuse to work for your benefits?? I'm not even asleep and I'm having nightmares.

Scary times ahead. These rules are still fresh; we don't know how they work yet. Even after I finish the scheme and have served my 365 days sentence, they might ask me to come back into their office for more hours turn your work into full-time employment because the government has given them extra powers even you finished your scheme to get anyone off the system completely with restart+ government wants everyone paying tax into the system.

Not signing paperwork, they might keep you on the scheme; they probably get a nice cut in payment for your work placement. Before, they couldn't even mandate that you do anything and set you free back to your work coach. What a nightmare this is.

So are those on JSA gonna be forced to do work experience.

Ignatius wrote:What was announced was in line with what had been leaked the other day.

Oof.People will be referred to Restart after 6 months claiming, not the current 9 months

There was more waffle on how claimants will be "tracked digitally" to make sure they are meeting their comments, but I've not seen further detail. Presumably there's a lot of to whoever gets the contract to track us. But then based on past practice, the contract will probably be awarded to a bunch of incompetents so their cunning plan will fail.

I haven't had time to look at the changes to WCA.

Benefits will be uprated at 6.7%.

I hope the tracking isn't the track and trace from the NHS app, which cost billions of pounds again, just like the restart programme lining into the hands of corrupted advisors. Reading the rules: There are no rules on sabotaging the scheme that me sorted Next scheme no limits with these advisors Going stealth-ready and looking forward to going back on a serious note is universal credit, which I'm worried about work coach napping on about getting to 16 hours we move you to UC always refuse this.£110 I'm fucking getting for all this shite people on a single allowance. £368 fuck me might as well pop a few kids, make one disabled, and take a council house try for pip. Atleast you need to take paid job that supports your whole family and rent this government is messed up; they get £400 for attending the House of Commons every Wednesday.hope someone challenge them over the free work placement thingy.

The Catwoman wrote:So are those on JSA gonna be forced to do work experience.

No more JSA. By that time, everyone had migrated over to UC. This is where restart advisors have their hands around your neck. Any trouble, straight to your work coach and journal.

Ignatius wrote:This is the wounded animal approach to governing a country. The lower they sink in the polls, the nastier they go. I hope I'm being paranoid but I think they can come up with even worse, and that they will.

Here's an article outlining a bit more about the new, revamped Fit Note and Work Well from the GP's newspaper.

https://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/news/workload/government-to-consult-on-fit-note-process-reform/

Having read through the above, I would question whether GP surgeries have the physical space to host additional workers. There is limited space for clinical staff at some practices.

Coconutxone, look at the 'Managed Migration' thread on the UC boards. JSA migration notices should all be sent by April 2025.

Presumably they will include JSA in the work placement plan, or do a Restart and add JSA to the plans retrospectively.

I'm still scratching my head about tracking people at things like jobs fairs. I get mandated to attend jobs fairs every few months, yet the JCP can't even send a WC with a low tech clipboard & pen to tick names off a list. Just get a clipboard, a WC exuding an air of natural authority and watch attendance go through the roof.

Be nice to see the details of the 'Plan' ... Are we going to see a 're-opening' of the temporary JCP 's. To accommodate the claimants, to whom they can't find 'placements' for. A 'sheeple station' if you will.... Sounds like back to the A4e( people +) IAP( intense activity period) of looking out the window...

Here's from the Horses mouth...



https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/autumn-statement-2023-speech

Welfare

But post-pandemic we still have over seven million adults of working age, excluding students, who are not working despite nearly one million vacancies in the economy. Many can and want to work – but our system makes that too hard.



Today we focus on helping those with sickness or disability and the long term unemployed. Every year we sign off over 100,000 people onto benefits with no requirement to look for work because of sickness or disability. That waste of potential is wrong economically and wrong morally. So, with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, last week I announced our Back to Work Plan. We will reform the Fit Note process so that treatment rather than time off work becomes the default.
We will reform the Work Capability Assessment to reflect greater flexibility and availability of home working after the pandemic. And we will spend £1.3 billion over the next five years to help nearly 700,000 people with health conditions find jobs. Over 180,000 more people will be helped through the Universal Support Programme and nearly 500,000 more people will be offered treatment for mental health conditions and employment support.

Over the forecast period, the OBR judge these measures will more than halve the net flow of people who are signed off work with no work search requirements. At the same time, we will provide a further £1.3 billion of funding to offer extra help to the 300,000 people who have been unemployed for over a year without having sickness or a disability.

. If after 18 months of intensive support jobseekers have not found a job, we will roll out a programme requiring them to take part in a mandatory work placement to increase their skills and improve their employability. And if they choose not to engage with the work search process for six months, we will close their case and stop their benefits. Taken together with the labour supply measures I announced in the Spring, the OBR say we will increase the number of people in work by around 200,000 at the end of the forecast period, permanently increasing the size of the economy. .

Plenty of word salad'. Nothing concrete thou about The Universal Support Programme,  Work Placements etc.
Be good to see the company's whom get a slice of the £2.6 Billion ( 1.3 + 1.3) pounds wasted spent on these initiatives

Question 1: Does this 18-month work placement count from today's announcement or roll on from my first signed-on date in 2015?

Question 2: Are these work placements paid or free to exploit us? No doubt, many companies are signing up for free labour.Not a hell chance I'm working 37 hours a week for 80 quid; you can obtain that amount by working a few hours with cash in hand. So many unanswered question from the government happy to work for money but free work placement they can fuck off. 

It will be more like £90 come April thanks to Jezza's generous uprating of our measly JSA.

Charles1985, you innocent. You are falling into the trap of thinking our government do logical thought. The fine detail is unlikely to have been thought about yet. It can't begin until the legislation has been enacted, so probably not until next year. Based on other programmes, it will probably be based on your total time out of work, not time out of work since they legislate for it.

Will it be paid? Like hell it will be.

You would think with all that time he spent as Health Secretary, Our Jeremy would know that sometimes you can't be successfully treated and recover unless you take time off work.

Pintel, may I ask if you are creatively talented in real life? Your skilful use of the emoji never fails to entertain.