Handy information for those being given a rough time by provider companies.

Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: Regulation 12
The intention of this regulation is to prevent people from receiving unsafe care and treatment and prevent avoidable harm or risk of harm. Providers must assess the risks to people's health and safety during any care or treatment and make sure that staff have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience to keep people safe.


Underlined, I find very interesting indeed!

If in doubt, seek professional legal advice.

They are not a provider in the way that regulations means. They are employment agencies and therefore fall under the Health and Safety at Work Act. They also fall under the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2003/3319/contents/made

Restriction on detrimental action relating to work-seekers working elsewhere

6.—(1) Neither an agency nor an employment business may (whether by the inclusion of a term in a contract with a relevant work-seeker or otherwise)—

(a) subject or threaten to subject a relevant work-seeker to any detriment on the ground that—

(i) the relevant work-seeker has terminated or given notice to terminate any contract between the work-seeker and the agency or employment business, or

(ii) in the case of an employment business, the relevant work-seeker has taken up or proposes to take up employment with any other person; or

(b) require the relevant work-seeker to notify the agency or the employment business, or any person with whom it is connected, of the identity of any future employer of the relevant work-seeker.

So when a Restart agent demands proof of job search evidence (as if they are work coach, which they are not) or threatens in any way to "report" any job-seeker to the DWP for failing to do so (a detriment as it implies a financial sanction), the response is to mention the above regulations to that agent. Court action does not need to be taken, merely threatening it will be enough to make them back off.

Restart providers create documents that have the appearance of a contract, but in reality it is merely an agreement which neither side are legally bound to. That is why participants on Restart can withdraw their consent . Restart agents play the part of Master, but in reality they are the servant.

If in doubt as to whether a Restart company is an employment agency or business simply look them up at Companies House to see how they describe themselves. For example, Maximus UK Services Ltd:

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/09072343

78109 - Other activities of employment placement agencies

Thank you for this. I wish I had sued the fuck out of Seetec; they damaged my mental health. I started the scheme without sleeping problems and ended up sleeping less than 4 hours a day for almost 6 months due to the stress of the restart. 

The restart advisors are barely qualified; they are just 3rd party subcontractors based on their existing work experience in hair salons and as former sales advisors. In their LinkedIn profile. They are not qualified or trained to dish out threats to the most vulnerable members of society; most of them don't even have a clue about the benefits system. I heard about 20x sanctions threats in a 12-month period and 12-month ongoing sanctions from my restart advisor, but not a single word about sanctions from my work coach. I literally got ganged up for the withdrawal of my consent forms for exercising my basic rights. 


Another note: you always wonder why the advisor goes missing or disappears into thin air to another role or another location once you complain. Scared of legal action. Perhaps this happened twice; the two advisors I complained about just vanished.