Tagged: Work Coach
Another Workfare Scam In The Making ?
> When I attended to Jobcentre to sign-on last week, I was handed a form, told to fill it in and hand it to whoever signed me on. Reading through it (always read these things before filling them in) I began to suspect that all may not have been as it seems at first glance.
I’ll take you through it….
DO YOU THINK YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO PEOPLE’S LIVES ?
PERSONAL AND PRACTICAL SUPPORT IS WHAT SOCIAL CARE IS ABOUT
In 2009 there were around 1.75 million paid jobs in adult social care, employing 1.6 million people. Its getting bigger. Adult social care continues to grow and its estimated that by 2025 social care may need up to 2.6 million workers to fill over 3 million paid jobs. We have training and jobs NOW.
> So, the first figures are from before the recession started, and the others are a guess at what things might be like in 11 years time (consider where you were in 2003 – did you think things could possibly get as bad as they are in 11 years time ? These figures are just wild guesses really).
Where will these jobs be, if they actually happen ? They obviously wont all be in the North East. Will any of them ? I don’t see a great demand in the current vacancies.
By volunteering to complete this form, you can help us to develop training – and help us to help you into work.
> Note the word volunteering – I was not told it was voluntary, in fact I was given the impression that I had to complete it.
Has anyone in the Jobcentre given you any information about Social Care ? Yes/No
Would you consider a career in Social Care ? Yes/No
If you have answered No, please explain why you would not consider this.
> Alarm bells ring ! Why should you have to explain ?
Social Care covers a very wide range of jobs – would you like to know more about the opportunities available ? Yes/No
Would you be interested in attending an Information Session about current Training and jobs available to you ? Yes/No
Would you like to discuss this further with your Work Coach ? Yes/No
Would you like more information emailed to you ? Yes/No
Do you have an existing DBS (CRB) check ? Yes/No
Name
Nat Ins Number
Email adress
Age range 18-24, 25-49, 50+
Previous Occupation
> Then comes some small print – very small print in this case…
The information we collect about you and how we use it depends mainly on the reason for your business with us. But we may use it for any of the Department’s purposes, which include – social security benefits and allowances, child support, employment and training, private pensions policy, and retirement planning.
We may get information from others to check the information you give to us and to improve our services. We may give information to other organizations as the law allows, for example to safeguard against crime.
To find out more about how we use information , visit our website http://www.dwp.gov.uk/privacypolicy or contact any of our offices.
Office use only – Interview with JCP Work coach arranged – date
> So there we are – what should we make of this ? Perhaps I’m just getting paranoid ?
On the other hand…
The most worrying question is why you should have to justify not persuing work in the Social Care sector.
Given the potential opportunities for various kinds of abuse, shouldn’t you also have to state why you did want to take this route ?
Once this piece of paper is in the system, it will inevitably wind up in the paws of your friendly Advisor – sorry, Work Coach – the same person who, in order to hit their targets, will be looking for any excuse to sanction you. And if you’ve declined this route, they might well try to twist things – refusing offers of work, refusing training, etc.
The other thing that occurs to me is that this might be a backdoor Workfare recruitment ploy. You actually might want training and a career in Social Care… what you might get is 6 months unpaid labour, mopping floors and emptying chamber pots for the greater profits of private enterprise.
As the form itself says – Social Care covers a very wide range of jobs. And who decides what falls within that range ? Guess (and it won’t be you…)
So all in all, I decided not to participate – the form itself suggests it’s voluntary. In the event, though, nobody asked me for the completed form anyway.
In the event of this happening again next time I sign, I shall decline immediately.
One other thing – the form does not carry a DWP identification code, which suggests this is not an official DWP document.
Is this just a local inititive or are these forms being handed out all over the country ? Anyone else had one ?
More PCS Union And ‘Help To Work changes
> Following from yesterday’s post PCS Union And ‘Help To Work changes the following extracts come from a post on the PCS website on 25 April 2014 (link to full article at bottom of this post).
More worrying stuff….
Staffing and resources
PCS believe that there are not enough staff in jobcentres to deliver the additional work. With more staff leaving in June and beyond, workloads and stress will increase leading to longer waiting for claimants, potential for more incidents, and ill health for members. This understaffing must be addressed through more recruitment.
> None of which you need a crystal ball to work out.
Learning and Development
Districts have provided assurance to state that over 80% of staff are sufficiently trained on SR13/HtW. PCS raised specific concerns that some staff had only been sent emails or had not been trained in the English Language assessment process.
The GEC advises members not to complete the full requirements and new tasks where training has not been provided, and to make line managers aware. Seek advice from a local PCS representative if you want to raise your concerns in writing.
> So you – and the chance of you getting sanctioned – may be in the hands of a ‘Work Coach’ (snigger…) who may not actually know what they’re doing – although from personal experience that’s often the case with existing Advisers anyway. But this point may have some use in the future if you need to appeal a sanction – was the job coach qualified to make the decision to start with ? You might also point out in interviews that the PCS suggest they “not complete the full requirements and new tasks where training has not been provided”.
Extension to interview times
The project managers responsible for the SR13/HtW have stated that additional funding of 12 minutes for new claims interviews has been agreed by Treasury to deliver the additional tasks associated with Day One Conditionality and the English Language assessment. The 12 minutes was identified by a work study report of the pilot sites which is yet to be shared with PCS.
The GEC has received feedback that sites are not extending diary times by 12 minutes. The project management have stated that this would be a business decision, and although the additional funding will be allocated, Work Services management do not have to extend interview times. We have asked management to reconsider their position on this matter as it is unacceptable to expect members to complete more work in the same amount of time.
The GEC advises members to state that they cannot complete the new tasks in the same interview time, to make their line manager aware and seek PCS help if required.
Work Search Review interventions should be timed at 6 minutes. The GEC has raised similar concerns that this timing may not be adequate, nor is it currently being allocated at each jobcentre.
Delivery of interventions
PCS has received feedback that some jobcentres are proposing to conduct daily work search review whilst the claimant uses a Web Access Device (WAD). The GEC has requested that DWP make clear that this is not appropriate.
The work search review should entail challenging conditionality, and therefore has the potential to create a flashpoint. The Jobcentre Plus Environmental Guide (JPEG) sets out clear and specific standards for these interventions taking place at a desk. Not only does this give the member of staff appropriate distance and an escape route, there is also the use of a panic button as a control measure.
> Good grief ! Siege mentality or what ? If only we on the other side of the desk had an escape route.
“the use of a panic button as a control measure” has a nasty ring about it too. Maybe they should be issued with tasers or electric cattle prods too ?
Even as part of freedoms and flexibilities, minimal space and exit routes should be adhered to. Management produced guidance in November 2012 states “there are no purely design-based constraints within JPEG.”
Any changes to front of house business delivery should be supported a local risk assessment. The GEC cannot conceive it possible for a risk assessment to not identify serious risks in challenging conditionality and possibly identifying a doubt whilst stood or sat directly next to a claimant.
> So perhaps the best “escape route” would be to refuse to implement the measures that might put you in danger ? Must be something in the Health & Safety sphere covering that ?
Group Signing
Current SR13/HtW guidance states that weekly and daily interventions cannot be delivered by group session, as the treasury funding was based on individual face to face interventions.
This has now been changed within the last week to allow for group daily or weekly jobsearch reviews. The intention is still to allow for individual signing interactions following the group session.
> Now I hadn’t heard of this before… is this how they intend to deal with increased numbers of signing – stuff 50 people in a room and do it en masse ?
The GEC have asked that clear guidance is produced centrally on how these sessions will take place, including a risk assessment on the process.
Management have stated that group sessions should not be used in this way until the guidance has been produced and shared. Branches should challenge locally and escalate to national level if group signing is being conducted without the proper guidance and risk assessment.
Changing of attendance times
At the meeting on 24th April, DWP were not able to provide a clear reason for the instruction to change attendance times/days for weekly signing every four weeks.
They have denied that there is policy intent to ‘frustrate claimants off benefit’; they will provide PCS with clarification on why the guidance exists. Branches are asked to send in examples of local instructions which direct advisers to change times more frequently without reasonable logic.
> I would love to see the official interpretation of “reasonable logic” – more scary perhaps is the implication that the PCS might actually accept an explanation as reasonable logic, and thus tell members to enforce it.
Pilots
As reported in DWP/BB/069/14, the GEC were not consulted at all on the pilots in Bradford, Cardiff and Poole. DWP have apologised for this lack of consultation, and will be providing the evaluations for our analysis.
Management have stated that increases in footfall were managed through changing office layout, and there was no increase in incidents on the pilot sites. PCS has expressed concerns that the pilot sites may not have implemented the full measures, and therefore the findings may invalid.
> Just wait till everywhere is doing it ! I suspect it may take more than just moving the furniture around
There is more – i think these bits are the ones that affect those of us facing daily signing directly, but you might want to check the full article at the link below, and comment if you read anything differently.
UNEMPLOYED IN TYNE & WEAR 