(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...We have previously highlighted the Jobseekers Allowance Scandal of how the weekly rate doesn’t include any money to seek employment and what the £64.30 weekly payment is intended to cover.
We will now highlight “How generous is Jobseekers Allowance?” and further criticise the amount of JSA.
How generous is Jobseekers Allowance?
Taking into account other benefits such as council tax and rent or mortgage interest repayments that someone unemployed is assumed to be able to claim, Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) is roughly:
- 20% of the actual average adult expenditure
- half of the actual average expenditure of single adults in the poorest households (and half the poverty line)
- 40% of the amount of money that is needed to reach a minimum standard of living
Minimum standard of living in figures
£307 is the total weekly average expenditure for a single adult household (2007)
- £56 of this spent on recreation, culture, restaurants, eating out and hotels (“having a life”)
- £81 of this spent on food, clothing and utility bills (Jobseekers Allowance is supposed to cover this plus travel)
£365 is the post-tax pay from median gross weekly earnings (2008)
£150 is the total weekly expenditure of single adults in the poorest fifth of the population (2007)
£112 is the “poverty line” (2006/07)
£145 is the Minimum Income Standard for a single adult household (2008)
Jobseekers Allowance compared to other benefits
£95 is the State Retirement Pension for a single adult (2009)
£130 is the Pension Credit guarantee for an adult over 60 (2009)
Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit:
- £73 for first child (2009)
- £56 for each child after (2009)
Poorest households weekly expenditure
Office for National Statistics states the average weekly expenditure for an adult in the poorest fifth of the population (2007) is £150.30.
Cost breakdown
Food & Drink: £18.60
Alcoholic drink and tobacco etc.: £6.10
Clothing and footwear: £5.20
Power, gas, fuel and other household costs: £39.30
Household goods and services: £8.80
Health: £1.10
Travel/Transport: £13.60
Communication: £5.60
Recreational, entertainment, restaurants, hotels etc.: £52
Total: £150.30
£64.30 break down comparison
A freedom of information request as posted on this website stated that cost of food, household expenditure, travel and replacement clothing. Using the 2007 data above… Food (£18.60), Household Expenditure (£39.30 + £8.80), Travel (£13.60) and Clothing (£5.20) giving a grand total of £85.50.
We worked out the cost of jobseeking was worth £8.32 per week
|
Type of Jobseekers Allowance
|
Weekly Amount
|
Actual cost of living
|
Cost of jobseeking
|
Total of actual cost and cost of jobseeking
|
Difference
|
|
Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) (16-24)
|
£50.95
|
£85.50
|
£8.32
|
£93.82
|
£42.87
|
|
Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) (25+)
|
£64.30
|
£85.50
|
£8.32
|
£93.82
|
£29.52
|
(Rate type, rate amount, the actual cost of living for the 4 given items from a FoI request,cost of jobseeking,total,the amount the jobseeker is losing out on)
Amount comparison
|
Type
|
Amount
|
Jobseekers
(16-24) |
Jobseekers
(25+) |
|
“Poverty line”
|
£112
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Minimum Income Standard
|
£145
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Total weekly average expenditure single household
|
£307
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
The poorest fifths’ average weekly expenditure
|
£150
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
median gross weekly earnings
|
£365
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Other benefits |
|||
|
State Retirement Pension
|
£95
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Pension Credit Guarantee (60+)
|
£130
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit: first child
|
£73
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
|
Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit: additional children
|
£56
|
£50.95
|
£64.30
|
Please Note: The JSA rates are up to date. The statistic comparison up the top maybe a few years old.
Thanks to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation for the report (as linked above).
Summary of links contained in above New Deal Scandal post
Related posts
- New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform: network snippet
- New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform: network snippet
- £64.30 weekly jobseekers allowance broken into costs
- New Jobcentre Plus Chief Executive is pro compulsory national volunteering
- Where is the Flexible New Deal Ombudsman?
- New Deal Scandal nears End of Life
this comes a no surprise,people on jobseekers allowance have had to endure poverty lifestyles for year after year,much in line with poverty levels in the united states and higher then the rest of europe,forget about improving peoples lives as its claimed.they then dont like it when you cannot afford to do as they say regards travel and have your own transport to reach inaccessible places where companies choose to locate too. a laughable new deal advisor stating £50 in his back pocket for tyres on first session.
what good are the tyres on jobseekers? when people are in fuel poverty,living on the most basic food,have no means at any life.
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
I’ve clicked into the three links above in this post and none of them are for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
The third link goes to a ‘page not found’.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
The link works for me (try again?)
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
I’ve just bumped into an ex-New Deal prisoner. He has a trick to pass on to everyone on New Deal in the country.
When you’ve done your 13 or 26 weeks at the doleface staring at useless Jobcentre screens all day doing useless job search and they have turned your brain to jelly, they usually give you two weeks off then the advisor at the Jobcentre sends you back for another 26 weeks of hell on earth.
The poor old brain mushed ex-New Deal escaped internee, signed off for a short period and then made a rapid reclaim, not sure if that was all, but the Job Centre has now put him back to day one and he as to be unemployed for six months before they send him back to hell again.
If someone could look into this and see if its really possible then it would be brilliant if right across the country we all did it at the same time and emptied all the training establishments of their Golden Goose, drying up their fraudulently gained funding from those tax payers still left in employment.
Bring down the system by re-signing on, worth the loss of a few days money?
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
I’d also heard that if you sign-off, then sign-on again a few weeks later it is counted as a new claim. So you won’t have to go on the Flexible New Deal (as it will be from Oct) for at least 6/12/18+ months – depending on your age. In some case it could be 2 years +
But I’d never heard of anyone being sent on the old New Deal again after finishing one a few weeks previoulsy – unless he dropped out in the first few weeks. The minimum period between being sent on the New Deal is 6 months.
It’s a nice thought, David, about everyone signing-off , and then signing on again as a way of avoiding the Flexible New Deal. But the government would soon get wise to that.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Not true. You will be fast tracked on to “Stage 3″ regardless if it is a rapid reclaim (existing claim) or a new claim.
This might be dependent on where you are in the country. This has happened to me even though I questioned the legalities of it. You can argue and get sanctioned there isn’t much you can do. This isn’t a written decision and therefore can’t appeal against it. I might wait to later refuse and appeal against that sanction.
When I am forced into Flexible New Deal i will decline it stating I am still awaiting 6 months for eligibility however it all depends on what system they use. If you claim back to back, it doesn’t matter how many new claims or rapid reclaims you done on one system it will appear a continuous claim. This year I probably have re-signed on 5 times (a mixture of new claims and rapid reclaims) on their system the manager thought I was making up a bunch of lies as what he accessed never showed the number of new claims forms (new claim or rapid reclaim) so as the payments cycle (even though I was paid a week late one week but payment on the system showed it as normal payment via the normal procedure (even though I got it through DWP ADVICE CONFIRMS)) didn’t show up any breaks.
So it depends on your jobcentre. Some might be fine with it if you created a new claim instead of rapid reclaim straight away. Others might stick you on Flexible New Deal… stage 3 regardless how new your claim is and of any breaks inbetween… they will add up previous period of unemployment in other claims and use that. I am sure officially on paper when they do force you on stage 3 they probably have said that you and the jobcentre agreed the decision (like with New Deal you can sometimes negotiate to go on it extra early – if you are that mad lol). In your defence you will have to mention that its not true and you never signed anything confirming such a statement or assumption.
The bottom line is eventually you will have to go on it if you are unlucky enough not to secure employment.
New Deal Scandal etc. are pretty much still in the process of creaing the ships, which will soon be deployed for battle. By the end of this year the campaign will be stepped up.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
In my case, I completed the 13-week New Deal torture in October 2008. So even if they send me on the new FND it will be a year.
But as you say, perhaps where you live in the UK is alos a factor in how often you go these programs. I know someone who was on the New Deal for the third time – and he’ hasn’t worked for 10 years. I haven’t worked for 4 years, and only been once. Perhaps there is something to be said for living in Scotland -joke
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
how long ( roughly) do you have to wait until you are sent back to new deal after you have finished ? is it dependent on other factors?
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
The biggest factor is discretion. Some jobcentres will not stick you back on New Deal after you have been exited or finished, where others will. Some Jobcentre Plus managers believe that if they don’t stick you on New Deal again then they are “failing you” as you being a “customer” and all. Then there is the value for money aspect – for “balance of time” (if you never completed it) as it wont cost that much more.
Other factors (in additional to the above) include claim processing time (doesn’t refer to when you actually get the payment), demand (for first interview either 20 mins or 1 hour), your NDPA ability (to arrange New Deal appointment instead of signing on) etc.
I would say its likely that within a month you would be back on New Deal. It could be 2 weeks assuming you get your first interview the following week and your sign on date is the week after and your NDPA is quick to pick you up, book you in for an appointment and sign you on at the same time. For disorganised jobcentres you might have to sign on once before getting a New Deal appointment. It really depends whether a) your New Deal Personal Adviser suspects you will sign back on afterwards and automatically get the cogs working or b) the person processing the claim notices you have been on New Deal and manages to communicate to make sure you are given an appointment.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
what would happen if i am dissmissed from a 13 week course?
how long till I will be able to sign on again?
or what if say im signing off?
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
“Poorest households weekly expenditure:
Recreational, entertainment, restaurants, hotels etc.: £52″
Are you kidding? I’ve been in full time employment for thirty years (now redundant) and never had that much to spend on leisure in my life. Is the taxpayer supposed to fund dining out at restaurants on a weekly basis for the unemployed? Get real.
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
well you should have more sence then,you are lucky to have been fortunate to have been in employment for some thirty years.
many are not so fortunate,in that time factories closing,business closing,jobs moving to the far east by companies given money by the government,apprenticeships non existent,our mining industry in ruins when the price of other fuels has escalated out of all proportion,i was reading that even the un were concerned about fuel poverty in the uk amongst other issues as well as the discrimination to workers as a result of the minimum wage fro 16-18 year olds.
employment law acknowledged by the citizens advice bureau to be some of the unfairest of all laws. no one is suggesting lavish lifestyles but the basics in life,as a nation we have expected to move on during that time,but sadly for many this not the truth or the reality.
a life on benefits has been the only means for some, by all these policies. and society continues to suffer as a result.
http://www.bigissuescotland.com/features/view/21
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
Interesting you say travel is not covered. I’ve submitted quite a few travel to interview forms (although as my initial claim is still being reviewed, I have seen no payments).
I don’t understand the rules as the jobcentre did check for a ‘minimum distance’ before accepting it. (I laughed when first they mentioned it, my first claim was for 200 miles and my latest 460 miles)
Like or Dislike:
0 
0