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Loading ...New Deal Scandal can confirm (after an Freedom of Information Act request) Jobcentre Plus in the last 12 months ending the 30th September 2009 has advertised 7260 New Deal Jobs.
This is just over an average of 600 New Deal vacancies each month.
New Deal Job Vacancies advertised
New Deal Jobs: Vacancies Oct 08 – Sept 09 advertised at Jobcentre Plus
New Deal vacancies notified between October 2008 and September 2009
|
Month New Deal Vacancy Received |
Number of New Deal Vacancies Received |
|
Oct-08 |
790 |
|
Nov-08 |
590 |
|
Dec-08 |
360 |
|
Jan-09 |
700 |
|
Feb-09 |
770 |
|
Mar-09 |
980 |
|
Apr-09 |
590 |
|
May-09 |
460 |
|
Jun-09 |
460 |
|
Jul-09 |
500 |
|
Aug-09 |
490 |
|
Sep-09 |
570 |
|
Total |
7260 |
Employment and Training Act 1973
The law which allows New Deal jobs to be created is called the Employment and Training Act 1973. It is a really old law with most of its content being repealed by newer laws (why they can’t simply create a new law and repeal the entire old one is beyond me).
Section 2 of the Employment and Training Act 1973 enables the Secretary of State to approve arrangements “for the purpose of assisting persons to select, train for, obtain and retain employment suitable for their ages and capacities“. The New Deal Employment Subsidy (New Deal only vacancies) is administered under this Act.
Is it illegal?
New Deal Scandal believe it is an unlawful practice. The above law allows the Secretary of State to allow financial benefits to jobseekers (such as a training allowance) and employers (subsidies etc.) and to create schemes similar to a work trial for only internal New Deal participants (i.e. only New Deal providers or New Deal Personal Advisers can let participants know) with the prospects of a job at the end of it.
However, it doesn’t allow that over 600 New Deal only vacancies be promoted openly on the Labour Market System (LMS) while withholding the details to apply requiring potential candidates to phone Jobseekers Direct who will vet candidates who should not be allowed to apply… and then require candidates to do a Work Trial with no guarantee of a job at the end of it.
It is illegal to advertise a job discriminating those who can apply unless it is a genuine occupational requirement or qualification. This exemption includes discriminating due to insurance purposes, working in a refugee and believe it or not the following examples:
- It is OK to discriminate those applying to work at a foreign food restaurant (i.e. Chinese people at Chinese, Italian at an italian restaurant, Thai at a Thai restaurant etc. Other races can be discriminated) – it however is unlawful to discriminate other races applying for a fish and chip shop vacancy or fast food
- Christian organisation or charity (such as YMCA Training) may refuse to employ anyone of other religions or those who has no religion
- Gay people may be discriminated from an organisation which religion doesn’t believe in same sex relationships
I beg to differ that being on a New Deal course could be classified as a qualification for a New Deal Job.
Sham
If a job mentions you require say a driving license, be over 18 for insurance purposes or even that you must have a right to work in the UK and you ring their telephone number to apply for the job, they won’t be asking for your driving license details, your credit card details to confirm you are old enough or your passport/NI number before they allow you to get an application form. They will allow you to apply and filter your application out if you don’t adhere to the requirements.
With New Deal Jobs you have to ring up Jobseekers Direct. You have to give your address and National Insurance number typically before you can even talk to anyone, and even if you are on New Deal (should your adviser not update the records!) you could be declined the opportunity to apply.
Thats the minor element out of the way. The bigger issue is the job is advertised on the Labour Market System (LMS) so is available to Employment Officers, NDPA’s, Jobseeker Direct clerks, the Jobpoints and the website; although you have to do a trial (on benefits) for the first month and even if you do the trial there isn’t even any guarantee of a job at the end of it.
Scam
We all know that even in the recession the most people recruiting were Recruitment Agencies. I applied for many of said jobs and never got a response. Months later they are still advertising. Conclusion: the jobs don’t even exist! This is also rather naughty of Jobcentre Plus to be advertising them.
Although I think it is intentional by the Jobcentre just to get people registered with a Recruitment Agency (where jobs they offer you are exempt from the Jobseekers Agreement (JSAg) which doesn’t apply). Jobcentre Plus and such agencies have an agreement (LEP?) going on where they exchange information regular.
Work Trials
I think for an employer to discriminate on job candidates because they want a one month risk-free probation period where they don’t pay the employee New Deal participant any money and then to get a grant of up to £2500 if they actually choose to take the new Deal participant on – seems like a one sided affair to me.
“We all know that even in the recession the most people recruiting were Recruitment Agencies. I applied for many of said jobs and never got a response. Months later they are still advertising”
its exactly the same here,i walk past employment agencies’ and the same cards are constantly on display,no way could they still exist,i have worked for some good agencies but some are very bad and they out number the good.
the job centre advises keep in touch but if your treated frostily you dont want to go back.two different agencies sending people to the same company can pay a wide difference in pay for the same job,some are highly exploitative and are total users’,i was told you will be at a company for a while only to find you are only there for a day or two,it wasnt me because i worked there several times’ for the same company and he was always glad to see me.
the job centre seem to rally to these people and push in that direction,but unfortunately the wages are dire increasingly the minimum wage.even more skilled work offers only around 75 pence an hour more often with horrendous conditions attached such as traveling long distances, and or a poor working environment .
on new deal at the advisor meeting it was common for jobs to be seen that were not on the wider system,the above now explains this.he denied this was the case when i brought this up but minutes before on the main points those jobs didnt show at all.
discrimination is just that how ever people try to dress over it.but with the incentives on offer to take on long term unemployed people this bring out the worst in some people.
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DMG 34607 of the Decision Makers Guide* states:
The Labour Market System (LMS) has information you don’t see on the jobpoints, online and on your client copy. The full vacancy sheet includes further information such as the SOC code, submission limit (typically 299 – almost 3 times “unreasonable” limit), the number of current submissions, the type of business including number of employees, contact details and SIC code, the gender of the interviewer and employer information log (contact between them and JCP; are they LEP etc.)
When you sign on and there are no jobs on the system or they don’t check for jobs this is normally due to submission limits to jobs being exceeded. DMG 34607 states over 100 applications being “unreasonable”, thus if you are lucky to get the sheet due to staff employee mistake it becomes gold dust. It is presumed that everyone who is submitted has applied and more that applied from the internet or jobpoints.
* might not be an exact quote. Taken from New Deal Scandal guide – could be simplified.
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i have phone jobseeker direct and refused to give my ni as i just wanted to know who the employer was so i could contact them direct for the job and was given the information i also ensured my number was blocked using 141 that way they couldnt check the number then find out who i was
strange that when the jobcentre phone you they wilhold their number is this a ploy to snction claimants if they miss a call from them how can you know the call was from them? telesales numbers are usually withheld and unless jc leave a message on 1571 how are you supposed to know they phoned? we are not mystic meg!
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In 2004 when i was on nd my idiot ndpa (yes the same one i had when pulled onto new deal xmas 2007) told me to apply for a job at a shoe warehouse now this particular company many years ago had advertised and this was in the days you were given a card and visited the business got an interview and either got the job or didnt result was i didnt even get an interview) anyway back to the story he gave me the application form i went home filled it in went to the post office and posted it luckily i had kept a note of the job number went to the library went onto jc+ website typed in the job number and guess what it said this vacancy is now closed and that was in the space of less than an hour
at my next ndpa appointment i passed comment that applying for the warehouse job was a waste of time when idiot asked why i told him that between going home filling in the application and posting it when i checked the vacancy on jc+ website it said the vacancy was closed which i pointed out would mean my application wouldnt be considered and also that i had posted it which was a waste of an envelope and postage money his comment was that it was live when he told me to apply for it and if i had refused he would have sanctioned my benefit Why? it wasnt my fault the vacancy was closed it was his incompentance because he made me apply for a job he knew fine well was due to close
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When I was on New Deal last year my NDA would phone companies that had vacancies (regular jobs, not new deal jobs) to entice them to sign up to the LEP scheme by rhyming off everything they’d get.
I would apply for the jobs in the hope i would at least get an interview, but never even got a rejection letter, which my NDA failed to understand!
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CHRIS your ndpa must be as stupid as the one i had maybe they are related his ? name isnt mcdonald originally from aberdeen by any chance?
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No, it was a woman.
I seem to be having problems with my payments. I was due to be payed today but it wasn’t in my bank account, got my P45 through today so might be something to do with that? Once again i’ll be running around trying to sort out the jobcentre’s mess!
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If you haven’t got it tomorrow, remember to chase it. They will typically send it via ADVICE CONFIRMS.
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I would chase up the non payment as well but personally in the job centre also if you need travel expenses(am assuming you are on a nd placement) tell them you need travel expenses if they ask why which knowing those idiots they will tell them well how else can i get there? just give these a stupid reply to a stupid question
also if you get no satisfaction ask to speak to the manager to explain why your payment hasnt gone through
am assuming its your jsa plus your training allowance of £15 which if you start a placement on a signing week you dont get as jsa is paid in arrears
my idiot ndpa told me this was my wages jsa plus the £15 and when you work it out for an hourly rate for 30 hours equates to a whole £2.66p per hour yet if an employer paid this the relevant department would be down on them like a ton of bricks yet the goverment can get away with this my suggestion is if they pay£2.66P an hour give them £2.66p per hours worth of work especially when the person working beside you is on min wage or above why slog your guts out on a placement which may or may not result in a job?
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Thanks for the advice. My money went through on Friday, though i always got paid on a Thursday. Just took me by surprise.
Im on my placement at the moment, but im only working 12 – 5. Another placement works 9 – 1.
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Another example of discriminative jobs advertised in the jobcentre:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1222187/jobcentre-ad-demanding-Polish-speaking-staff-investigated-unemployed-workers-anger.html
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Thanks for this, not far from me actually!
It IS discrimination but there will be no further action taken over it. Job was only pulled due to complaints.
The law allows (or so Business Link states) that jobs can be discriminative if it is an “genuine occupational requirement/qualification”. If the factory is full of Polish speaking only persons it could be seen as a “genuine occupational requirement” requiring all workers to communicate with each other for “Health & Safety” reasons no doubt. It is a clever advert as it doesn’t ask for just one race as they hope to get, but for people who speak Polish… which doesn’t mean the person has to be of Polish nationality.
Life is unfair and the law needs to be changed without any doubt but in the eyes of the law its probably not even unlawful.
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Yeah, and they will always find something to cover their own backs instead of putting their hands up and saying “sorry, our mistake”
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