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Loading ...It has been a few months in the pilot already…. have the Flexible New Deal flaws been found leaving Flexible New Deal dead in the water? or Is it just a few problems with Flexible New Deal that needs ironing out?
Within a month several Flexible New Deal complaints surfaced and many more are coming in week after week about providers not contacting the participants.
FND contracts are 5 years long, with the possibility of a two year extension, it’s unlikely to be scrapped…
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I had my interview for new deal this week, I have to go on a test for numeracy and literacy, then I have a two week 9am – 4pm thing in a local building with other people, where I basically do the things that I have been doing at home, apparently they will check my CV, “intense” job searching and other things. Sounds dressed up to me.I guess I will take my Mp3 player and a book since I have a collection of search engines and job agencies I check daily or every other day, cannot see this lasting me 7 hours and definitely won’t be socializing, any confirmation on this ?They tried to push incentives onto me to pass onto people who I apply to jobs for, I mean a free work trial and £1000 payment to the employer, I wouldn’t dare offer either, if they are seriously wanting to hire someone for the job I’m not going to offer them sweeteners in the form of these embarrassing JC bribes.I must say though the ND adviser was very nice, informative and all around good.
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The 2 week New Deal scheme is called Gateway 2 Work.
Not all of it will be job search and you have to stay there for the times specified. Failure to do so means a sanction. Grit your teeth and put up with the 2 weeks knowing that you are lucky its not the 13 week one!
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If the Tories win the election, they are not obliged to continue with the FND contracts, which were signed by a Labour government.And taking into account the state of public sector finances I can see the Tories, if they win the elcetion, drastically cutting back on FND and other similar programs even if they wished to continue with them..
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The whole system is in a mess.
Laws etc. still reference Social Security (although DSS hasn’t existed for ages)
Documents still make reference to the Employment Service (pre-Jobcentre Plus) this is what the ES prefix on documents mean.
Social Security Benefit legislation is a big mess of hundreds of laws which need rewriting. It is designed to be so confusing so defence to sanctions and to appeal to decision of not being entitled are more difficult.
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I keep getting phone calls with job details and get told to apply, the problem is the details are basically so limited. It’s normally the job role, wage, hours totals (sometimes not even the daily work hours) and the days along with email address (which is normally a recruitment agency wtf !). You have to go really far out to even find any information on the company be it location, background and duties. If I wanted this information I would use the jobpoint machines lol
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I succesfully managed to pick holes in the FND programme and get a minister to admit these problems whether something will hapen thats another matter
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WARNING!!!
I started on the flexible new deal at end Feb and at my first interview the adviser told me that, due to my past experience and having a degree, she thought I could easily do her job and that there were vacancies coming up and to apply. Very helpful, I thought and applied. I was interviewed and offered a job as an adviser.
However, now I have been told that because I have been unemployed for a year and am ‘coming through’ FND my salary will be lower than that of other advisers who had moved from previous jobs. This, they say, is there Policy!
This surely is discrimination. Don’t we have laws on this. I will be doing exactly the same job as other advisers there but being paid much less, just because I’ve been unemployed for a while.
They have also told me that as I’ve been offered employment, if I refuse to take it I will lose benefit entitlement.
If they think as an adviser, I will not inform my ‘clients’ of this scandal they’re clearly mistaken!
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i started on flexible new deal 5 weeks ago. i came off incapacity to get a job but because i had a failed operation in 2006 which has damaged all the nerves in my right arm im finding it hard to get a job.
im also disabled with the chronic illness lupus which ive had for 14 years. my time on flexible new deal has not been a happy one, the best time was the induction since then everything has been downhill. ive been bullied by the caseworker as they call them, when she wasnt getting anywhere i was then taken to the manager and i had both of them bullying me, when i got home my husband said how did it go, and i burst out crying.
I have an action plan of i have to reply to 5 jobs a week, i dont have a car, and most of the local vacancies im not qualified to do so i dont know how i am supposed to achieve this, and know if you dont fill your joblog in properly they are going to stop your money.
All they can come up with, although i have experience in retail in their opinion they dont think im suited to this, but wait for this……………. in their opinion they think im more suited to care cleaning vomit and sh*t up, i havent spent years getting qualifications to put them in the bin, and i felt insulted at the suggestion, i then got threatened with a sanction of no money and i was being difficult.
And since then ive been called a liar, and a malinger, there is nothing wrong with me, so to prove my innocence i go to the hospital to see my consultant and hes appalled a how the way im being treated.
I have received an apology from the JCP but they havent done anything on FND that i could not have done at home or with the help of the JCP. in fact i feel more depressed since going there than i did being unemployed.
As for the placements that are on offer are for 4 weeks and they are in charity shops, which is really going to impresss employers NOT!
Like everyone thats unemployed i have been looking for a good quality job that has prospects, all FND have to offer, is something your not experienced at and dont have the skills and which you will be signing back on JSA in 4 weeks time. as the caseworker said to me they cannot help any of the unemployed till they get a job.
I dont know if the government are working on something as the JCP told me wait till 20 weeks does he know something i dont?
in the meantime im left their, but im applying for the jobs they give me, if i go and get it, and i injure myself my boyfriends said start personal injury claims.
I have done research on FND and this is the labour parties baby, and they have given the providers free reign to do what ever they like to us to get results. And we dont have anyone we can complain too, and if we try you get threatened to have your money taken away.
I hope this gets printed in its own entirety as i feel people need to be aware what FND is actually like, your not treated fairly or compassionately, your not matched with employers based on your skill and experience. they have a vacancy you can do it, thats the FND criteria.
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