'Working, what's the point?'

[benb]

'Working, what's the point?'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7816500.stm

Should I pity them? Or should I be angry? :(

[bornatbirth]

depending where you live jobs are to come by?

im not surprised they dont wanna work with no prospects what would you wanna do?

[benb]

depending where you live jobs are to come by?
im not surprised they dont wanna work with no prospects what would you wanna do?

You cannot be picky when its tough going. I would still work no matter how small the pay until i find something better.

I remember years ago (late teens), I spent all day just cleaning KFC toilets. It was tough, but I moved on eventually.

[Piamed]

I hear you Ben. I did the same in Woolies. Eeeeww!

I also worked on a building site too and mini-cabbed to make ends meet as necessary. I would derive pride from knowing that my family can eat rather than be embarrassed that my family cannot because i'm scornful of doing any job available to feed them.

I'd take part in clinical trials alo but am exempt.

[Sim11UK]

There's another woman on there, who's 43 & never had a job...I mean come on? :NoNo:
...But having said that, if no one else around you dosen't have a job, or never has, there's not much incentive, to push yourself into work?
I guess, it proves that the benefit system is wrong? as without help, you'd soon pull yourself up...Maybe in certain cases, crime would be higher as some turn to it, refusing to take a job?

Filipino's are a great example, they will go pretty much anywhere & do anything, to better themselves. :xxgrinning--00xx3:
But then the stupid people in this country, say immigrants are taking our jobs. :doh

[jimeve]

But then the stupid people in this country, say immigrants are taking our jobs. :doh

Some are, there's a pinoy got full time job day's, then in evenings works
as a packer till 10 pm. then my wife gets made redundant:Erm:

[joebloggs]

There's another woman on there, who's 43 & never had a job...I mean come on? :NoNo:
...But having said that, if no one else around you dosen't have a job, or never has, there's not much incentive, to push yourself into work?
I guess, it proves that the benefit system is wrong? as without help, you'd soon pull yourself up...Maybe in certain cases, crime would be higher as some turn to it, refusing to take a job?

Filipino's are a great example, they will go pretty much anywhere & do anything, to better themselves. :xxgrinning--00xx3:
But then the stupid people in this country, say immigrants are taking our jobs. :doh

you say stupid people say immigrants are taking our jobs, and yet there are British people unemployed. now that's stupid.

and what about the stupid idiot who works for the gov and came up with a figure of 10-20,000 poles would come to the uk to work, so they didn't put a cap on the number who could work here, unlike some other EU countries. when in fact more than 500,000 came, i don't think they came for a holiday.

stupid brown saying british jobs for british workers, illegal under EU law.

if immigrants are not taking jobs, then why have the gov put a cap on Bulgarian and Romanians working here, and the gov has extended the period now. they learnt their lesson with the mistakes they made with the polish.

oh i bet someone will say, oh their only doing jobs Brits will not do, well tier 1 is for highly skilled immigrant workers. and the lower tiers for semi/ skilled workers.

have you ever been unemployed or been made redundant or been on benefits sim11uk ??

you think you can live on £60 a week ? sure there are some who take the :action-smiley-081: but just as many who want a decent days pay for a decent days work :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[joebloggs]

Some are, there's a pinoy got full time job day's, then in evenings works
as a packer till 10 pm. then my wife gets made redundant:Erm:

i know of a company near me that was taken to a tribunal for laying 5 british workers off, after they had trained some eastern European workers, and err none of the eastern Europeans were laid off, i wonder why :Erm:

:REGamblMoney01HL1:

[DaveyWallis]

i know of a company near me that was taken to a tribunal for laying 5 british workers off, after they had trained some eastern European workers, and err none of the eastern Europeans were laid off, i wonder why

In my experience it would be because they had a better work ethic.


you think you can live on £60 a week

But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Another contributor to the forum commented recently that he was better off on benefits than he was when working full time in a factory. It's all about playing the system.


decent days pay for a decent days work

A phrase regularly trotted out - but it is subjective. A good day's pay to one person is a lousy day's pay to another.

[Sim11UK]

Getting a bit heated there Mr. Bloggs :D

Apparently 1 in 3 Polish people are going home.
I think you may have taken me a bit too literally, regarding the "immigrants taking our jobs".
Too many times you hear people making that type of statement, as an excuse, when it's obvious, they don't want a job. Or by the time I've paid my bus fare, it wont be worth it. etc. etc. How do they think the rest of us manage?

Truth is, I don't want a job (I have one)...I just love getting up every morning, seeing the same miserable faces, some of whom, I wouldn't even give the time of day to...Yeah right!...& all for a cr***y wage...Yes I'm on a low wage.

Yep! I've been unemployed too & have lived on benefits. :)

[KeithD]

Most Europeans have gone back, better job prospects, and the £/€ makes money worth a lot less to them.

[joebloggs]

In my experience it would be because they had a better work ethic.



But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Another contributor to the forum commented recently that he was better off on benefits than he was when working full time in a factory. It's all about playing the system.



A phrase regularly trotted out - but it is subjective. A good day's pay to one person is a lousy day's pay to another.

yes its their work ethic, because they know if they haven't worked in the uk at least a year, they cannot claim benefits, so they work hard, so they are kept on, no work means no money !

but more likely its to do with the lower wages they get !, I've worked at companies who employed eastern euros, and the main reason was they would work for a lot less than your Brit would.

if you've got kids then yes you could be better off not working, depending on your skills or lack of, but for a single person or a married couple i doubt it you would be better off on benefits than working, that's a load of :action-smiley-081:

yes good days pay for a good days work - agree with you there, but that's why we have the minimum wage, so workers are not exploited, and if they are working they should have enough to live off

[joebloggs]

Most Europeans have gone back, better job prospects, and the £/€ makes money worth a lot less to them.

who's told you they have gone home ? for xmas you mean :D, the gov don't know how many are here, so how the :censored: do they know they have gone home :icon_lol:

thou i have not seen the 10+ poles at the bus stop i get on for a while :Erm:

[aromulus]

I was told by a 2nd generation polish friend of mine that lives in Wrexham, that yes, it is true some polish people are going back home.:omg:

But for every one that leaves the UK another two arrive.:doh

I don't have the facts to prove this, but to me it sounded reasonable.

[cheesewiz]

I have a workmate who's from Hungary, she is a good worker no doubt about it. After a year here, learn to speak pretty good english and may be learn the system, she get her son and she is a single parent. She went to the citizen advice bureau regarding her status here in UK like the benefis etc..

they advice her to get a tax credit etc..she needs to work only 32 hours or less. so that's it, even we are short of people at work she drop her time and she said to me what's the point of working long hours if she is better off working short hour and get more money:NoNo:

[joebloggs]

I have a workmate who's from Hungary, she is a good worker no doubt about it. After a year here, learn to speak pretty good english and may be learn the system, she get her son and she is a single parent. She went to the citizen advice bureau regarding her status here in UK like the benefis etc..

they advice her to get a tax credit etc..she needs to work only 32 hours or less. so that's it, even we are short of people at work she drop her time and she said to me what's the point of working long hours if she is better off working short hour and get more money:NoNo:

don't that :cwm23: cheesewiz, you've worked here for near 5yrs and cannot claim tax creds etc. but someone from another country can come here, work for a year and they can, my misses had to work 2 years before she is entitled to claim any benefits, and the Hungarian can claim benefits for her kids back in Hungary if she had any :doh

[aromulus]

Some are, there's a pinoy got full time job day's, then in evenings works
as a packer till 10 pm. then my wife gets made redundant:Erm:

Sorry about your wife's predicament.:NoNo:

However I find the pinoy with two jobs very enterprising and not afraid of work.:xxgrinning--00xx3:

If more brits were prepared to do the same instead of harping on about not giving up their 9 to 5's, the country might not be in so much of a mess.:NoNo:

The same happened in Germany years and years ago.
The germans weren't prepared to do the dirty jobs anymore, so the country got swamped with Jugoslavs, turks, Italians, Algerians, Moroccans, greeks,etc.
We were doing anything that came our way, just to make a living and send some money home.
I worked as a waiter, gardner, disc-jockey, putting bits of gearboxes together at the Porsche factory in Zuffenhausen, selling records in a shop, making pizza, and taxi driving on the sly..... And the bloke I rented the flat from, was a plumber, so from time to time I gave him a bit of help, so that my rent was less for that month.

Oh, well......... Bugger it............:omg:

[cheesewiz]

POLES GO BUT FAMILIES STAY FOR BENEFITS

SINGLE Polish immigrants are quitting the UK but their families are staying to claim benefits.




Nearly half of Britain’s 500,000 Polish workers are expected to leave in the next few months as firms are hit by the credit crunch.




A family of four immigrants pockets an average of £715 a week in Britain. This includes £500 housing benefit, £95 Jobseeker’s Allowance, £36 child benefit, £84 in grants including council tax credits, carers allowance, maternity, paternity, and learning grants.




In Poland they would get just £178, according to experts. And with the falling value of the pound making it less economic to send money back to Poland, many immigrants are flying in more relatives to claim cash.




Urszula Jukes, owner of Polish recruitment agency Access Europe, said: “For many the answer is to bring families here where they can support them with the higher UK wages and Government support.”




Jan Mokrzycki of the Federation of Poles in Great Britain added: “We think lots of single people who come here will leave but the families will stay for as long as possible.”




Because of EU regulations, people from Poland who have lived in the UK for a year are entitled to claim the same benefits as those who were born here.




Many Polish think it makes sense to stay and ride out the recession.




Migrationwatch chairman Sir Andrew Green warned that the situation could soon start to hit the pockets of tax-paying Brits.




He said: “This information suggests that some families could become a significant cost to the

taxpayer.”

[cheesewiz]

don't that :cwm23: cheesewiz, you've worked here for near 5yrs and cannot claim tax creds etc. but someone from another country can come here, work for a year and they can, my misses had to work 2 years before she is entitled to claim any benefits, and the Hungarian can claim benefits for her kids back in Hungary if she had any :doh

Im not after the benefits I'd rather work. When I settle down here and have my own kids that's the only time I can think of getting a benefits from the gov't though i still want to work if i can i can't live with handouts i think:Erm:

[joebloggs]

[

He said: “This information suggests that some families could become a significant cost to the taxpayer

and what about those poor Filipinos who are here with kids and don't have ILR, and both have to work, they are taxpayers.. they get no tax creds, nowt, even if you've worked for 5yrs..

my misses knows many where one works in the day time and the other works at night, so there is one of them to look after the kids. :NoNo:

[Sim11UK]

Im not after the benefits I'd rather work. When I settle down here and have my own kids that's the only time I can think of getting a benefits from the gov't though i still want to work if i can i can't live with handouts i think:Erm:

Good for you cheezewizz :xxgrinning--00xx3: You'll never be short of a job with your attitude. You are an asset to the UK. Just wish you got paid more, for your efforts. :)

[joebloggs]

Im not after the benefits I'd rather work. When I settle down here and have my own kids that's the only time I can think of getting a benefits from the gov't though i still want to work if i can i can't live with handouts i think:Erm:

those benefits are what you should be legally entitled to, after 5yrs of paying tax and not being allowed to claim them, and others can claim after 1 yr.. the system is wrong, that's what my point is.

no one should need benefits, but if your working, then you've paid for it, and if your entitled to claim it, thats your choice if you do or don't

but if you was married and had kids in the uk and was on a work permit, i am sure you would want help to pay for any child care :rolleyes:

[cheesewiz]

Good for you cheezewizz :xxgrinning--00xx3: You'll never be short of a job with your attitude. You are an asset to the UK. Just wish you got paid more, for your efforts. :)

thanks. actually, most of the filipinos i know even they have kids here still both of them working full time. the wife work in the morning the husband work in the evening. its hard to depend on handouts alone and aside from as a filipino even we have our family already we're still trying to help families back home..so there's no chance for us just to live in a handouts as we have a second, third on so on...families in the Phils

[kermit123]

aggggggggggggggg if your going to pay a man 220 a week and pay his rent to do nothink but stop at home then what you think he will do :censored: all i am british and i do work when im in uk but its the system. if thay dont work then thay sould do some sort of comunnity work for nothink (well there dole) help old clean roads anythink for that money but you pay them to sit on there asses to do nothink but watch tv ,bunch of lazy :censored:, and yes i am getting heated workers that come into uk to work thay sould have to pay into system before thay get any money at all. no social security NO NOTHINK AT ALL if thay havent got funds to support themselfs thay soundent come in end and bringing there familys ffs its stupid how long do you think uk can carry on supporting all these free loaders gaz/maybs

[EDITED: Please do NOT circumvent the swear filter]

[kermit123]

ps im going on job centre to look for work for when i come back :) gaz/maybs

[chris40]

i consider the benefit system to be a double edged sword. i hate paying taxes to benefit lazy people who are just playing the system with no intention of working.
having said that the system is good to help people who have lost their jobs due to redundancy for example until they find another job.
i think a solution would be to make people work for their benefits.

[joebloggs]

aggggggggggggggg if your going to pay a man 220 a week and pay his rent to do nothink but stop at home then what you think he will do fu---ck al

£220 a week :Erm: :icon_lol: when was you in the uk last ?

try a month, and good luck with your trip to the job centre, i hope you find there are jobs there, and they pay a bit for than the minimum wage :rolleyes:

as for working for your benefits, why not if you want citizenship you'll have to pay for it and then work for it for nothing :icon_lol:

[KeithD]

I don't need to work, but I do :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Sim11UK]

The welfare state was set up, to help those in need.
That's how it should be run now.

All those who can help themselves, should! :)

[benb]

According to this statistics, 38,000 are discouraged. :doh :doh

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7754393.stm

so why do we pay benefits to discouraged people? or do we? To help them sit back and get encouraged? :erm: :doh

[benb]

ahhh! just got it. working but discouraged.

[KeithD]

All those who can help themselves, should! :)
:Erm: They do help themselves......to your taxes :icon_lol:

[Sim11UK]

:Erm: They do help themselves......to your taxes :icon_lol:

Yes, sad but true. :bigcry:

[KeithD]

You can get plenty of jobs down the Dock Road in Liverpool.......you'll have to pay her a fiver though! :rolleyes:

[aromulus]

You can get plenty of jobs down the Dock Road in Liverpool.......you'll have to pay her a fiver though! :rolleyes:

I thought that in this kind of weather she would be grateful and do it for a warm thick shake.......:Erm:

:D

[somebody]

Saw some people who have been out of work for long periods by chance this afternoon working for a company I was Visting. They were working for free (just travel i belive) and could to a degree pick and choose their hours. Today they were coming in for the first time.

A real mixture of people and backgrounds, they all had IT qualfications but most had little work experience.Some were Keen and seemed to me to be what we expect people to be like when they get a chance to prove them selves, learn and gain experience.

But two of the group didn't seem to fit in.
One seemed either very withdrawn and another behaving strangely and out of place for a office enviroment on the first time (ie giving people loads of amo to take the mickey). I only met them for a brief period of time.

I do think we either forget if its a long time ago or dont understand if its never happend to us. How taumatic being without a job is particularly if its for a long time with no sight of one even in the long term.

The one who was withdrawn and quiet and the other acting strangely should never have been pushed straight into the workplace as part of a group where all the volunteers had never met before it apeared.

I dont think they need shrinks and millions spent on helping them but possibly the people running the scheme should have noticed.

Just chucking a person who has no experience of the workplace, possibly stuck in doors on their own or only seeing their own familes etc. May find it


The point about all Phills being hard workers. From what i see both in the UK and in Phill when there is no need to work as money comes from other half or a remittance many Phills are as workshy as any other nationality.

If the UN brought in a universal Benefits system the same as the UK's i think you would find a similar ratio pretty much anywhere.

[fred]

I have absolutely no idea how a couple working from scratch on a minimum wage can live in the UK.
Just to rent a flat you need at least 2 grand up front by the time you've paid the agent and the credit search fees..
The rent for a 2 bed flat was 750 quid 2 years ago..There goes your first months wage and you haven't even switched the light on.
(or gone shopping with what you haven't got left) (or paid your council tax)
Bugger this topic..too damned depressing ..
I think I`ll tough it out here for now.

[aromulus]

I think I`ll tough it out here for now.

And as soon as my lottery numbers come up, I will join you....:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[KeithD]

And as soon as my lottery numbers come up, I will join you....:xxgrinning--00xx3:


I'm selling a 'Majic Lottery Pin'* Only £99.99 :xxgrinning--00xx3:


*Guaranteed to pick 6 winning numbers within the next 15 Million years

[Ann07]

Im not after the benefits I'd rather work. When I settle down here and have my own kids that's the only time I can think of getting a benefits from the gov't though i still want to work if i can i can't live with handouts i think:Erm:

Same here even if im pregnant still working and after my ML:Erm: My husband feels the same he'd rather work than to claim benefits:rolleyes: After i give birth for our second baby i still want to go back to work but we cannot tell what will happen once the 2nd baby arrives:Erm: I just hope I can cope:Rasp::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol:

[benb]

Same here even if im pregnant still working and after my ML:Erm: My husband feels the same he'd rather work than to claim benefits:rolleyes: After i give birth for our second baby i still want to go back to work but we cannot tell what will happen once the 2nd baby arrives:Erm: I just hope I can cope:Rasp::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol:

I would not recommend women with babies to work. Babies need you most for the first few years of their life. Also, childcare costs can be steep and for some it may not be worth working.

However, I do recommend studying part-time at home to improve skills etc until the child is older (> 4 years old).

Best Wishes

[pennybarry]

I would not recommend women with babies to work. Babies need you most for the first few years of their life. Also, childcare costs can be steep and for some it may not be worth working.

However, I do recommend studying part-time at home to improve skills etc until the child is older (> 4 years old).

Best Wishes

You're right, I have friends with babies, They want to work to have money of her own and send to their families but they cannot afford to hire nanny:xxgrinning--00xx3:. They are claiming tax credit and child benefits but still not enough for all the expenses for their babies:doh. I just help them babysitting when I'm free. I charged them free:):cwm38: Waaaahhh:REDancedancer08::REGamblMoney01HL1:

[KeithD]

Why have a kid when both parents go to work? Get a dog instead, at least you can eat it if you get fed up of it....

[somebody]

Why have a kid when both parents go to work? Get a dog instead, at least you can eat it if you get fed up of it....

Or get the dog to look after and eat the kid save you having to do anything.

[joebloggs]

Same here even if im pregnant still working and after my ML:Erm: My husband feels the same he'd rather work than to claim benefits:rolleyes: After i give birth for our second baby i still want to go back to work but we cannot tell what will happen once the 2nd baby arrives:Erm: I just hope I can cope:Rasp::icon_lol::icon_lol::icon_lol:

of course most people want to work than claim benefits, well if you both work, i'm sure your hubby will change his mind, and want to claim benefits like tax creds/child care because for 2 kids your looking at paying £300 a week for child care :yikes: and depending on where you live even more than that.. :doh

but depending on your incomes, the gov will pay upto i thinks its 75% or 80% of it :rolleyes:

as for getting a dog, we got our stepson to look after little joe from when he was 1month old til he was 18 months old while me and the misses worked :xxgrinning--00xx3 no problems with him, but not so sure about sending a baby to a nursery :NoNo:

[PeterB]

We watched 'Pursuit of Happyness' again last night. Now, there was a guy who took himself to rock bottom in order to build a better life for himself and his son!

[joebloggs]

We watched 'Pursuit of Happyness' again last night. Now, there was a guy who took himself to rock bottom in order to build a better life for himself and his son!

yes i've seen the film, and i wouldn't call what he went thru was rock bottom, yes he was living in toilets for a day or 2 ?, but he had friends/family i find it hard to believe he couldn't find anyone who would put him and his kid up for a while.. it looked to me he knew what he wanted to do/become and he put his mind to it, and got there in the end. good for him :xxgrinning--00xx3:, but it wasn't much of a story or film. no one died, no ones health was effected, he had no money for a while, many people are in the same boat now with more serious problems than he had.


unlike W. Mitchell. Even though he was not heavy enough, he wanted to be a gripman on cable cars. He got the job--and just worked harder (heavier). One day, riding his motorcycle in San Francisco, he was hit but a truck. The resulting fire disfigured his face and took his fingers. He started Vermont Castings during the fuel crunch of the early seventies. One day, flying some executive friends in his small plane, the engine quit on takeoff; the crash left Mitchell paralyzed. He went on to be a talk show host, the mayor of Crested Butte, Colorado, and he even ran for congress with the slogan 'Send me to congress, and I won’t be just another pretty face’. Today, he is a professional speaker who motivates audiences worldwide. now that's hitting rock bottom and getting up again and again :rolleyes:

[Ann07]

I would not recommend women with babies to work. Babies need you most for the first few years of their life. Also, childcare costs can be steep and for some it may not be worth working.

However, I do recommend studying part-time at home to improve skills etc until the child is older (> 4 years old).

Best Wishes


You have your point there:xxgrinning--00xx3:

I am an education graduate with masters degree in the PI. Since i was in the UNI i had always worked while studying lol! When i get here its not easy so what i did explore first and exp working here and see what i am capable of hehehehehehe. So I landed a job in a retail world lol.

Lucky here coz maternity leave is so long u can have it up to a year before returning to work so you have all the time with your baby for the first few months till he is ready to be left by his dad. In my case i took the 39 weeks with fee:xxgrinning--00xx3::icon_lol:. I only work partime to be away sometimes in the house and so my husband can also have a special bonding moment with our wee boy:D. And good for me:xxgrinning--00xx3: And nice to have you own money:D:D You can buy things on your own not just depending on my husbands wage.

Im so fortunate enough that my workpalce is only 5 mins away from the house:xxgrinning--00xx3: so they can always visit me when they go for a walk:icon_lol: Plus my boss lets me work if my husband is off so good:xxgrinning--00xx3: Lucky me my husband is so supportive esp with the house chores:xxgrinning--00xx3:

My husband prefers me to stay at home but i have to grab the chance while it is still there:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Cheers:)