David Cameron suggests cutting housing benefit for under-25s

[Cliphead]

When I was sixteen and school finished for the holidays I took a notion to find a job instead of kicking a ball around with the mates. Twenty four hours later after knocking on doors I had three job offers and spent an enjoyable summer working as a hotel porter earning a wage and about the same in tips before going back to studying.

I think any teenager trying this now would get nowhere, much more difficult to find work these days. True, there's a workshy / benefits culture but there must be better ways of tackling the problem.

[lilelvis2000]

What, not reducing them to the level of starving African refugees?

One of my wife's recent client was a man from Gambia, He came in and got himself a decent job at a plant that make plastics parts. This was within one month of his arrival in the country. Why some of the drunks I see wandering past my office each day couldn't do that job I've no idea.

Thing about African's is they just get on with it because they know that the government won't help them out at all. We need the same idea here. All I hear is
"I expect the government to make jobs"
"There are no jobs and the government needs to sort it out"
etc... etc..

The "best" place is a middle ground. That is a limited time benefit say max six months.

My sis was telling me that in Vancouver they are changing the law so that a person cannot claim employment insurance - equivalent to job seekers - if there are any jobs of any sort in the area. Now that's tough.

[doodab]

I think any teenager trying this now would get nowhere, much more difficult to find work these days.

They'll have to compete with the long term unemployed working for nothing to get "experience".

In the creative industries especially people will work for free or not much more to get a foot in the door because they want a "cool" job working in a studio / on a film set, and that's been the way for a long time. I never expected the practice to spread to shelf stacking though...

[doodab]

The problem with a lot of the "cuts" that we've seen is that we all know there are real problems needing real solutions and quite probably some real savings to be made and what we get is a succession of ill thought out hare brained schemes that it seems aren't actually saving any money.

We are very ******* ****ed if this keeps up. I might not be overly keen on the idea of another Thatcher but I'd pick her over any of the current lot, lab, lib or con.

[Cliphead]

They'll have to compete with the long term unemployed working for nothing to get "experience".

In the creative industries especially people will work for free or not much more to get a foot in the door because they want a "cool" job working in a studio / on a film set, and that's been the way for a long time. I never expected the practice to spread to shelf stacking though...

Aye, didn't think of that. Changed days...

[EternalOptimist]

The safety net idea is a good one, and I have taken advantage of it when I was forced to.

But when people use it as a blanket, and milk it, we have a problem. When the system is so generous that it reduces the fight in people, we have a problem.

most people here are atypical, they have lots of fight, and always will have. But there are millions out there who will roll over and stay in bed for an extra hour if they are paid for it

[SueEllen]

The safety net idea is a good one, and I have taken advantage of it when I was forced to.

But when people use it as a blanket, and milk it, we have a problem. When the system is so generous that it reduces the fight in people, we have a problem.

most people here are atypical, they have lots of fight, and always will have. But there are millions out there who will roll over and stay in bed for an extra hour if they are paid for it

Then how do you stop them without the vunerable being harmed?

Suggestions such as dorms for young single mothers under 25 who can't live with a relation cost more money than giving them benefits.

(Though I guess in this example in the long term if you knew you were going to be put in a dorm, birth control or an abortion would be more attractive.)

[norrahe]

Then how do you stop them without the vunerable being harmed?

Suggestions such as dorms for young single mothers under 25 who can't live with a relation cost more money than giving them benefits.

(Though I guess in this example in the long term if you knew you were going to be put in a dorm, birth control or an abortion would be more attractive.)

It's certainly worked as a deterrent in The Netherlands, teen single mums are not given free housing or special benefits, the policy being if you get knocked up you go and live with the folks!

[DodgyAgent]

Removing benefits doesn't make it rewarding. It's still borderline slavery. If companies can't afford to pay a living wage and the shortfall has to be made up from benefits then they are being subsidised and should instead be left to fail.



Spoken by a man who clearly has **** all idea what a year of surviving on £50 quid a week, stripped of ones dignity and being unable to support ones family actually does to a person's psyche.

Firstly we have a minimum wage in this country and if fruit picking was done by British people it would be very hard for employers to cheat on it. Secondly are you saying that it is preferable not to work than pick fruit?

[bless 'em all]

The safety net idea is a good one, and I have taken advantage of it when I was forced to.

Me too. Once. Right up to the point where I saw the person dealing with those signing on was my bunny-boiler ex-girlfriend. I felt employment of any type was preferable to a show-down in the DSS office.

But when people use it as a blanket, and milk it, we have a problem. When the system is so generous that it reduces the fight in people, we have a problem.

Indeed, and I may have a closer view of this blanket than some. My daughter, who's 22 and was 'brought up' by her mother is a prime example. No qualifications, no drive and living off the state. I tried, really tried, to explain to her that only she can make her life better. It went in one ear and out the other. She couldn't be arsed to go to college, she couldn't be arsed when she was basically given a job. The bank of Dad closed shortly after that. It's not going to open again in the foreseeable.

most people here are atypical, they have lots of fight, and always will have. But there are millions out there who will roll over and stay in bed for an extra hour if they are paid for it

We have fight, drive and the view that WE can make something better for ourselves. We're some of the few people who snort in derision when offered the chance to earn 'only' 60k a year.

I've done truly sh1t jobs. I mean jobs where I've thrown up from the stench (dairy), been half cooked by the heat (commercial bakery) and bored to death (working nights re-stacking packs of baked-beans onto different sized pallets).

My father came from the Netherlands in the 60's and has worked without stopping, into his late 60's. He's not asked the state for anything.

Perhaps that's why I'm contracting now. Because I know that no-one is obliged to help me, or give me anything, or be my excuse for f-ing up my life.