Tuesday 18 January 2011

Barriers to work - I'm a cheap deal me.....

If I earn £98 a week working part time I will be better off.
That's the news from Sarah, my job centre consultant.
"By these calculations," she said. "If you were to earn £98 a week, and you could earn more than that, seeing you were a journalist, but on £98 a week with working tax credit and child tax credits, you'd be £66 better off a week."
"And if I earn more?"
"Well, you'll have to pay more rent. Council tax is likely to go up too."
"It's not flipping worth it, is it?"
"No it might not be. It's very difficult. I know it's very, very difficult."
"There are barriers to you going to work," she continued. "Financial and also your accomodation. You have to sort out your health too. It'll do you no good going back right now if mentally you can't handle it. If you're not prepared for it, you might not last long. It's best you sort yourself out first."

Employers must be laughing their heads off thinking they only have to pay me £98 a week so my life isn't financially disadvantaged. Flipping hell...wouldn't you want to earn more than that for a job well done?

"In September," I said to her. "In September what do I do, what with this rent so high?"
"Talk to the council," she said. "Talk to your councillor and ask: "What do you propose I do if I go back to work and my rent is £345 a week."

"It shouldn't be the flipping the council I ask, it should be the Minister for Work and Pensions. Ooh! There's an idea..."

Breathe, breathe as I spin within the vicious circles

I've got until September...

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