I dont disagree with anything you have said Ben.
My understanding is that if an unemployed person on full benefits took a min wage job then they may well be worse off in total through a large fall in total benefits even though a full time min wage job obviously pays more than the dole. This is fucking stupid. In their position i'm not sure i'd bother getting out of bed to do a shit job and end up no better off at the end of the week.
The carrot should be net income (wages + benefit "top ups") being significantly higher than doing nothing.
The stick should be a cut in benefits if they refuse to take a job.
Obviously now isnt the time to be doing any of this because the economy is fucked and unemployment is rising. But labour did have 10 years of "good times" to do something about this issue and chose to import eastern europeans instead as Ironside stated.
People are definately better off working than on benefits, they just can't see it. What they like is their life at home with everything paid for them. They don't want to have to work and actually contribute towards their rent.
Anyone's income which is low (especially couples/families) would be suprised how much benefit they are entitled to.
I've worked in Housing/Council Tax Benefits for 4 1/2 yrs so know all about it, worked in the Jobcentre before that.
The vast majority of people do want to work, just there is the minority who consider it their "right" to have their rent and council tax paid, and won't do anything to earn it.
We had people who would eventually take a job, then be back two days later as it didn't work out! They did it on purpose. People who hadn't worked since school (some of them in their 30's).
Loads of single mums (whose partner lived with them, it's hard proving it and getting it through court). They had kids when Income Support was about to end and they were due to go on Jobseeker's Allowance so that they could stay on income support and not have to look for work etc.
It's a real eye-opener working in these places, i wouldn't have realised a lot of what went on before i worked in it.
