Quote:
Originally Posted by richard1960
Not being pedantic Maggy but i take it you have changed your mind about this scheme as before you were agreeing with the guardian article that called it exploitative and low paid low skilled employment , and seemed quite against it.
Is it just the barnardos statement that made you change your mind because the jobs on offer have not.? 
It is easy to imagine how wizard the idea must have looked from the work and pensions minister's corner office. Work experience does make people more employable – and it should be open to benefit claimants, not just those with better-off parents who can subsidise them. But it is also easy to see how offensive it is to perform boring, menial, or simply pointless tasks for major retailers without being paid. And when it means working for employers who make billions of pounds each year (or, as at A4e, where bosses take millions in public money as bonuses), it is simply exploitative.
In post 71. |
It was the suggestion it was mandatory and that benefit would be removed if they didn't get what they expected from the scheme that made me cross.Also I suspect that all the large companies involved(and charities) will ensure that it is REAL works experience now the public eye is on the scheme not just stacking shelves and make do work..
I still have some reservations such as just how many placements can be offered if jobseekers actually get a job at the end of the placement and a company has less jobs/spaces available as a consequence.There must be a finite amount of actual jobs available especially as there are pockets of high unemployment around the country.Plus I'm wondering how good the 'training' aspects will be and if there are any real usable qualifications to be earned as a consequence.
And yes I do trust Barnados to have the age group concerned interests at heart.They are an organisation who deal with disadvantaged youngsters and know and understand that many 16-25 year olds from broken homes and social care are the very ones who do end up with a poor education and a lack of self confidence and do need a lot of support that is not always available from the government agencies after they are thrown off social care at 16.If they think it can work then I can get behind this scheme.