Friday 17 February 2012

No to workfare.


As unemployment continues to blight the lives of millions, Britains biggest private sector employer is taking on staff for free.Tesco's claim that 1,400 people have worked  their in past 4 months without pay. Only 300 got a job. This is outrageous, but this kind of thing happens it seems under tory led governments. In  reality, workfare is part of the governments welfare to work 'experience' programme in which they force the unfortunate who happen to be claiming JSA to work to work full-time stacking shelves at profiteering superstores. They do however get a bus fare thrown in. No wage, doing the same work as someone else who gets paid. It's the start of a dangerous slippery slope.
NAWRA ( National Association of Welfare Rights Advisors)http://www.nawra.org.uk/ says" This proposal
is very worrying. They are completely inadequate legal and medical safeguards - bearing in mind that these are people witl long-term health problems and disabilitis, often serious ones. Compulsary, unpaid work may worsen some people's health, with the consequences of the DWP's savings being passed on to the NHS at greater cost. If jobs are there to be done, people should get the rate for the job, instead of being part of a growing, publicly funded, unpaid workforce which, apart from being immoral, actually destroys paid jobs."


As Owen Jones on Question Time last night brilliantly stated this is not on. Tesco's however are not the only ones, engaged in this dubious practice, there are a lot of other high street stores that have actively got involved -Asda, Holland & Barrett, Primark, H.M.V, TK Maxx and Top Shop and others. If the uproar and contoversy surrounding this  continues, many will withdraw from it.
This is the predatory economy David Cameron is creating where the poor become throw away fodder for the richest in their greedy pursuit of more.
This is wrong and if you agree with me there is a government e-petition that you can sign here which is gaining much momentum as I write.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/29356

Interesting related  article in the Guardian Newspaper. can be found here.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/feb/16/work-free-tesco-job-advert

Oh and another thing:-
Britain 1834 Poor Law
1. No able bodied person to recieve money or other help from the Poor Law authorities except in a workhouse.
2. Conditions in workhouses were to be made very harsh to discourage people from wanting to recieve help.

Britain in the near futre
1. No able-bodied person to recieve money or other help from the authorities except in slave/voluntary labor
2. Conditions in voluntary/slave labour to be made very harsh to discourage people from wanting to recieve help.
Welcome to Tory Britain, slipping back in time.


Article 4, human rights:-
coerced or forced labour is a crime against a persons human rights.

enough said.....


                                           NO TO WORKFARE

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