Stop workfare! Protest in Wood Green on Saturday 9th February

Posted: February 6, 2013

STOP WORKFARE!

PROTEST ON SATURDAY 9th FEBRUARY

12 NOON, ARGOS, 88 HIGH ROAD, WOOD GREEN

We are seeing a wave of attacks on benefits both for the unemployed and those in part time or casual work, at the same time the governing is bringing in more and more workfare schemes. Workfare means you have to work up to 35 hours a week for your benefits, so employers like Poundland, Argos, Superdrug and Wilkinsons get your work without paying for it. If you refuse to go on some of the schemes your benefits can be stopped and the placements can last from four weeks up to six months in some cases.

In September ‘traineeships’ will be introduced; these are six months programmes on Jobseekers’ Allowance for 16-18 year olds including long work placements. They’re a quick fix gimmicks which just acts as cover for the lack of apprenticeship schemes (which aren’t exactly well-paid either).

All these schemes pretend to help us find work but we end up being used for cheap labour and employers don’t have to employ people. For example: over Christmas Argos didn’t have any Christmas temp jobs because it used workfare instead. If the government really cared about helping you get a decent job they wouldn’t be cutting literacy, maths and access courses across London. They also wouldn’t have got rid of EMA and increased tuition fees.

The minimum wage for 16-21 year olds has been frozen and benefits have only increased by 1%. This is while unemployment is high, council housing waiting lists get longer, rent continues to go up and getting a mortgage in London is financially out of reach for most of us. To make things worse we have the benefit cap coming in this year, with Haringey being one of the pilot boroughs. This will affect hundreds of families, some of whom are already in temporary accommodation.

The government knows its policies are going to make people homeless, drive many into poverty and debt and make others work longer for less, they don’t care. The only thing we can do is organise and fight back.

STOP WORKFARE!

PROTEST ON SATURDAY 9th FEBRUARY

12 NOON, ARGOS, 88 HIGH ROAD, WOOD GREEN

Organised by North London Solidarity Federation and Haringey Solidarity Group.

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