Picket of North London Hospice Shop – against their Scrooge-like workfare scheme

Posted: December 5, 2014

This Saturday, 6 December, 12.30pm. Join us on a picket of North London Hospices shop on Wood Green High Road (Turnpike Lane end).

Haringey Solidarity Group continues its support for claimants referred to Urban Futures as part of the hated Community Work Placement scheme.

On a weekly basis, claimants tell us the shameful way in which they are treated by Urban Futures, the local organiser of the CWP scheme and the way in which they are then forced to spend 30 hours per week hanging around in a charity shop rather than using their time constructively creatively or in any other way they choose.

Claimants and HSG have been campaigning against NLH’s participation in the scheme for almost 3 months precisely because NLH is Urban Futures’ largest partner, providing some 50 placements. We believe that if we can persuade NLH to pull out of the scheme, life will become pretty difficult for Urban Futures and the CWP scheme in the local area as around 20% of Urban Futures’ placements are with NLH. They would find it very difficult to replace them quickly hitting them financially, providing some relief for claimants and raising serious questions over the whole project.

Recently, we wrote to all the patrons and trustees of NLH asking them if they knew what was being done in their name and whether or not they considered such participation in line with NLH’s charitable status. Baroness Julia Neuberger has told us that she will raise our concerns with NLH management and we are awaiting further responses.

In the meantime, it is essential that we support those at the sharp end of the government’s class war. Punishing the unemployed for the structural deficiencies of a neoliberal market is irrational, inhumane and shows the true colours of the ruling elite.

Join us on Saturday – make your presence felt, your voice heard and tell the general public just what this charity is complicit in.

Look forward to seeing you there.

 

Category: Uncategorised
Tags: