Protest against Atos Origin – poverty pimp (Mon 24 Jan)

Posted: January 19, 2011

On Monday 24 January at 11.30am, Islington Poverty Action Group and Haringey Claimants Action Group will be protesting outside Atos Healthcare at 1a Elthorne Road, just off Holloway Road, 2 minutes walk south from Archway tube. This local action is part of a national day of action against welfare benefits cuts, focusing on Atos, a private company who carry out medical assessments for people claiming Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), which is replacing Incapacity Benefit.


Atos have assessment centres in north London at Neasden, Hackney and Islington (which is also used for claimants living in Haringey). If you can come, making your own slogan and placard would be a great help. We won’t be going inside, or blocking access, as we don’t want to disrupt any ongoing medical assessments of claimants.

Atos Origin corporate headquarters are in central London, and a noisy picnic and party have been planned for 2pm the same day at Triton Square, NW1.

Bring music, drums, whistles, banners, food to share and brighten up the faceless corporate wasteland that is home to poverty pimps Atos Origin Ltd (see below for more info).
 
Musicians, poets, orators, ranters, shouters, all benefit claimants and supporters welcome. Please help spread the word and invite your friends.
 
Triton Square is on the north side of Euston Road, a minute or so from Warren Street tube and less than five minutes from Euston/Euston Square or Great Portland Street tube stations.

 

More about Atos Origin

Atos Origin have been awarded a £300 million contract by the Con-Dem Government to continue carrying out ‘work capability assessments’.

It is claimed assessments are to test what people can do rather than what they can’t. The real purpose is to strip benefits from as many people as possible.

This testing system has already led to people with terminal illnesses and severe medical conditions being declared fit for work and having benefits cut. GP’s are ignored in favour of decisions made by Atos Origin’s computer.

Plans announced for the scrapping of Disability Living Allowance have also revealed that this intrusive testing is likely to be extended to everyone on some form of disability or health related benefit.

To date around 40% of appeals against Atos Origin’s decisions have been successful.

The Government also plans to cut £2.5 billion from Employment Support Allowance. Plans to limit the benefit to just one year will mean that even those who are deemed unable to work will be presumed to have made a miraculous recovery. Meanwhile the budget for Disability Living Allowance is to be cut by 20%.

With the recent changes in Housing Benefit and possible changes to Council Tax benefit, these cuts will leave hundreds of thousands of people with severe health problems without enough money to feed themselves and heat their homes.

That’s if they aren’t forced into unpaid labour, no doubt inflicted on them by poverty pimps like SERCO and Action for Employment. Whilst millions of people face homelessness, disruption, debt and ill health the gravy train is being extended for those companies which seek to profit from the misery of others.

It’s time to fightback and hold these companies to account.

Atos Origin do not just do health related testing. They are a global IT and Consultancy company with offices around the UK. One speciality they boast of on their website is having: “a team of Organisation and HR professionals who undertake the analysis, design and execution of headcount reduction.”

A list of Atos Origins locations can be found at: http://www.uk.atosorigin.com/en-uk/about_us/locations/

Other poverty pimps include: Action for Employment (A4E), REED, Manpower, Serco, Ingeus.

Links: Facebook page ¦ Recording of phone call to ATOS re: euthanasia options for disabled

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