The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily

Despite great progress against workfare, the government has more in store for young people; Izzy Koksal investigates the Youth Contract, aka ‘workfare youth’

Workfare is a word the government wishes would just go away. It is two weeks now since the infamous Tesco advert, offering ‘Job Seekers Allowance plus benefits’ working nightshifts, provoked public outrage which rained down on Tesco’s Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Nick-Clegg-McDonalds-meeting-young-people This anger swiftly moved on to target other high street stores taking on forced unpaid labour for benefits, also known as workfare.

Public pressure has resulted in numerous high street stores dropping out of the government’s workfare schemes.

As the government attempt a damage limitation exercise to rescue their failing schemes – which also seems to involve Iain Duncan Smith attempting to intimidate peaceful protesters – the issue is one that they will find hard to shake off.

This April the government’s Youth Contract will be launched – but rather than creating any jobs for young people, it is another round of workfare.

After Nick Clegg’s betrayal of young people with the raising of university fees and the scrapping of the Education Maintenance Allowance, not to mention his contemptuous and insulting comments about young people “sitting at home” last week, he is surely the last person any young person would want to sign any sort of contract with.

Yet this has not deterred the deputy prime minister. who last November announced his £1 billion Youth Contract scheme to tackle youth unemployment, which currently stands at 1.02 million – meaning one in five young people are not in employment, education or training.

The three-year scheme starting in April this year will provide at least 410,000 new work places for 18-24 year olds; however, despite all the hype, the youth contract is nothing new – rather it is simply the bolstering of three existing schemes, apprenticeships, the Work Programme, and Work Experience, all of which have raised significant concerns, particularly the latter two for their use of workfare.

The Youth Contract, then, is an expansion of the use of workfare in high street stores, as well as charities and public bodies. This is yet another betrayal of today’s youth.

Workfare is wrong for a number of moral and practical reasons.

Forcing someone to work against their will for no pay is clearly wrong. The Human Rights Act enshrines this idea, stating: “No one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour.” Furthermore, as the TUC noted in their 2010 Final Agenda: “Compulsory workfare schemes are in contradiction to the notion of welfare rights.”

Finding oneself unemployed is not a desirable situation and therefore benefits are there to support people at this time. To force them to work in order to receive their benefits is to punish someone for a situation over which they had little control.

On a more practical level, workfare simply does not work.

A DWP report (pdf) confirms this, stating:

“There is little evidence that workfare increases the likelihood of finding work.”

The report states:

“[The] workfare approach is least effective… in weak labour markets.”

The emphasis on making the individual ‘more employable’ is made redundant when nationwide there are four people for every job vacancy, with this number increasing dramatically in some hotspot areas.

Indeed, there are arguments that workfare may even make the person less employable, as forced labour is not exactly a positive addition to the job seekers’ CV while also reducing the time they have to job search. Workfare distracts from the structural causes of unemployment. It may even contribute to unemployment as paid employees are gradually replaced by workfare labour.

Yet, despite the compelling moral arguments against workfare, the strong evidence that the approach is utterly ineffective, and the public outrage it has provoked, the coalition government are intent on rolling it out further through the youth contract.

Both the work experience and work programme schemes enforce workfare. Despite the DWP referring to participants in the work experience scheme as ‘volunteers’ the scheme is listed by Citizens Advice as a ‘compulsory scheme’.

Furthermore, the DWP has admitted that once a job seeker has ‘expressed an interest’ in a work experience placement they must work without pay, with a one week grace period during which they can escape, for up to eight weeks, or else lose their benefit.

These work experience placements in Holland and Barrett, Asda, and HMV, to name but a few, involve unstructured, arduous, repetitive work with unpaid workers doing identical jobs to paid workers. However, these unpaid workers also find themselves given the worst jobs that no one else wants to do.

There is no guarantee of a job at the end, only an interview and the unpaid workers must still actively seek paid employment and attend their fortnightly job review. The Youth Contract proposes to create 250,000 more of these workfare placements over three years.

The work programme is also a compulsory scheme that young job seekers will be forced to take part in. The scheme is run by ‘prime providers’ (mostly private companies such as Serco and A4e) who have complete control over the process and are totally unaccountable.

This “freedom” for service providers to do what they want with the young job seeker is called a ‘black box’ approach. The DWP’s concern for the freedom for service providers stands in complete contrast to the absolute disregard to the freedom and autonomy of the job seeker, who is forced to take on unpaid work placements or else face sanctions.

There is also the threat of four weeks of mandatory work activity if they reject a subsidised job offer. As with the work experience programme, the young person may be given an unpaid work placement in which they are doing the same, and perhaps more, work as paid employees.

However, under the work programme, the young person may have to work for up to six months. The youth contract seeks to boost the work programme through offering 160,000 wage subsidies worth up to £2,275 each for employers who recruit a young person through this scheme.

This sum of money is in effect a subsidy to the private prime providers who the government are already paying significant sums to get young people into a job. And no doubt, before the employer recruits the young person, the young person will have already provided them with free labour.

Workfare is not going unchallenged.

Boycott Workfare is a fast growing nationwide campaign organised by unemployed people, anti-cuts campaigners, charity workers, trade unionists, and other concerned citizens to take action on those companies profiting from workfare, encourage organisations to boycott it, and ensure that people know their rights.

We have called for a nationwide day of action on March 3rd against high street stores which take on workfare labour and to call for welfare rights and living wages for all. This action call out has been taken up all over the UK with actions being planned in more than 20 cities and towns and many more joining on a daily basis.

Indeed, such is the momentum of the campaign, that one may wonder if the government will even be able to implement the Youth Contract this coming April. Nick Clegg declared that the youth contract will ‘provide hope’ to the young jobless, but hope is not found stacking supermarkets for free for months on end.

Join us and take action, before we all find ourselves working for free.

See also:

• Workfare versus compulsory work: When is it right and wrong to mandate labour? – Richard Exell, February 24th 2012

• The information you need to end workfare – Alex Hern, February 22nd 2012

• Chris Grayling should respond to criticism of workfare, not smear the critics – Izzy Koksal, February 21st 2012

• Tesco’s unpaid labour shows the flaw at the heart of workfare – Alex Hern, February 16th 2012

• Five reasons Clegg can’t stand on his social mobility record – Alex Hern, January 12th 2012

http://twitter.com/mmichael0/status/174042426825121792 Michael Turner

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down eas, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/jackseale/status/174044289087717377 Jack Seale

Good piece on Workfare by @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/t32bwQKx
http://twitter.com/leftlinks/status/174048825089069056 leftlinks

Left Foot Forward – The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back… http://t.co/poeosviM
http://twitter.com/pulpark/status/174048918584303616 Pulp Ark

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t… http://t.co/ltIcWCpJ #Social_Justice #Forced_Labour #slave_labour #muslim #tcot #sioa
http://twitter.com/lyndaconstable/status/174052657965711360 Lynda Constable

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – http://t.co/QoVl4mxl
http://twitter.com/politicalplanet/status/174053394267385856 Political Planet

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily: Izzy Koksal details the gov… http://t.co/83VuQq56
http://twitter.com/samanthaj494/status/174054022288916480 SJ

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – http://t.co/QoVl4mxl
http://twitter.com/paulstpancras/status/174054471574364161 paulstpancras

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – http://t.co/QoVl4mxl
http://twitter.com/tracyandrab/status/174054879457837056 tracy e

RT @leftfootfwd: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/sqseU8Zq
http://twitter.com/pinkichiban/status/174055170043416576 Emma

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – http://t.co/QoVl4mxl
http://twitter.com/alexhern/status/174055192864620544 Alex Hern

@sunny_hundal Have you seen our workfare piece this morning? The govt has big plans for it, so they're fighting hard: http://t.co/IlIaO7Ok
http://twitter.com/girl_interrupt_/status/174057428667740161 Girl Interrupted

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – http://t.co/QoVl4mxl
http://twitter.com/durhamcub/status/174061337557741568 Martin Steel

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down eas, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/riprap007/status/174061926370902016 Nicholas Ripley

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/jSSsCksb
http://twitter.com/brumprotestor/status/174062959608348672 Brummie Protestor

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/schnews/status/174063941264216065 SchNEWS

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/blakekm/status/174064206205816832 James KM Blake

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
Tristan Price-Williams

We need to have a definitive list of any company taking on people who are being forced to work for free with no guarantees of employment.

We must not listen to IDS of Clegg and his rubbish about this helping them. It s also helping the companies and the person’s work must be paid for, if only (as it was in the past) by a increase in their allowance. It might be reasonable for this to be paid by the company and it might be reasonable that this should be around £30-£50, not bad for a week’s work (especially if it is, as they seem to suggest, an induction period for a real job).

We should avid any company that uses slave labour. Today it is the young lads from teh estates. Tomorrow it might be us.

This government (and the previous one), has already demonized sick people to the extent that, despite the official figures showing only a tiny level of fraud, the Daily Mail and its likes have whipped up a storm of hate against sick and disabled. Now there is forced labour and Duncan Smith is using the police to stop protests against it. They are starting to demonize the old for taking pensions at 61 and 65. people are perfectly fit to work much later now. Men only used to get a year or so, and women about 10 years after work before they dies. now people can live 20 or 30 years. How long before there are gas chambers?

Hateful government of disgusting people who will never have to live in any of the conditions that they bring in for the rest of us.
http://twitter.com/jessalynlavarre/status/174066621550297088 Jessalyn Lavarre

The government's got big plans for workfare – don't expect them to back down …: Both the work experience and w… http://t.co/OPuFzpnO
http://twitter.com/eyeedinburgh/status/174067233419567104 EdinburghEye

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/careerandbizops/status/174067587779538944 Martell Thornton

The government's got big plans for workfare – don't expect them to back down …: It is two weeks now since the … http://t.co/47rRs8zj
http://twitter.com/fergusonkeith/status/174067655504965633 keith ferguson

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/augustine_ryan/status/174067795615694851 Augustine Ryan

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/cameronsfollys/status/174068013060984832 cameronsfollys

The #government’s got big plans for #workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/kVedBe9e http://t.co/HNB4BthB
http://twitter.com/wolvopingu/status/174069378365665280 Anarcho Penguin

Good article on #workfare. More pressure can kill it off. http://t.co/DBDkgtN0
http://twitter.com/wolvopingu/status/174070025345433602 Anarcho Penguin

@boycottworkfare here's an excellent article on how the youth contract is just a disguise for more workfare! http://t.co/A8su9gl1
http://twitter.com/careerandbizops/status/174070274898141184 Martell Thornton

The government's got big plans for workfare – don't expect them to back down …: It is two weeks now since the … http://t.co/qPh6joFV
http://twitter.com/ollymonkeyboy/status/174070401691959299 Olly

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/narco_sam/status/174074782617309185 Sam Barnett-Cormack

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/val_hudson/status/174075882581917697 Val Hudson

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/joluni68/status/174075974915325952 Joluni

Good article on #workfare. More pressure can kill it off. http://t.co/DBDkgtN0
http://twitter.com/chaostocosmos/status/174076571009826816 Pamela Heywood

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/pxQXCq4G
http://twitter.com/kilburndesso/status/174083613212684288 Des Brittain

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/poutingpou/status/174085730300211200 Kyron Hodgetts

The governments got big plans for #workfare, don't expect them to back down http://t.co/V6Z1wnxG #boycottworkfare ht @riprap007
http://twitter.com/fight_workfare/status/174088650265595904 WorkfareProtest

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/mcnabbteddy/status/174088702086230016 teddy mcnabb

RT @leftfootfwd: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/5BrYlKex
http://twitter.com/havantacluotmp/status/174090616106520577 Jeni Parsons

Good article on #workfare. More pressure can kill it off. http://t.co/DBDkgtN0
http://twitter.com/abparchitects/status/174094222306185216 M Humphrey-Gaskin

RT @guyaitchison: Good article on #workfare. More pressure can kill it off. http://t.co/KwM6i4Ww
http://twitter.com/golfartie/status/174094341638328320 arthur jordan

RT @leftfootfwd: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/8Q2kEzqZ
http://twitter.com/boycottworkfare/status/174100167455289344 BoycottWorkfare

@boycottworkfare here's an excellent article on how the youth contract is just a disguise for more workfare! http://t.co/A8su9gl1
http://twitter.com/poutingpou/status/174100402583773184 Kyron Hodgetts

@boycottworkfare here's an excellent article on how the youth contract is just a disguise for more workfare! http://t.co/A8su9gl1
http://twitter.com/jintyg51/status/174100884542861313 Janet Graham

The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down eas, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/nickbloke/status/174100935742734336 Nick H.

@boycottworkfare here's an excellent article on how the youth contract is just a disguise for more workfare! http://t.co/A8su9gl1
http://twitter.com/tapselteerieo/status/174105137965568000 TapselteerieO

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
Spencer Bungard

Rubbish – WORKFARE IS SLAVERY – Advocating paying an EXTRA INCENTIVE (JOKE) £50 does not still make is FORCED LABOUR it also does not meet THE NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE which the DWP tried so hard to avoid by MANDATING INDIVIDUALS ONTO IT.
http://twitter.com/catherinbrunton/status/174183606187606016 Catherine Brunton

The government’s got big plans for #workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily! http://t.co/NM2lsua1
http://twitter.com/mushroom772000/status/174208188269342722 mushroom77

The government’s got big plans for #workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily! http://t.co/NM2lsua1
http://twitter.com/ripunzelle/status/174208316128501760 ripunzelle

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/cyber_ff/status/174209339446411265 CyberFF

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/oilywaters/status/174214687154638849 H. O.

RT @leftfootfwd: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/lNoRJ6Gi
http://twitter.com/workfare_fight/status/174222178684911618 Stop_Workfare

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/donnamariecox19/status/174224441310576640 Donna Marie Cox

Left Foot Forward http://t.co/fSX41FWb – thought you might like this @BenCooper86
http://twitter.com/bencooper86/status/174224665269645313 Ben Cooper

Thanks! RT @donnamariecox19: Left Foot Forward http://t.co/LEjx3qOu – thought you might like this @BenCooper86
http://twitter.com/redhndd/status/174232083013709824 Rob Henthorn

@boycottworkfare here's an excellent article on how the youth contract is just a disguise for more workfare! http://t.co/A8su9gl1
http://twitter.com/vaerk1/status/174234243625533440 Vaerk

I piani contro del governo inglese per cambiare il workfare di Blair, specialmente tra i #giovani http://t.co/gSCNnfoE
http://www.leftfootforward.org/2012/02/it-wos-the-sun-wot-couldnt-do-maths-prioritising-benefit-frauds-when-tax-fraud-is-10x-worse/ It wos the Sun wot couldn’t do maths: Prioritising benefit frauds when tax fraud is 10x worse | Left Foot Forward

[...] also: • The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – Izzy Koksal, February 27th [...]
http://twitter.com/izzykoksal/status/174870266869059585 Izzy Koksal

The govs got big plans for workfare http://t.co/IuRRkWfY Work experience is not the end of #workfare – check out the Work Programme
http://www.leftfootforward.org/2012/02/work-experience-is-now-voluntary-but-the-government-still-forces-unpaid-work/ Work experience is now voluntary, but the government still forces unpaid work | Left Foot Forward

[...] The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – Izzy Koksal, February 27th [...]
http://twitter.com/catchedicam/status/174948127848148993 voynich

Morning RT: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily, writes @IzzyKoksal: http://t.co/XDVIUo5m
http://twitter.com/catchedicam/status/174949492951486464 voynich

RT @leftfootfwd: The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily http://t.co/CqTY5Kdd
http://www.leftfootforward.org/2012/03/a4es-fall-from-grace-has-been-in-the-pipeline-for-two-years/ A4e’s fall from grace has been in the pipeline for two years | Left Foot Forward

[...] The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily – Izzy Koksal, February 27th [...]
rewards for failure

Policy exchange November 2011

http://www.policyexchange.org.uk/publications/category/item/something-for-nothing-reinstating-conditionality-for-jobseekers?category_id=24

“However, one limitation of the black box, in comparison to an employment zone model, is that providers have no incentive to run programmes which deter people from claiming in the ﬁrst place. Given that workfare advocates argue that its main effect is to deter claims, workfare-based approaches are never likely to be adopted within the black box model of the Work Programme.

Work Programme providers are also currently unlikely to employ workfare schemes because by law they are only allowed to put in place schemes that are “beneﬁcial for an individual’s journey back to work”, which means that schemes such as workfare (whose prime impact is to act as a strong deterrent to staying on beneﬁts when work is available) may not be applicable; and that they may not view them as cost effective. Furthermore, given that the UK has historically not had workfare, private providers might feel they were taking too much of a political risk by experimenting with the approach.”

Just shows how little the right wing think tanks actually understand about the front line delivery of public services?

http://www.policyexchange.org.uk/publications/category/item/something-for-nothing-reinstating-conditionality-for-jobseekers?category_id=24
http://twitter.com/tapselteerieo/status/180425563121528832 TapselteerieO

On the youth contract, read @IzzyKoksal’s report on the government’s big plans for #workfare: http://t.co/rzTGwSXQ #BBCqt
http://twitter.com/izzykoksal/status/180443886043414528 Izzy Koksal

On the youth contract, read @IzzyKoksal’s report on the government’s big plans for #workfare: http://t.co/rzTGwSXQ #BBCqt
http://twitter.com/boycottworkfare/status/180450928992858113 BoycottWorkfare

On the youth contract, read @IzzyKoksal’s report on the government’s big plans for #workfare: http://t.co/rzTGwSXQ #BBCqt
http://twitter.com/purlsofcolour/status/180453691151745024 Purls ‘n’ Politics

On the youth contract, read @IzzyKoksal’s report on the government’s big plans for #workfare: http://t.co/rzTGwSXQ #BBCqt
http://twitter.com/innerwisdom1/status/180460541075144704 Innerwisdom

On the youth contract, read @IzzyKoksal’s report on the government’s big plans for #workfare: http://t.co/rzTGwSXQ #BBCqt
http://twitter.com/joelhcarter/status/180566692236234752 Joel Carter

Is the youth contact just #workfare rebranded? http://t.co/zuycEXSL
http://www.leftfootforward.org/2012/04/nick-clegg-youth-contract/ Breaking down the Youth Contract | Left Foot Forward

[...] See also: • The government’s got big plans for workfare – don’t expect them to back down easily 27 Feb [...]
http://twitter.com/actuarialchris/status/204501066350465024 Chris Grove

@MrHarryCole Are these the same people who campaigned so hard against workfare not so long ago? http://t.co/3euhuOaN #unpaidhypocrisy
http://twitter.com/ActuarialChris Chris Grove

‘ They are starting to demonize the old for taking pensions at 61 and 65. people are perfectly fit to work much later now. Men only used to get a year or so, and women about 10 years after work before they dies. now people can live 20 or 30 years. How long before there are gas chambers?

Hateful government of disgusting people who will never have to live in any of the conditions that they bring in for the rest of us.’

Do you have any idea how stupid that sounds? You’ve hit the nail on the head, people are living longer and able to work longer so of course you’re going to have to do so. Where do you think the money will come from for a nice cosy 20 year retirement, unless you save for it yourself. If you haven’t you can’t just rely on the state to bail you out, the country doesn’t have the money for a start. If people live longer then pensions need to be fixed and retirement age rises, it’s called simple maths. Speak to any pensions professional or even use a pensions calculator to work it out for yourself, this fantasy of a long state funded retirement is exactly that, the fact your grandparents were provided for in the past better is because you rightly pointed out, they died quicker.