How can low-wage job seekers travel 90 minutes away?
New rules will now say that job seekers will have to accept work within 90 minutes travel from home or lose benefits.
Do these stupid ministers who dream up these crazy ideas realise the cost of travel and how far away you can go in 90 minutes by car? (Or how many job seekers have one?)
Travel by public transport is completely out of the question, being far too costly.
A trip from Leicester to Peterborough by train cost my sister £50 return for one day – and that was less than one hour away.
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Maybe you can get it cheaper by travelling regularly or booking in advance, but even so the rules state a minimum wage job must be accepted however far away within the 90 minutes.
Even by car the petrol alone would be at least £15 per day to Peterborough (80 miles return journey). On the minimum wage, even a trip from Syston to Leicester (six miles ) costs about £20 to 25 per week, and by bus would be difficult to afford.
Perhaps they might be able to borrow the ministers' limousines they sometimes use to travel a few hundred yards, or even maybe get paid expenses for travel as the ministers do?
Apart from the expense of travel, the job seeker would be away from home a minimum of 14 hours per day, travelling 90 minutes and back.
Every day now we hear of new rules making the lives of ordinary people not just more difficult, but downright backbreaking to try to live and bring up a family.
The minimum wage is just enough for a single person living alone with no car and a rent of more than £100 per week to survive with food, heating and so on – and within walking distance of work.
Travelling 90 mioutes away would need a salary of at least an MP's level to make it worthwhile.
Why are we allowing them to do this? Please stand up for yourselves and let your MP know if you are dissatisfied.
Mike Attenborrow, Syston.
2 Comments
by graydjames
Friday, March 01 2013, 8:14PM
“i didn't know about this 90 minute rule but, if it is true, then Mr Attenborrow make a very serious and valid point and I really can't see that anyone can disagree. It's surely a complete nonsense.”
by NickDiPerna1
Friday, March 01 2013, 7:58AM
“New rules also state that Jobseekers have to accept jobs that pay the minimum wage of £6.19.
Leicester deputy city mayor Rory Palmer said paying all council staff at least £7.45 per hour was: "Morally....the right thing to do." But it is so easy to be generous with other people's money.”