Are you too old at 64 to work?

[fedupandold]

Hello. Just an idea of mine. I became interested in the Jobmatch scheme for JSA claimants. so I had a look at what I would be matched to if I was claiming that benefit. Zilch!! So I broadened my search from the South to England in general and found a job that I was doing 46 years ago paying NMW. It is approx 230 miles away. Would I be expected to apply for that job?

 

Onto something a little more serious and a step further on. I receive ESA Support Group and am aged 64, 65 in 2 months. More out of interest than anything else to see what is actually going on with younger ESA claimants, can I be signposted to the Work Provider and the WFI's? You hear so much about these schemes and how people are treated I thought I would just like to see for myself first hand.

[antone]

1) In your first example, no, you would not be expected to apply for an NMW job 230 miles away. The furthest a jobseeker is expected to travel is 90 minutes by their normal method (car if they have one, available public transport otherwise). You're not expected to fly, which would be the only way to travel 230 miles in 90 minutes.

 

2) You're in the ESA Support Group, so you can volunteer for the WP if you wish. Be warned, though, that once you volunteer you can be mandated to undertake certain activities on threat of sanction of your benefits. I do not advise you to volunteer for the WP out of curiosity.

[fedupandold]

1) In your first example, no, you would not be expected to apply for an NMW job 230 miles away. The furthest a jobseeker is expected to travel is 90 minutes by their normal method (car if they have one, available public transport otherwise). You're not expected to fly, which would be the only way to travel 230 miles in 90 minutes.

 

2) You're in the ESA Support Group, so you can volunteer for the WP if you wish. Be warned, though, that once you volunteer you can be mandated to undertake certain activities on threat of sanction of your benefits. I do not advise you to volunteer for the WP out of curiosity.

 

Thanks for taking the time out to answer those two questions. I'm so pleased that if I was claiming JSA, I wouldn't be expected to commute 460 miles a day to earn approx £50 a day!! To be honest even a 90 minute each (approx 200 miles round trip) way journey by car would see me either heading up through North London towards the M1 or on my way to Lille in France, neither would be covered by the same £50!!

 

I can volunteer?? Wow. For devilment I would seriously think about doing that. Goodness knows how they would cope with my many inabilities and being permanently under the influence of quite large doses of Morphine. I suppose that they would draw the line at a 65 year old anyhow. Even if they did sanction me, Pension credit would come to my rescue with an uplift in payment to compensate. I'll take your advice I suppose and put my time and effort instead into getting round to starting my new 5000 piece jigsaw!

[dillm]

Your comments are interesting Would pension credit make up for any sanctions or would they apply a sanction do you have seek work when on pension credit

Edited June 14, 2013 by dillm

[Nystagmite]

You don't have to seek work whilst on pension credit.