claiming jsa but offered work - happyhamr other half

[happyhamr]

Hi

 

I am currently claiming JSA and have been offered a part time job on a 6 week contract.

The hours are 18.45 per week.

 

Do i need to sign off of JSA ?

 

Any advice would be helpfull.

 

Thanks

 

hammies other half:-)

[ptol]

If you take that job on those hours, then yes you will need to sign off JSA. You can work up to, but not including 16 hours a week. The week in question is based on your signing day, so if you sign on a thursday, your week runs thursday to wednesday.

 

If you are a single parent, then this probably makes good sense. and working extra hours above this will probably not benefit you much, especially if you have child care costs.

 

However, if you want to work full time, are on contribution based JSA and do not have a claim for housing benefit / council tax benefit and your new employer is able to be flexible then ask if you are able to do 15.5 hours a week, as then you will be able to sign on. You will have to continue to look for full time work, and sign on etc.. They cannot sanction you for this because you are signing on looking for full time work and the job was for less than 30 hours a week, and you are showing your willingness to work whilst looking for a full time job.

[MONX]

Any work you do has to be declared, you can work as Ptol says, up to and including 15hrs and 59 minutes in one benefit week. Any earnings you get will reduce your JSA pound for pound after a small disregard (£5 for single people without dependants £10 for couples and £20 for couple parents or single parents etc).

 

Your benefit week does depend on your signing day, the example Ptol gave is the wrong way round, as JSA is paid fortnightly in arrears, your benefit week ends on your signing day so the example given is if you sign on a Thursday, your benefit week runs from Friday to Thursday.

 

If you work 16hrs or more in a benefit week, then the rules are that you are working too many hours to qualify for JSA, if you are a lone parent, disabled or have disabled children then working tax credits may be an option to top up your earnings however that again depends on the hours worked and personal circumstances, you would be well advised to check out what you may or may not be entitled to on the benefits website on www.direct.gov.uk.

[ptol]

Your benefit week does depend on your signing day, the example Ptol gave is the wrong way round, as JSA is paid fortnightly in arrears, your benefit week ends on your signing day so the example given is if you sign on a Thursday, your benefit week runs from Friday to Thursday.

That is not right, in that situation if you sign on at thursday 10am, you would be asked to declare that you have not worked that afternoon.

[MONX]

I am sorry but the information I have given is correct, your signing day is denoted by the last two numbers in your national insurance number and the signing day you are asigned is the last day of the benefit week. If you sign on Monday, your benefit week runs from Tuesday to Monday and so on.

 

When you sign your fortnightly declaration you are saying that you havent done any undeclared work and have been actively seeking work during that fortnight. Your declaration implies that this also includes all of your signing day.

 

The only instance where you may sign for a different period of time on a different day is if there are too many people in your area with the same last two digits in their national insurance number. In that instance you will for example sign on a Wednesday to declare no undeclared work done and that you were actively seeking work for a fortnight ending on the Monday or Tuesday but this is very rare and usually only done for a short period of time as soon as a spot on your correct signing day becomes available.

[ptol]

The source of the information was the "Back to work" meeting I attended earlier this week. As part of that meeting they go through what is required of you, and they spent 5 minutes on the signing part, and what you are signing to say.

 

However, it is not possible to sign at 10 in the morning declaring that you have not done any work later that afternoon. I agree for many JSA claimants that is not particularly likely but in the case of people who are company directors, it is quite possible that an event occurs later that day that requires you to work for 30 minutes, and that would put you in conflict with the declaration that you had already made. that cannot be right.

[MONX]

I can assure you that I have given the correct information, for people who have the opportunity to work on their signing days, they still have to declare any work done or are expecting to do on that day as well as the last 13 days. The B7 declaration forms they complete shows the hours and earnings worked and earned in that benefit week and the one before it. They are averaged and this is then applied to the next fortnight, when the actual wageslips are recieved they are checked for accuracy and adjustments made for weeks in the future so anything missed is captured eventually.

 

I base my information on 11 years experience working with Jobseekers.

[ptol]

Two people working in the job centre having different views on policy and process...

 

Now that I do believe

[MONX]

I do not work in a Jobcentre. My experience comes from supporting Jobseekers and advising them in an official capacity I therefore have to have a good knowledge of how claims are made up and what the regulations are.

 

I suggest you speak to your advisor again when you next attend and just get them to confirm that your signing day is the last day of your benefit week.

 

People who make threads on here asking for help need accurate information and I wouldnt post unless I knew that the information I was giving was based in fact.

[happyhamr]

Thanks for all the information. I am even more confused now. I will speak to the employer on Monday to see if they can be more flexible with my hours.

 

Thanks again

 

Happyhmr other half.

[MONX]

Thanks for all the information. I am even more confused now. I will speak to the employer on Monday to see if they can be more flexible with my hours.

 

Thanks again

 

Happyhmr other half.

 

 

I am sorry for your confusion, to be honest as the contract you would have is for 6 weeks and is for more than 15hrs and 59 mins a week it is a moot point. The hours are over the limit and its for six weeks so under those circumstances, yes you would have to sign off.

 

If your employer wanted to reduce the hours to below the limit then obviously you would have to sort out your benefit weeks, declare wages etc.

 

People who post information on here do it with the best intentions but sometimes are not armed with the correct information, it is always best to see a consensus of replies or contacting the jobcentre direct before making decisions based on it but I can catagorically confirm that your benefit week ends on the day that you sign on.

[ptol]

hiya,

 

I agree with Monx, the confusion we caused was very much a side show and regrettable. If your hours are identical each week, then the exact day your benefit week is calculated really would not matter.

 

As always on the internet, it is you, the reader who has to decide who and what advice you wish to follow if you indeed do follow it, and in this case, both of us have stated where our information is coming from which should help you understand its risks. There is a difference, and whilst I am certain of what I was told in the back to work session on Monday by job centre staff this week, Monx is just as certain too. You can be certain of one thing, One or both of us has been misinformed.

 

All the best, Ptol

[happyhamr]

Thanks for all your advise.

 

I have another query, I started work 2 weeks ago and I am doing 15.45 hours per week.

I have just been to Jobcentrre to sign on and to see an advisor as i have been signing on for more than 13 weeks.

 

My net pay is £112.40 per week and I have just phoned jobseekers allowance number to find out what deductions will be taken out.

 

They stated that as I am earining £112.00 per week that my jsa will be deducted from this amount.In other words THEY will be paying nothing.

 

Why is it they say you can work less than 16 hours and they then stop the money.?

 

My travel is costing me £30.00 per week and once this amount is paid out I am actualy working for £3.50 per day, What is the point. Apart from them wanting you not to sign on it is very misleading stating that you can work for 16.00 per week but they then stop your jsa.(65.45 per weeek)

Although they have given me the form for travel reductions I have still had to pay this out for the last 2and half wweeks.

 

Is this the correct information that i have been given?

 

If it is I might as well not go to work.

[happyhamr]

hi happyhamr here:-)

just wanted to clear up , "little confusion".

 

my girlfriend got the job , originally for 18 hours 45 minutes , but came to an agreement to work 15 hours 45 minutes so that she would be under the16 hours a week limit:-)(hope this clarifies)

as she says is it worth her going to work:roll:

 

£112.40 - £64,40(jsa)-£30.00(travel) =£18 pound a week, "whats the point":roll:

[andydd]

Whats the point indeed...., I did a few days IT Contract work and had to notify the JC and yes its not worth it financially, I only did it for a few days and it was worth it to put a bit more experience on my CV, of course the new coalition government has promised to always make sure that any work pay but the figures they give are only a tiny improvement on the current system,. I assume though that if you worked for less than 16 hourts and still signed on you would still be elligible for some other benefits even if your JSA was cut. (Mortgage help, Council tax, etc)

 

Andy

[MONX]

Any work you do has to be declared, you can work as Ptol says, up to and including 15hrs and 59 minutes in one benefit week. Any earnings you get will reduce your JSA pound for pound after a small disregard (£5 for single people without dependants £10 for couples and £20 for couple parents or single parents etc).

 

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I did say this in my first post, wages are taken into consideration pound for pound after the small disregard (dependant on circumstances). The reason why you need to be working less than 16hrs per week is to keep your claim live and to accrue your national insurance credits as you are not earning enough to pay them through your wages.

 

Housing benefit and tax credits can also be paid if you are on what is considered a low wage.