Disabled and sick forced to work.

Dianaf

What does everyone who claims universal credit who is disabled or sick think about this government announcing that universal credit claiments will be forced to work even if you are paralysed? This is going to Start in 2024. Nobody seems to be talking about it on scope. 

poppy123456

There's been a lot of threads on here regarding this so i'm unsure how you can say that no one has spoke about it. There's also no changes planned at the moment, or in 2024. It's all speculation right now.

Bostankhan22

Hi I know everyone is asking the same question regarding the disability folk forced to work. I am in the esa support group for my mental health which hasn't really changed I fact its got worse beyond my control to be honest,. How on earth can people be forced to work who are on heavy medication that either maje them sleep or paranoid as I have bpd disorder so how will this work and if we fight for our rights we get our benefits cut this is really going to help our mental health NOT

2oldcodgers

Bostankhan22 said:

Hi I know everyone is asking the same question regarding the disability folk forced to work. I am in the esa support group for my mental health which hasn't really changed I fact its got worse beyond my control to be honest,. How on earth can people be forced to work who are on heavy medication that either maje them sleep or paranoid as I have bpd disorder so how will this work and if we fight for our rights we get our benefits cut this is really going to help our mental health NOT

I was diagnosed with PTSD, depression, anxiety etc etc. I spent over a year on and off in a secure mental health hospital under section. I had buckets of different types of medication including Lithium. I was arrested twice for an unproved attacked on someone (taken to hospital by the police for my own and others safety. Attempted suicide trying to burn down a derelict house with me in it. Went roaming the lanes with my shotgun late at night and managed to get back home.
After 5 years of this the only thing that saved me was working on a farm and being with animals voluntary.

3 years of long hours and days tired me out but it was the medicine I needed.

I was then after 8 years from first diagnosis able to get back to work for 30 hours a week working in a supermarket.
Two years later I was back working in my normal career.

So for me working and being severely mentally  disabled was a godsend. It worked for me.

Albus_Scope

Just going to point people towards this thread instead of replying on this post.

IMStruggling

2oldcodgers said:

Bostankhan22 said:

Hi I know everyone is asking the same question regarding the disability folk forced to work. I am in the esa support group for my mental health which hasn't really changed I fact its got worse beyond my control to be honest,. How on earth can people be forced to work who are on heavy medication that either maje them sleep or paranoid as I have bpd disorder so how will this work and if we fight for our rights we get our benefits cut this is really going to help our mental health NOT

I was diagnosed with PTSD, depression, anxiety etc etc. I spent over a year on and off in a secure mental health hospital under section. I had buckets of different types of medication including Lithium. I was arrested twice for an unproved attacked on someone (taken to hospital by the police for my own and others safety. Attempted suicide trying to burn down a derelict house with me in it. Went roaming the lanes with my shotgun late at night and managed to get back home.
After 5 years of this the only thing that saved me was working on a farm and being with animals voluntary.

3 years of long hours and days tired me out but it was the medicine I needed.

I was then after 8 years from first diagnosis able to get back to work for 30 hours a week working in a supermarket.
Two years later I was back working in my normal career.

So for me working and being severely mentally  disabled was a godsend. It worked for me.

I'm very pleased that things worked out for you and that you are back in your normal career.  However, not every disabled person is in a fit state to work.  The whole "bootstraps" Tory way of thinking is not particularly helpful when it comes to people living with severe disabilities.

I noticed Hunt claims he's investing loads of money into Talking Therapies so that mentally ill people can be treated and get back to work.  Well guess what Hunt? -- Talking Therapies tend not to be willing to take on patients who have severe mental illness.  I should know, I've been rejected by Talking Therapies twice, each time they've said my condition is too complex and too severe.  Then I was on a waiting list with Secondary Care for three years before getting treatment, told I need further treatment but will need to wait another three years to be put back on the Secondary Care waiting list (which will in itself be at least another year of waiting) to get the further treatment that I need.  So I am looking at having to wait a total of at least four years before I can begin further treatment for my illnesses.  What is Hunt doing for people like me exactly??

Lizzieloo

I like to know how it going to work when you have pa's to support you to do things will they be coming to work with you 

Albus_Scope

Lizzieloo said:

I like to know how it going to work when you have pa's to support you to do things will they be coming to work with you 

HI @Lizzieloo , I can see Poppy has replied to you on the main thread.

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/112187/the-autumn-statement-2023/p8

happyfella

I cannot believe some of the comments that it is not true. It is true and disabled people are going to be forced to work. I just don't understand why they are picking on disabled people. Let's look at it more closely. 1) we are wasting £6 million a day housing migrants who have never put in the system, where is this money coming from? 2) we are paying the french to stop the boats coming in and to save lives, the french are sitting on their hands, where has that money come from? 3) we wasted money on the go out and eat out, where did that money come from? 4) the government wasted money on contracts during Covid, where did that money come from?

So, I would like to know why they are picking on disabled people. I have read lots of reports which have stated that this is going to cause some disabled people to become homeless, others have said it could result in people trying to take their own lives.

I am really puzzled why they are doing this. I would love to work and miss work but i am not physically able to do it, and i take exception that i am going to be forced into pain to try and do it and then lose the job within a day because i cannot do it.

This is not just a conservative plan. Labour want the conservatives to bring it in so they are not the bad guys but they do back it. An MP for Labour was on Sky News who said they agree with disabled people returning to work.

happyfella

woodbine said:

The truth is that changes to the WCA and sick/disability benefits will start for new claimants in 2025 for existing claimants there will be no changes until the end of the decade (around 2028 onwards) by 2028 we will have probably had 2 if not 3 general elections.

There are no longer two main parties in the UK. Labour shout at the conservatives but then take their ideas. Until this country has a real third party then we are all in trouble for many years. If conservatives don't get in then Labour will carry on with this.

They should be helping disabled people and not going against them. To be honest, and i know this is going to make people angry and say well Scope help, but lets be honest, disabled people don't have a voice. We don't really have anyone on our side figting for change and making changes. Yes, it is easy to say in the newspapers that we think this, but there is no one that makes changes on our behalf

Albus_Scope

@happyfella The Labour MP said it would be good to give disabled people who want to work, the tools and support they needed to get back into work. 
   The focus on the Autumn statement was to get people (who are able to work) who have been on universal credit for over 18 months into organised employment, they have already stated those already on LCW or LCWRA will be unaffected by these changes. 



But can I politely ask people to direct their comments regarding the Autumn statement to this post please?  This will help stop crossed wires and confusion for everyone and will keep answers all in one place for ease of access.  Thanks.  

happyfella

Labour are sadly not labour anymore. There is no party that works for the working class. It is a sad time in politics. The Labour leader has no vision and I would not even put him in charge of a tea party. I would prefer if his deputy was the leader.

All I see at the moment is the tory party wasting money like Rishi wasting money on his travels. When he came to power he went on about being honest and all that, but when it came to the Covid enquiry, he hid and kept things from them.

The UK is like a lift and we are all going down very fast. I cannot see in my lifetime any real positive changes. All that happens is, we get lied to and the rich get richer and the poor feel the pain

worried33

deleted at request

poppy123456

happyfella said:

I cannot believe some of the comments that it is not true. It is true and disabled people are going to be forced to work.

No they are not and if this is what you're thinking then you've completely misunderstood everything that's been said. There's a whole thread regarding this in the link that Albus posted above.

just4once

My previous employer not only failed in its duty of care but sacked me for capacity this large employer has paid my pension contributions back to me instead of Ill health retirement payments the pension policy clearly states I am not allowed to work in any job ever again this happened when I was 50 and has left me with cptsd and needing to move away from the area because of the trauma I cannot access therapy until after I move according to my care plan and professionals involved.So with this latest announcement I will be sanctioned before it even starts so if the government can get Sainsburys and others to sort out the disciplinary and sickness policy issues and wording to enable and encourage people instead of destroying lives like my family 

poppy123456

just4once said:

My previous employer not only failed in its duty of care but sacked me for capacity this large employer has paid my pension contributions back to me instead of Ill health retirement payments the pension policy clearly states I am not allowed to work in any job ever again this happened when I was 50 and has left me with cptsd and needing to move away from the area because of the trauma I cannot access therapy until after I move according to my care plan and professionals involved.So with this latest announcement I will be sanctioned before it even starts so if the government can get Sainsburys and others to sort out the disciplinary and sickness policy issues and wording to enable and encourage people instead of destroying lives like my family 

What benefits exactly are you claiming? 

poppy123456

woodbine said:

Don't know about you poppy but I feel it’s like banging my head against a wall at the moment trying to re-assure people who sadly don't want to listen to the facts of the matter. I can only say it again "disabled people are not going to be forced to work or lose benefits it’s not going to happen." Yes from 2025 there will be changes for those who are sick (not disabled) and who are new claimants, changes for existing claimants won't happen till the end of the decade probably 2028 or later.

Yes, i feel the same way. I do totally understand the reason why many people are anxious but the media didn’t help matters in the run up to the budget. The same for forums too, especially this one. 

There’s been so many threads here in the past few days it’s very difficult to keep up with all of them. I feel like I’m constantly repeating myself. 

The changes may not even happen. At the moment people just need to try to relax because what ever the results are of the next GE, no changes are going to happen right now. 

just4once

The benefits I currently receive are esa contributions based which reduces my uc my rent gets paid direct to my landlord so I get 179 .40 on the 25th of each month I get higher rate living and higher mobility I can understand peoples frustrations from both sides those struggling to help and those struggling needing help I cannot control my trauma yet that’s the nature of the beast but I try my best each day

poppy123456

just4once said:

The benefits I currently receive are esa contributions based which reduces my uc my rent gets paid direct to my landlord so I get 179 .40 on the 25th of each month I get higher rate living and higher mobility I can understand peoples frustrations from both sides those struggling to help and those struggling needing help I cannot control my trauma yet that’s the nature of the beast but I try my best each day

The changes expected from 2025 for the work capability assessment are for new claims only, not for existing benefits claimants. (If it even goes ahead) 

PIP is irrelevant and not affected. 

WhatThe

Woodbine, the problem is that filling in a new claim form makes you a new claimant in the machine which or may not gather data 

The other problem is that Housing Benefit used to paid paid 4 weeks in advance then 2 weeks in advance - under UC the housing element is paid to landlords 8/10/12 weeks after a claim is started 

2oldcodgers

happyfella said:

Labour are sadly not labour anymore. There is no party that works for the working class. It is a sad time in politics. 

Thank goodness for that! Who would want a party in Westminster that is ruled by the unions?
You would do well to remember what happened to our car industry, our coal miners, our ship builders, our railways etc - all destroyed by union led strikes. 
And as for the workers of the working class, you will find most of them claiming a myriad of benefits so as to not want to bother going back to work.