I am one of the "parasites" on unemployment benefit who is draining your income

I could smack people who think its an easy ride on benefits, I struggle to feed my 2 kids, pay the bills (as I write this I open yet another bill) and I don't smoke, don't drink, don't do drugs, don't drive, don't have money to keep up with clothing, I have literally 1 pair of bottoms, 1 pair of shorts, about 10 pairs of boxer shorts, 4 pair of socks, a thin jacket for them cold days and had them years, oh and a pair of trainers (sneekers) that rip my feet to bits.

I have no criminal record so don't picture some chav with a can and a cig covered in tattoos (which I have none of them either).
I don't eat take away, I don't spend lavishly, I have the same PC that is 6 years old that was a hand me down, the internet is paid for by my inlaws as a cheap method to keep in touch because we can't afford to travel to see them.

Job? Well apart from the illnesses I suffer that are ignored by the doctors (I have nothing to benefit the country ergo don't exactly come high on the priority list for help), aside from that I am of the average age white demographic with no qualifications (due to disruptive life when younger beyond my control) and no job I could manage to grasp by fluke would put me in an even worse situation.

I am a slave to debt (bills, not catalogues or anything lavish) and I have to look forward to another winter where I have to listen to my children coughing in the cold air because I can't afford the heating.
and now with further threats to cut benefits, less housing benefit and so on things are only looking worse and worse, you people here on this site talk about governments enslaving the people, debt is the trap, and you are all going to fall one after the other so make snide remarks on the lower class all you want.

When I had my children I was breaking even on everything with a more positive outlook, how quickly and sneakily things can be changed without seeming to be any different financially at first glance.

Here is the plan, increase the price of everything, give a little extra benefit to make it look like it will help out, it isn't until you find the shopping bills getting higher but the amount of shopping getting cheaper and less quantity and the bills slip out of control before you realise it.

Yes, what a wonderful life of luxury it is for us dole dossers, I highly recommend it.
If you are single without kids and have a job and a flexible friend its easy to be blind to the facts, one day it will be your turn too.

[edit on 23-7-2010 by keepithush]

I'm totally with you on this OP, thanks for posting.

I found myself in a similar situation last year and had the devil's own job trying to find work. It took a lot longer than it has in the past for me to find something. Where I am now is not the greatest job in the world but at least it pays the bills.

I have to say I agree with the sentiment about those seen to be milking the system. However, there has to be something wrong with a system that allows a Somalian family to live in a £2000 a month luxury flat in Mayfair with a 50 ft plasma TV and all mod cons whilst the likes of you and I struggle to make ends meet on a £60 a week government hand out.

By the way, I think we as a society, should be going after two groups of offenders;

1. Tax Evaders (as stated, 16 billion a year lost)
2. Bankers (after all, they are the ones who got us into this mess, show me where and when, since this all started, they've had to share some of the pain..)

Thanks! I pay taxes for a reason, to help my fellow Americans and anyone else that's here, and I'm sure there are those in your country who feel exactly the same. Better for you to have it than for it to build one more death-ray.

Our money is powerful when collected all together. I'm proud that it helps you.

At least that part of it isn't wasted. I WANT to feed people, I HOPE to help someone, anyone!

Make it matter is all I ask. Or don't. You deserve to eat regardless, my unemployed friend.

[edit on 23-7-2010 by Copperflower]

Thanks for posting, a great example of how social security should be used. I know it is not much but like you say it keeps your family off the street. They should reallocate funds from persistent claimants who haven’t had a job or refuse to try getting one and give people in your situation more money. From a larger context People like you are a valuable commodity to the economy and need to be looked after. I am from a poor family and find I have to work 20+ hours in two jobs a week whilst studying full time for my MEng Degree. I hope to be a contributor to society but find myself losing faith in the system that rewards laziness and not hard workers like you.

I'd like to bring people attention back to this chap as an example of the poor situation of social security in the UK

I hope you get on your feet. Good luck.

reply to post by Muckster


Unemployment insurance does not make you a parasite.

It makes you insured.

I think it is a good idea while the west is in decline.

When I refer to parasites I am referring to ppl who get a check
for sitting at home popping out multiple babies, and get a HUD home
paid for by ppl that have worked.

I am talking about ppl that have a history of living on the dole,
not ppl who happen to be out of work due to the recession.

Big difference there.

I am talking about ppl who do not work even when the economy
is booming.

reply to post by Muckster


Here's the big problem I have with your post. You apparently are commenting on the US congress reluctance to extend benefits beyond 99 weeks, but you refer to everything in pounds. So you're from England. Several things come to mind. First, the reason England's economy sucks so bad...that nobody has enough money to hire you, is because your taxes are outrageous.....and that is because of politicians who do things like pay people for an eternity not to work, thereby forcing a tax increase. Second, There are areas of the US where I am sure, assuming you are qualified, you could find suitable work. But of course, again, you're in England, so what the hell does this have to do with us. And last, it's fairly stupid to complain about our congress, when you are and English subject. I say subject, because you guys still have a freakin' queen, and those of you that had any balls in the gene pool left by the late 1700's, which may explain why you guys let your government get sooooo far out of hand, including confiscating fire arms, giving away your sovereignty, and paying taxes to support those disfunctional loafers, the royals. You guys should get your money out of them and make a reality show out of it. Our government is heading that way, but we'll take care of that. You see, ultiimately we reach a point where we've had enough and do something about it, like 1776. And we have guns. So if you want to improve your lot in life, get a few of you friends angry and take direct action. Or move.

My current job is a "little" bit over minimum wage, and our bosses treat us like we are getting paid twice than what we are for the type of work we do.

It is fine because it is my choice to work for such a company and there certainly are few benefits that pay off quite well IMO (practically a third of all the food I eat is free ).

Not to mention I support "the cause".

The problem with our government is that many people do not realize how they are effecting us with their outrageous spending.

They are increasing inflation behind our backs at alarming levels. They are lowering our level of real income.

But nothing happens because we are still getting "paid" the same. But the prices throughout every part of the world continue rising.

The government is essentially forcing some of us to consume less so others can consume more.

But many of those other people do not deserve it.

Not directed at you OP.

I can relate to some people here.

I, too, am unemeployed, left my last join voluntarily because, too put it simply, i had something of a mental breakdown, as i did not feel that some people at the workplace (i was working at a nightclub) was not very appreciating me and some others working hard to keep the club running, despite eventual lack of glasses (plastic Glasses, really).

That was about a year ago now, during my time unemployed i've had, i think, about 5 or 6 interviews (i feel lucky to have just the one) and most of the time the jobs i apply for i never, EVER, get any replies/response.

And now i've had applyed a job at my old workplace, as they just had a refurbushment (the place REALLY needed it!) and they needed a new staff there as they effectively fired the old staff (including my sister, who'd have worked there for years, starting on the clubs very first night!).

Now i'm still waiting for them to call me back for the "recruitment day", but i'm having to wait a little longer because from what i've been told, the builders that were supposed to do the refurbishing came a week later, thus pushing the clubs reopening date about 8 days forward.


Now, i don't think it's just me thats thinking this, but with amount of couses and qualifications thats around, i think the government in the UK (and maybe in the U.S. too) must think there own citizens are too thick to be able to do some of the most simplist of things in life. I almost cringe or laugh when i get asked on an application form on the internet or in person if i know how to use the computer (like using the internet or e-mail) and i'll be like "DUH, i wouldn't be here if i didn't would i?!"

Seriously though, our governments take us all to be compleate thickos when really some of us do have common sense and don't need to go through complete BS courses!!


Anyway i hope all of us can get a job sometime soon, if the economy decides to shift its weight enough so that more jobs become available.

It drives me nuts to see these conservative Tea Party groups talk about the unemployed like they're just lazy bums who don't want to work. Watching to much Glen Beck has them brainwashed. I guarantee they wouldn't opt out of their own medicare, social security, or government benefits.

I know this is off subject, but it angers me that alot of these conservatives have no problem using their government benefits (medicare/Medicaid), but protest loudly when the government wants to expand those benefits to others. Hypocrites.

I am firing somebody today. They are a terrible employee, they are often late and/or absent. They planned on cutting back to part-time, but now they realized that they can make MORE MONEY on unemployment!!

They can let me fire them, and they can collect unemployment for 2 YEARS or more!?!?!?

In Florida, I cannot contest their unemployment unless they were fraudulent or dishonest or violent. Firing them for attendance and poor work performance does not disqualify them from benefits.

I apologize to those of you that were laid off or victims of a bad economy or an oil spill, but please remember that if you are unemployed by no fault of your own, and you are actively seeking new employment, you make up a very small minority of those receiving benefits! Kudos to you, but far TOO MANY people are just sucking up the benefits like the girl I fired today. She has no intention of looking for work or protecting her current job. She WANTS TO GET FIRED!

Even my own mother, has only worked maybe 6 months out of the last 20 years and is getting this 99 week extension. She has now officially been on unemployment longer than she was ever employed?!?!? I love her, and I am happy that they are getting a little extra money, but how ridiculous is this? She doesn't deserve this money. She only worked a few months, she quit voluntarily, and she moved to Missouri where cost of living is much lower. Now she is getting unemployment from Florida and living in Missouri?

Please God, let our Politicians wake up, let this house of cards fall down, and let us start picking up the pieces and rebuilding a real economy based on real services and goods. All this extensions and credit and stimulus is killing us slowly and permanently. I would rather have 1 bullet in the thigh than 1000 BB's to the Gonads.

[edit on 23-7-2010 by getreadyalready]

When its earned, and needed, as a bridge, in moderation,
it's a great thing, helps and saves alot of people and families.

But this entire world scenario with the economy and jobs is by design,
Youre not a parasite, not by a long shot.
Unfortunately the forced, (and this is forced) reliance on unemployment as an income is now a trap, and will soon turn into spark that will trigger chaos when finally ended and removed.

This is by design.
LOOK where the jobs went.
LOOK at the Birth Rates, Mortality Rates, globally.

Unless anyone here is a captain of industry and has the power influence and ability to create manufacture, distribution and sales and service jobs where theyre needed, where the once were,
We are just going to continue to ride the ride that we've been put on.

The system is broken, no doubt. We are heading back to the way things were before the "great society" of LBJ. I cannot speak for the UK specifically, but the problems are much the same. The safety net doesn't exist.
When I was a kid I hunted bottles to redeem for 2 or 3 cents a piece. I would collect them from the side of the road, put them in a box, and carry them to the "U-Totem" store.
I also threw the paper route before school and after school. We had to buy the papers from the distributor. The papers came in bundles, and we had to fold the papers and put a rubber band around them, put them in a bag that was like a backpack with a front and back. Fill it up and off you go, at 5:30 or 6:00 a.m. One of the stops was a rest home. I had to go in, walk down the aisle with the old folks watching every move, and deliver the paper to an old gentleman. On one instance, an old man tried to hand me a big bundle of dollar bills, but I wouldn't accept it. I suspected his mind wasn't working properly, but he may have just wanted me to have it. I don't know.
I used the money from the paper route to buy a bicycle, and was able to deliver the papers by bike.
I also drug a lawn mower around the neighborhood, and went to any house with tall grass.
I was Huckleberry Finn, and I didn't realize it.
The point is, I believe there will be opportunities, but they will not be where they have traditionally been, and the kids will have to work too. It is good for them. The world is not that scary, as the television might suggest. It is best that the kids get used to the real world at a young age.

Maybe large groups of the unemployed need to collectively get together and open a corporation. After reading some of the responses we have people in all fields that could be an asset in this new company. If that happens will someone please give me a damn job…lol

reply to post by lilstu21

I, too, am unemeployed, left my last join voluntarily because, too put it simply, i had something of a mental breakdown, as i did not feel that some people at the workplace (i was working at a nightclub) was not very appreciating me and some others working hard to keep the club running, despite eventual lack of glasses (plastic Glasses, really).

So you had a job. You got your feelings hurt, you quit, and you can't find a new one, and the rest of us are supposed to continue paying you until you find a job more suited to your sensitive feelings?

You think coal miners get this luxury? Military? Single Mothers? You think a hungry kid would understand that there was no food on the table, even though you had a job, but they didn't appreciate you enough? You wonder why illegals are taking over, it is because they work!

GROW UP!!

This is the problem with America. This is why us Conservatives are necessary. Have I ever had a bad day at work? YES! Bad month? YES!! Bad Year, or Bad JOB? YES YES!!!!! I didn't quit?!? I have bills to pay, I say, "Yes sir." I keep working, and I look for a way to improve my situation. I don't just walk out and hope the Nanny State will catch me, and a bunch of hardworking, blue collar folks will keep going to their crappy jobs, so I can stay home and whine?

Quitters? Whiners? Extensions for Unemployment?

There are jobs out there. I have 15 openings in my department. (16 after today.) If you have been unemployed longer than 26 weeks, then it is your own fault! Either you are too picky, unemployable, or you need to move to a new area with more jobs. In 26 weeks, you can fix any of those 3 problems. You don't need 99 weeks!

I am almost panting and out of breath after reading this thread and typing these responses. I need each of you to come to my office and line up for a group SLAP!!

[edit on 23-7-2010 by getreadyalready]

Muckster - I can only echo what most others have said. You are NOT a parasite! The system is there to try and help people in your position. Don't feel guilty in the slightest. We all know who the scroungers are, and it certainly isn't people like you. Chin up and good luck - something will crop up I guarantee it!

I'm very lucky - where I live here in the US doesn't seem too badly affected. My wife and I both found jobs last year (I had two for a brief time!) and one of our friends just found a job within a month of trying. My job isn't great (part-time retail) and we rely mainly on my wife's job for the majority of the money and the benefits. Hardly makes me feel like the man of the house, but not a day goes by when I don't feel grateful for what I do have.

Good luck to all you job seekers out there!

How can you parasite a printing machine that prints endless money with nothing to back it??

You can't. There is infinite fake money.

So as long as you get food to eat, it doesn't matter either way.

Good luck to everyone struggling to make ends meet.

reply to post by Sararainmaker

As many understand it, unemployment in the US is something we pay into when we have a job. We put a limited amount of money into an account that we alone can draw out of when we are laid off of our job... Not when we are fired, though. Past Employers ALSO pay into unemployment claims, however it is still a limited fund, and once the money in the account is gone, the time is up.

Only the employer pays into FUTA not the employee.

The Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA), with state unemployment systems, provides for payments of unemployment compensation to workers who have lost their jobs. Most employers pay both a Federal and a state unemployment tax. A list of state unemployment tax agencies, including addresses and phone numbers, is available in Publication 926, Household Employer's Tax Guide. Only the employer pays FUTA tax; it is not deducted from the employee's wages. For more information, refer to the Instructions for Form 940 (PDF).

www.irs.gov...=104985,00.html

As an accountant who does taxes I knew this but wanted to reference it.

[edit on 23-7-2010 by Aquarius1]

reply to post by getreadyalready


Ahem, really?! yes there is plenty of jobs out there but about 80 to 90% of them REQUIRES you to have either experience or qualifications, and i have neither. i'm still young, so i can still get into voluntary work or training, but i much rather have a job first before i get myself into learning again.

Oh and you grow up, personally attacking someone without reading the whole post, rather pathetic really.

Oh and btw, im from the uk, not america. Again, shoulda read the whole post and not one section.

Also i worked at that place for over a year, and at weekends it was normally very busy, it was hard to keep up, as well as getting to all the rooms and bars, collecting and delivering the glasses. it was VERY hard work.

[edit on 23-7-2010 by lilstu21]

[edit on 23-7-2010 by lilstu21]

In the newspaper today is a story of a man who got so fed up trying to get a job, came up with an idea which worked, maybe it will work for you.

www.dailymail.co.uk...

Originally posted by getreadyalready
I am firing somebody today. They are a terrible employee, they are often late and/or absent. They planned on cutting back to part-time, but now they realized that they can make MORE MONEY on unemployment!!

I've never heard of any unemployment system that does that. The way it works everywhere I've been:

1. Your benefit is based on how much you made in the period immediately prior to losing your job (that period is defined by different lengths in different states). And it will be less. It's just based on that.

2. You cannot collect unemployment if you are justifiably fired, which the employee you canned would have been. You can't collect if you quit your job either. The idea is to give people help who are out of work through no fault of their own.

3. Under normal economic conditions, they can only collect unemployment for six months. An extension of those benefits only happens in economic downturns or other, very limited circumstances. And only for the period approved by legislation. In other words, if you apply for unemployment today, you are not guaranteed two years of benefits. If the economy improves dramatically in a 6 month period, you might not be eligible for any extension.






[edit on 23-7-2010 by ClintK]