Unemployed and claiming Jobseeker s Allowance

Transcription

1 Unemployed and claiming Jobseeker s Allowance What is Jobseeker s Allowance?... 3 Customer journey chart for Jobseeker s Allowance... 3 Your Jobseeker s Allowance claim: overview... 5 Your Jobseeker s Allowance claim new jobseeker interview... 7 Jobseeker s Agreement... 9 Jobseeker s Allowance claim signing on... 9 Work experience Early access to the Work Programme from three months Mandatory Work Activity New Enterprise Allowance Sector based work academies Work Programme: aged years Work Programme: aged 25 plus Are you the right age for Jobseeker s Allowance Those aged 16 and 17 and Jobseeker s Allowance Are you capable of work? Are you available for work? The 40-hour rule Monitoring your availability Restricted availability People with children and availability to work Some special groups and availability to work People with caring responsibilities and availability to work Volunteering, work experience and Jobseeker s Allowance People with disabilities and health problems and availability for work Religious beliefs or conscientious objections Laid-off and short-time workers, and Jobseeker s Allowance Short periods of sickness when claiming Jobseeker s Allowance Deaths, funerals, domestic emergencies, and holidays when claiming Jobseeker s Allowance Are you actively seeking work? Chapter 2, Page 1

2 How many steps do you have to take to seek work actively? How to show you are actively seeking work Permitted period Actively seeking work and travelling time Actively seeking work and special needs Actively seeking work and homelessness Deliberately avoiding employment on Jobseeker s Allowance Suspensions Are you resident in Great Britain? People from abroad Full-time education Part-time education Contribution-based Jobseeker s Allowance The jargon explained Duration of contribution-based Jobseeker s Allowance Breaks in claim Re-qualifying for contribution-based Jobseeker s Allowance Income-based Jobseeker s Allowance Rules for income-based Jobseeker s Allowance How is Income-Based Jobseeker s Allowance calculated? National Insurance credits Joint claims for Jobseeker s Allowance Three common problems with Jobseeker s Allowance claims Leaving a job Suspension of Jobseeker s Allowance, and other sanctions Refusing employment The definition of refusing employment Notification of vacancies and benefit sanctions Types of vacancies and sanctions Refusing a reasonable opportunity of work and sanctions Jobseeker s Direction How and when can a Jobseeker s Direction be issued? Good cause for not carrying out a direction Good cause justifications and directions Chapter 2, Page 2

3 Services and programmes to help you back into work Failing to take part in compulsory programmes Good cause for not attending a compulsory programme Losing a place on a compulsory programme because of misconduct The sanctions process Ways to deal with sanctions Lone parents and sanctions What is Jobseeker s Allowance? Jobseeker s Allowance (JSA) is a benefit for people who are either not working and are unemployed, or are working fewer than 16 hours per week on average. To claim JSA, you must be aged between 18 and state pension age, actively seeking work and living in England, Wales or Scotland. (State pension age is 65 years for men, and is set to rise in December See gov.uk to calculate the current state pension age). Young people aged 16 or 17 can only get JSA under certain conditions. See page 5 for more detail on who can claim. Customer journey chart for Jobseeker s Allowance The following chart depicts the journey that JSA claimants can expect to take on their claim. Chapter 2, Page 3

4 Day 1 Sign on online at or call or Jobcentre call Plus Jobcentre on 0800 Plus 055 on to 055 start 6688 your to start claim. your claim. Get Britain Working measures available from day 1 Sector based work academies Work Clubs Enterprise Clubs Work Together normally within1 week If you have complex support needs because of a disability, you might be eligible for support through Work Choice. Your adviser will identify and address any skills needs, including basic skills support, and occupational training. Visit Jobcentre Plus for new joiner s work focused interview. Your adviser may signpost you to one of the Get Britain Working measures (see box), or jobseeking or work preparation skills support. During your search for work you may be required to undertake compulsory skills training. 13 weeks If you ve been released from prison and claim Jobseeker s Allowance within the first 13 weeks of your release, you will immediately be referred to the Work Programme. If you are a young person, aged 16 to 24, after 3 months on JSA you will have to attend a Jobcentre Plus interview once a week instead of once a fortnight. from 6 months If you are in one of groups listed in the section Early access to the Work Programme from three months you may be referred to the Work Programme from 3 months into your JSA claim, following your Work Programme Referral Interview. from 3 months From 13 weeks of your JSA claim, if you are aged 16 to 24, you may be offered 2 8 weeks of work experience, extended to 12 weeks if there is an offer of an Apprenticeship for which you are eligible. You may be eligible for the new enterprise allowance if you have been claiming for 6 months and are interested in starting your own business. from 9 months if you are aged between 18 and 24 years, you can be referred to the Work Programme from 9 months of claiming JSA, following your Work Programme Referral from 12 months If you are aged 25 and over you can be referred to the Work Programme from 12 months of claiming JSA, following your pre-provision review. Chapter 2, Page 4

5 Your Jobseeker s Allowance claim: overview If you want to claim JSA, you can do so online: You can also call Jobcentre Plus on for a short initial interview. They should offer to phone you back this is very important if you need to use a mobile phone because calls to 0800 number may be very expensive (although the Department for Work and Pensions has an agreement with the major phone companies that calls to its 0800 and 0845 numbers will be free from mobiles). If the adviser does not offer to phone you back, you can ask them to. They will take initial details and give you a date for your first face-to-face interview, called the new jobseeker interview. When you claim online or call Jobcentre Plus, you should have the following things at hand: your National Insurance number your rent or mortgage charges, and any service charges you pay for your accommodation details of your past or present employer details of your income and savings details of any other adults who live in your home. For your claim to be successful, you will have to meet the JSA eligibility rules. There are two different kinds of JSA: contribution-based JSA and income-based JSA. Both types of JSA share some basic rules, but each type has its own specific rules that you will also have to meet. You will meet the basic rules if you are: aged under the state pension age (state pension age is 65 years for men, and is set to rise in December See the government s website to calculate the current state pension age) not working, or working for fewer than 16 hours per week capable of work available for work Chapter 2, Page 5

6 actively seeking work and resident in Great Britain. Being available for work means that you are willing immediately to accept any work that is offered to you, and that you are able to work a certain number of days or hours each week. Usually, you must be able to work for 40 hours per week to be available and get your JSA payments, though there are some exceptions. Actively seeking work means that you are taking at least two steps each week to find a job. These steps can include such things as oral or written job applications, drawing up a CV, searching for job vacancies, and making a list of employers to contact about the possibility of a job, among other things. You can find more information on being available to work on page 18. Keep in mind that you may not get JSA if you: are studying full time (although there are some exceptions, see page 32 for information on studying full time and claiming JSA) received pay in lieu of notice when your job ended (though you may qualify for National Insurance credits if you claim). If you left your last job because you were dismissed or you resigned without a good reason you may not get JSA immediately, even if you are entitled to claim it, because you are sanctioned at the start of the claim. If this happens, get advice straight away. Contribution-based JSA is a short-term benefit, paid for up to 26 weeks. It is based on your National Insurance contribution record, so you can only get contribution-based JSA if you have paid (or have been treated as paying) National Insurance contributions in the past two complete tax years. Income-based JSA is a means-tested benefit, so it depends on your capital and savings, and your circumstances (and your partner s, if you have one). To qualify for incomebased JSA, you must be unemployed or working for fewer than 16 hours per week and, if you have a partner, they should also be working for fewer than 24 hours per week. 1 You may be able to get income-based JSA if you are on a low income. Depending on your circumstances, you may qualify for income-based JSA either from the start of your claim or later in your claim, such as when your contribution-based JSA runs out. Chapter 2, Page 6

7 If you have savings over 16,000, you can t usually get income-based Jobseeker s Allowance. Below this limit, for each 250 of your savings over 6,000, your benefit is reduced by 1 a week. Your Jobseeker s Allowance claim new jobseeker interview At the start your claim, you will have your first face-to-face interview with a personal adviser, known as the new jobseeker interview. If you need money quickly, you should ask for an interview sooner than this. When you are awarded JSA, make sure that the date of claim is logged as starting from the first day of contact not the date you were interviewed. The adviser will: outline some of the rules for JSA tell you about your rights while claiming JSA tell you about your responsibilities while claiming JSA discuss the kinds of work you are looking for assess any needs you might have give you information about jobs, training and other opportunities draw up a Jobseeker s Agreement with you and give you a log where you will write down the jobsearch steps you take each week. The adviser should also talk to you about the extra help you can get to overcome jobhunting difficulties. Support will depend on your circumstances and where you live, but could include: 2 specialist help for things such as drawing up a CV, preparing for interviews and building your confidence and work skills help to look for work if you haven t looked for a job for some time help with improving basic skills such as reading, maths or English language Chapter 2, Page 7

8 opportunity for skills development, through a skills training provider (see page 53 for more information on skills conditionality) volunteering opportunities while you look for work (through a scheme called Work Together, see page 52 for more information) a period of mandatory work activity (see page 12 for more information) work clubs: community-based support where you can share your experiences, talk to other jobseekers and get support in your search for work (see page 52 for more information) enterprise clubs: community-based support if you are interested in self-employment or starting a business sector based work academies (in England only): taking part in training, achieving units towards a relevant qualification in some cases, taking part in work experience, a guaranteed job interview (see page 15 for more information about sector based work academies) a period of work experience if you are aged between 16 to 24 (or older in some exceptional circumstances) help with one-off expenses so that you can get back to work quickly, such as the cost of buying formal clothes for an interview, the cost of childcare or travel when you carry out training, or the cost of basic tools you need to take up a job financial help and support to set up your own business through the New Enterprise Allowance (see page 14 for more information) advice and support about your health condition or disability, if it is a barrier to your finding work. Try to bring relevant evidence and information to your interview (for example, letters about your last employment ending, your P45, and proof of income and savings if you are making a claim for income-based JSA). You will be told what documentation you need to bring. Do not delay your interview if you do not have all of the information at hand, because you can send it later. Jobcentre Plus can arrange for you to have an interpreter at the interview if you need one. 3 Chapter 2, Page 8

9 Jobseeker s Agreement You must make a Jobseeker s Agreement. A Jobcentre Plus adviser will help you draw one up. This sets out your availability for work and the steps you agree to take to find work. It will usually include: the hours you are available for employment where you are available to work any restrictions on your availability the type of employment you are seeking the actions you will take to seek work and to improve your chances of employment the start and finish dates of any permitted period (see page 28 for information about your permitted period) and a statement of rights. If you are not happy with something in your Jobseeker s Agreement, try to discuss it (or take time to seek independent advice) before you sign it. It can be harder to renegotiate your agreement after you have signed it, though you can ask to make changes at any stage after signing. 4 You can always explain why you feel that any restrictions you want to have in your agreement are reasonable. Jobseeker s Allowance claim signing on Every week, you need to take action to find work, and you must be able to give information about your jobsearch to Jobcentre Plus during your fortnightly (or weekly) jobsearch review. You may record evidence that you have been actively seeking work by using the jobsearch log you received during your first interview with Jobcentre Plus. To get your JSA payments, you will have to sign on at Jobcentre Plus at least once a fortnight, where you will talk to a member of staff about what you have been doing to find work and show them your jobsearch log. If you are a young person aged from 16 to 24, after three months on JSA you will be required to sign on at Jobcentre Plus once a week. Jobcentre Plus staff might also talk to you about the changes you need to make to improve your chances of finding a job, and any extra help you think you need. You will Chapter 2, Page 9

10 not be paid travel expenses to sign on. In between your fortnightly visits to the Jobcentre Plus office, you will be expected to search for jobs on your own, taking the actions agreed in your action plan. You may sign on by post if you: live more than an hour s travel time (door to door) from the nearest Jobcentre Plus have to walk more than three miles to Jobcentre Plus would be absent from home for more than four hours or have a physical or mental disability that restricts your mobility. 5 If you don t sign on at the right time or day, you will be written to and asked why you did not sign on (or attend another interview at Jobcentre Plus). 6 However, if can you show, within five working days, that you had good cause for signing on late or not attending the interview, your JSA will continue. If you do not give a reason which is felt to show good cause, your JSA will be sanctioned (i.e. stopped) for one week. If this happens again, your benefit will be stopped for two weeks. 7 If you do not make contact after five working days, your JSA will stop. The law does not define good cause, but it includes: language, literacy or learning difficulties you may have misleading information given to you by the Department for Work and Pensions having to attend a medical or dental appointment or accompanying someone you care for to such an appointment transport problems and you had no reasonable alternative attending a job interview your religious customs and practices. If you sign on at the wrong time but on the right day, Jobcentre Plus might send you a letter informing you that you may be sanctioned if you sign on again at the wrong time. It is best to sign on at the right time and day to avoid problems and to let Jobcentre Plus know if you think you will have problems with an appointment or if you have been Chapter 2, Page 10

11 late. You should also keep a copy of all letters and notes of any conversations with Department for Work and Pensions staff. Work experience If you are aged 16 to 24 and claiming JSA but have not started on the Work Programme, your Jobcentre Plus adviser may offer you a work experience placement lasting between two and eight weeks. If you carry out a placement, you will continue to receive your benefit and must continue to look for permanent work. A work experience placement should be available to you if you would like to take part in one. You can also find your own placement but make sure you let your Jobcentre Plus adviser know. Your placement may be extended by a further four weeks to 12 weeks if your employer wants to offer you an Apprenticeship place. In some exceptional circumstances you may be offered work experience if you are older than 24 years. Early access to the Work Programme If you have been released from prison and claim JSA within your first 13 weeks of being released, you will have immediate access to the Work Programme. You are required to join the Work Programme from three months into your claim if you: have recently been claiming Incapacity Benefit or Employment and Support Allowance are a young person not in employment, education or training have recently been on and off benefits. Participation in the Work Programme is mandatory so you have to take part or the Department for Work and Pensions could sanction your benefits. (You can read full details on the Work Programme in Chapter 7.) You can access the Work Programme from three months into your claim by agreement with their Jobcentre Plus adviser if you: are an ex-offender (if you are leaving prison you will have access to the Work Programme from the first day of release from prison) Chapter 2, Page 11

12 are disabled have mild to moderate mental health issues are a care-leaver are a carer are an ex-carer are an 18 year old who was claiming JSA when aged 16 or 17 years old are homeless are a former HM Armed Forces personnel are a partner of current or former HM Armed Forces personnel have either current or previous substance abuse problems. Mandatory Work Activity Your Jobcentre Plus adviser may refer you to a work placement, known as Mandatory Work Activity, if they feel you have little or no understanding of behaviour you need to show in order to get a job and keep it. Normally this will happen from three months into your claim. You must take part in this or you may lose your benefit. What is Mandatory Work Activity 8? When you have been claiming JSA for 13 weeks, your adviser may tell you to undertake Mandatory Work Activity if they feel you have little understanding of what it takes to obtain and keep work. Mandatory Work Activity involves a work placement of unpaid work, which you must attend in order to continue to receive your benefits. Your work placement will involve up to 30 hours a week of work for four weeks. Mandatory Work Activity takes place throughout Great Britain. Who is required to attend 9? Mandatory Work Activity is for people claiming JSA. You will not be able to volunteer to take part in a work placement. You have to be referred by your personal adviser. Chapter 2, Page 12

13 How long does it last 10? Your work placement will last for four weeks. It will normally be full time for 30 hours a week. However, if you have agreed with Jobcentre Plus that you are only available to work for a certain number of hours per week (this is known as an easement within your Jobseeker s Agreement), then your work placement and the hours you are expected to put in should reflect this. Generally speaking, you will be expected participate in the work placement for 75 per cent of the time specified in your Jobseeker s Agreement. Time spent travelling to and from the placement will not be counted as part of your attendance. The placement can be carried out over the weekend, with your agreement. Notification of the placement 11 If your personal adviser decides that you should undertake a Mandatory Work Activity placement, you will be referred to a placement provider. Your provider will confirm details of your work placement. You will receive a formal notification letter, as well as details of the work placement (including start date and time, duration of placement, hours of attendance, and location). If you cannot attend the work placement on the appointed start date, you should contact your placement provider as soon as possible. You must do this before, not after, the placement start date otherwise you may lose some of your JSA benefit. Mandatory Work Activity placement 12 You will be expected to participate fully in the placement. It is possible that you will participate in more than one placement during the four-week period. However, you will still complete four weeks in total. If you are unable to attend the placement at any time (e.g. because of sickness), you must contact the placement provider. You may receive funding for travel costs during your time on the placement or for attendance at any engagement activity with the provider (this will be confirmed by your provider). If you have children, you may receive funding for childcare while taking part in the work placement. Chapter 2, Page 13

14 At the end of the placement, you will return to Jobcentre Plus for further activity and support, as part of your JSA claim. Conditions of participation You must be willing and able to start your Mandatory Work Activity placement if you are directed to do so by your personal adviser. Once the placement has started, you must attend whenever you are required to. This is a condition of receiving JSA. If your placement provider does not agree to any alterations you would like to make to your hours of attendance before your start, your benefit claim may be affected. In the circumstances below, your case will be referred to a Jobcentre Plus decision maker: if you do not start the placement if you fail to attend the placement once you have started, at any point during the period you are required to attend if you are dismissed from your placement or if you do not carry out the activities you are asked to do. The Jobcentre Plus decision maker will decide if you have a good reason for not starting on the Mandatory Work Activity placement or failing to attend your placement. If the decision maker rules that you do not have a good reason, you will receive a sanction on your JSA payments. If this is the first time, you will lose your benefit for 13 weeks. If this is the second time within a 12-month period, you will lose your benefit for 26 weeks. Once you have been sanctioned you will not be required to take part in another work placement. 13 You must continue to attend your jobsearch review sessions at Jobcentre Plus and actively seek employment while undertaking the work placement. If your signing-on time at Jobcentre Plus conflicts with the pattern of work on your placement, you should contact Jobcentre Plus to ask them to re-arrange it. You should then advise the placement provider of your new signing time. 14 New Enterprise Allowance After six months of claiming JSA, if you are interested in starting your own business, you can access help, support and advice. The New Enterprise Allowance is available to Chapter 2, Page 14

15 people aged 18 or over who have been claiming JSA for six months or more, and provides access to business mentoring and financial support. On the New Enterprise Allowance, you will get access to a volunteer business mentor who will provide you with guidance as you develop your business plan and through the early months of trading. To be eligible to receive the financial support element of the programme, you will have to demonstrate that your business ideas are viable and have growth potential. Financial support consists of: a weekly allowance worth 1,274 over 26 weeks, paid at 65 a week for the first 13 weeks and 33 a week for a further 13 weeks access to a loan of up to 1,000 if you need start-up capital to help with costs when setting up your business. The allowance is available nationally. Sector based work academies To take part in sector based work academies you must be over 18 years old. Sector based work academies can last up to six weeks. Through sector based work academies you can take part in training that is relevant to the type of work available in your area. In some cases you can achieve units towards a relevant qualification. You may be offered a work experience placement with an employer that has work that matches the training that you ve done. You will be guaranteed the chance to go to a job interview. If you are aged 18 to 24 years and would like to take place in a sector based work academy, a place should be made available to you. Conditions of participation Taking part in a sector based work academy is voluntary. However, once you volunteer to take part, you must complete the process otherwise your benefits may be affected. If you take part in a sector based work academy while claiming JSA, you must continue to sign on at Jobcentre Plus. While you are taking part in sector based work academies, Chapter 2, Page 15

16 Jobcentre Plus can offer you different times to attend. For example, you may be allowed to attend your reviews earlier or later in the day than usual. Sector based work academies are currently only available in England and Scotland. Young people claiming JSA If you are aged between 16 and 24 and claiming Jobseeker s Allowance, you will have extra one-to-one support from personal advisers, and opportunities to take part in work experience (see page 11) and Apprenticeships. After three months of claiming JSA, you will have to attend Jobcentre Plus every week, and you may have an interview with the National Careers Service. If you don t take part in support offered under the Youth Contract, you may be sanctioned and have to complete four weeks of Mandatory Work Activity. If you drop out of an Apprenticeship or subsidised employment without good cause. Also, if you drop out of work experience you have chosen or that has become mandatory, you may lose your benefits. Wage incentives If you are aged between 16 and 24 and are taking part in the Work Programme, wage incentives worth up to 2,275 each are available for employers who can offer you a job lasting at least 26 weeks. From the end of July 2012, if you are living in one of in 20 designated areas of high youth unemployment, are aged between 16 and 24 and are claiming JSA, wage incentives will be available to employers for offering you a job of at least 26 weeks before you start the Work Programme. For an employer to receive the wage incentive, they must employ you for 16 hours or more each week. There is a part-time rate of 1, for work of 16 to 29 hours and a full-time rate of 2,275 for jobs of 30 hours or more. This will be paid 26 weeks after you start work. Small businesses (of fewer than 50 employees) can also claim a part payment eight weeks after you start work. Chapter 2, Page 16

17 Work Programme: aged years If you are claiming JSA and aged between 18 and 24 years old, Jobcentre Plus will refer you to the Work Programme from nine months into your claim if you have not already been referred by then. Your referral to the Work Programme and participation in it are both mandatory. This means you must take part otherwise the Department for Work and Pensions may sanction your benefits (see Chapter 7 for full details on the Work Programme). Work Programme: aged 25 plus If you are aged 25 and over and claiming JSA, Jobcentre Plus will refer you to the Work Programme from 12 months into your claim if you have not already been referred by then. Your referral to the Work Programme and participation in it are both mandatory. This means you must take part otherwise the Department for Work and Pensions may sanction your benefits (see Chapter 7 for full details on the Work Programme). Are you the right age for Jobseeker s Allowance In order to claim JSA, you must be aged between 18 and the state pension age. State pension age is 65 years for men, and is set to rise in December See government s website to calculate the current state pension age. Once you reach state pension age, you should claim state pension. Those aged 16 and 17, and Jobseeker s Allowance Those aged 16 and 17 can t claim contribution-based JSA because they are unlikely to satisfy the National Insurance contribution requirements, and there are special rules for people under 18 who claim income-based JSA. However, it is still possible for some aged 16 or 17 to make successful claims. For example, you could be entitled to JSA if you are living as a couple, if you are in your child benefit extension period, or on the grounds of severe hardship. Are you capable of work? To be entitled to JSA you will have to show that you are capable of work. If you are not capable of work, you may be eligible for an incapacity-related benefit such as Chapter 2, Page 17

18 Employment and Support Allowance (or ESA. See chapter 4 for details). If you have been judged as capable of work under the Work Capability Assessment for ESA, then Jobcentre Plus will automatically decide that you are capable of work, without exceptions. 15 If you wish to appeal against being found fit to work, you can continue to be paid ESA at the basic rate (which is the same as JSA) until your appeal has been heard. Are you available for work? 16 In general, you will be considered available for work if you can show that you are willing and able immediately to accept all offers of employment brought to your notice. You will not be expected to look for or accept work as a self-employed person. Being available does not only mean that you are willing to work, it also means you are able to work a certain number of days or hours each week. You must be able to work for 40 hours per week to be deemed available, although this rule is not set in stone. Your JSA can be suspended immediately if a personal adviser believes that you have failed to show that you are available for work. If you are a lone parent or the dependent partner of a main claimant, there is greater flexibility for you. To get JSA, you will have to meet all of the JSA rules about being available for work. However, to make it easier for you to meet these rules, you may be able to reduce your availability for work and still get JSA in the following situations: if your caring responsibilities mean you can t work for more than 16 hours per week, you are allowed to reduce your availability for work from 40 hours per week to 16 hours per week 17 if you would have difficulty in arranging appropriate childcare early on, you may start any job offered within 28 days (rather than one week), and attend a job interview within seven days (rather than 48 hours) if you are unable to find appropriate childcare over school holidays if you, your child, or your usual childminder is ill if you have an unforeseen situation or personal crisis that has caused you to become a lone parent (such as domestic violence or a relationship breakdown) if there is a death, serious illness or domestic emergency, involving a close friend or close relative, or if you have a serious illness or domestic emergency you may be Chapter 2, Page 18

19 unable to work for up to a week on a maximum of four occasions in 12 months. One of these periods in the 12 months could be increased up to eight weeks if you are subject to a parenting order or have entered into a parenting contract if your child is excluded from school and no other reasonable childcare arrangements are available. You are allowed to reduce your availability for work from 40 hours per week to 16 hours per week if your caring responsibilities do not allow you to work for more than 16 hours per week. 18 If you have a child aged 12 or under you can restrict your availability for work to school hours. Childcare Jobcentre Plus advisers have extra discretion so that a lone parent who is claiming JSA will not face penalties for leaving a job, or failing to take a job, because appropriate, affordable childcare is genuinely unavailable. However, under the Childcare Act (2008), local authorities have a duty to make sure there is enough suitable and affordable childcare. Fifteen hours of free nursery care should be available for children over two years old. The 40-hour rule Generally, to be considered available for employment, you must be willing and able to take up work of at least 40 hours per week. Certain groups are allowed to be available for fewer than 40 hours per week. See Restricted availability for details. Before you are entitled to receive JSA, you will agree the number of hours you are available to work in your Jobseeker s Agreement (at your first interview with a personal adviser). You will need to tell the adviser: the days of the week you are available to work your earliest start time and latest finishing time each day the maximum number of hours you can work each day and, in total, during the week. 19 This is called your pattern of availability. Chapter 2, Page 19

20 If you would like to work for at least 40 hours per week, but you are offered work of fewer hours, you will be expected to accept it. However, you can refuse any job that offers fewer than 24 hours of work per week. Similarly, if you have been allowed to restrict your availability to fewer than 24 hours per week, you will be able to refuse jobs that offer fewer than 16 hours of work per week. Monitoring your availability Doubts about your availability to work can arise at any time (including from the way that you answer questions at your first interview). When you answer questions, you must make sure that you meet the availability conditions set out in your Jobseeker s Agreement. This form is the main way of monitoring your availability. During your claim, your availability for work will be checked whenever you sign on and attend your fortnightly (or weekly) jobsearch review. If at any point Jobcentre Plus staff think that you need more help with finding work, or if they think that you may be working while claiming and not declaring all of your earnings, you may have to attend extra compulsory interviews. You may be asked to attend extra interviews because a member of staff is not satisfied with your progress, or to get additional attention from Jobcentre Plus for a period of time, to help you into work as quickly as possible. If your benefit is suspended, it is important to keep on showing that you are available for and are actively seeking work, and that you are attending the Jobcentre Plus office every fortnight to sign on. Also, you should press for a decision to be made quickly about your entitlement. If your benefit is reinstated later on, arrears will be paid only for the days on which you met these conditions. You should also obtain independent advice to challenge any suspension you have a right to appeal a decision you think may be wrong. Restricted availability You are allowed to be available for fewer than 40 hours per week, if you have: caring responsibilities (including for your children if you are a lone parent or the dependent partner of a main claimant) a disability or health problem been laid off or are on short-term work. 20 Chapter 2, Page 20

21 You will have to show that you are continuing to meet these conditions each time you sign on at Jobcentre Plus. You also have to show that you still have a reasonable prospect of obtaining work. You can place additional restrictions on your availability if you: are within your permitted period (see page 28 for more information about your permitted period) can show that you have reasonable prospects of securing employment have a sincerely held religious belief or conscientious objection. The opportunity to place additional restrictions on your jobsearch after your permitted period is limited for most people (see page 28 for details on permitted periods). You will be able to place restrictions on the nature, rate of pay or location only if you can show that you have reasonable prospects of securing employment despite your restrictions. People with children and availability to work If you are responsible for a child, and your caring responsibilities mean that it is unreasonable for you to start work in less than one week or attend a job interview with fewer than 48 hours notice, you can restrict your availability to say that you can start work with 28 days notice and attend a job interview with seven days notice. 21 You have to be available for jobs that your caring responsibilities allow. If your caring responsibilities are such that it is unreasonable for you to make childcare arrangements during holidays, breaks, or other times when your child is not at school, then you will still count as being available for work, so that you can meet the benefit criteria and get your payments. Even though you will be treated as available for work, you will not actually have to find work that your caring responsibilities do not permit. This gives you a lot of flexibility to adjust your work availability according to family and personal circumstances. 22 You can also place reasonable limits on the number of hours you are willing to work if you are subject to, or have agreed to, a legally prescribed parenting contract. Some special groups and availability to work Certain categories of JSA customers are excused from the requirement that they should be immediately available to take up employment: 23 Chapter 2, Page 21

22 If you have caring responsibilities defined as caring for someone over 65, or someone who has mental or physical difficulties you can give one week s notice before taking up a job and you should be available to attend a job interview within 48 hours. If you have a part-time job while claiming JSA, you are not required to be immediately available for a full-time job, provided that you are willing to start a job with 24 hours notice (or up to one week, if you have to give your employer statutory notice). Once you have started a job, it is possible to continue with your part-time job provided it fits into the pattern of work you agreed with Jobcentre Plus. If you do voluntary work, you are permitted to give one week s notice before starting a job, but you must be available for an interview within 48 hours. If you are providing a service (including jury service, being a witness in court proceedings, serving as a justice of the peace or as a member of a tribunal, or serving a community service order) you may be excused from the requirement to start a job immediately. If you have been claiming JSA for six months or more and then choose to undertake training up to 30 hours per week for a maximum of eight weeks. People with caring responsibilities and availability to work Under JSA regulations, if you have certain caring responsibilities you can be available for work for less than 40 hours a week. To receive JSA you must be available to work for as many hours as your caring responsibilities allow, as long as this is at least 16 hours per week. If you have certain caring responsibilities you can refuse vacancies of less than 40 hours a week if they are jobs which involve more hours than you are available to work. Jobcentre Plus will not accept that someone has caring responsibilities if they are caring for a friend or a neighbour. Caring responsibilities mean caring for a close relative or those within the same household. However, if you are caring for someone else and they get Disability Living Allowance, you may be able to get Carer s Allowance instead of JSA. With the additional carer s premium paid with Income Support, this may mean a higher income than JSA. If you think this option might apply to you, you should seek advice about changing to Income Support. (See chapter 5 for details of Income Support.) Chapter 2, Page 22

23 You should consider your options carefully if you have caring responsibilities. People looking after a disabled person who receive Carer s Allowance, or lone parents whose youngest child is under five, may be entitled to claim Income Support instead of JSA. Volunteering, work experience and Jobseeker s Allowance Unemployed people are allowed to do voluntary work. You may even be encouraged to participate in voluntary activities. Voluntary work can improve your chances of finding paid work and develop your skills. Voluntary work is work for an organisation whose activities are not for profit, and where no payment is received by you except for actual expenses, or work for anyone except a member of your family where no payment is received. There is no limit on the number of hours you can do voluntary work. You can also do up to eight weeks unpaid work experience with any type of employer and still keep your JSA. Concessions for volunteers Volunteers can give 48 hours notice before starting a job, or attending a job interview or jobsearch interview. However, you might be contacted at any time by Jobcentre Plus staff. Providers of voluntary work can help you to meet this condition by making sure that you are contactable whenever you are volunteering. People with disabilities and health problems, and availability for work If you have a disability or health problem, you may restrict your availability in any way providing the restrictions are reasonable in the light of your physical or mental condition. 24 You do not have to show that you have reasonable prospects of obtaining employment with the restriction, so this means you can restrict the hours you are available to work each week. There is no minimum number of hours per week for which people with disabilities and health problems must be available. You may also place any other restrictions on the nature, rate of pay, location or other terms and conditions of employment. While staff can ask for medical evidence to check the validity of your physical or mental condition, they must first check other sources to see if they can gain the necessary information. Chapter 2, Page 23

24 Religious beliefs or conscientious objections You can place restrictions on the type of work (but not the number of hours) for which you are available on the grounds that you have a sincerely held religious belief or a sincerely held conscientious objection. 25 However, you must show that you have reasonable prospects of employment notwithstanding these restrictions and meet all the other standard availability rules. Common restrictions include: not working on a Sunday on religious grounds (or on another day, if this is appropriate to your religion) refusing to work in certain jobs (for example, working in an abattoir or doing work that involves the supply and handling of alcohol or weapons). Laid-off and short-time workers, and Jobseeker s Allowance If you have your hours of work reduced by your employer (known as short-time work), or you are temporarily laid off because adverse industrial economic conditions have affected your employer, you are entitled to claim JSA for up to 13 weeks without needing to be available for alternative full-time work, provided you are willing and able immediately to take up your previous employment. 26 To count as being laid off or on short time, you must still have an employment contract with your employer, but you must have a temporary gap in your work for that employer or a temporary reduction in your hours that the employer will increase at a later date. If you are doing occasional casual work (work that does not require you to give an employer notice) the usual rules will apply after 13 weeks. Remember that any pay you get from short-time or casual work could affect your right to JSA, especially if it s the means-tested version, as well as other benefits. Short periods of sickness when claiming Jobseeker s Allowance 27 You are able to receive JSA for up to two weeks during short periods of illness. You will have to fill out a form declaring that you are unfit for work. Chapter 2, Page 24

25 In each 12 month period, you are entitled to receive JSA while ill for two fortnight-long occasions (based on the date of your first claim). Once you have been unemployed for more than a year, you again become eligible to receive JSA during two periods of sickness in the following 12 months. If you are sick for more than two weeks, you will need to make a claim for ESA. (Read more information about ESA in chapter 4.) Deaths, funerals, domestic emergencies, and holidays when claiming Jobseeker s Allowance If you are unavailable for work because of an emergency, Jobcentre Plus will continue to pay JSA for up to one week. You can only make yourself unavailable based on an emergency for a maximum of four times in any 12 month period. For a two week period each year, you can take a holiday in the UK during which you will be counted as meeting the available for work rule. However, Jobcentre Plus must be able to contact you while you are away from home. In addition, you must be willing to return home immediately to take up a job opportunity. You will not be considered available for work if your holiday is outside the UK. Are you actively seeking work? You have to take steps each week to find employment. 28 Your Jobseeker s Agreement will set out what you have agreed to do to seek work actively each week. An oral or written application for employment is counted as a single step to seek work. You can apply to: people who have advertised job vacancies people who appear to be in a position to offer employment employment agencies and employment businesses, and employers. Other single steps include: registering with an employment agency or employment business looking for advertised job vacancies (on paper or on the internet) Chapter 2, Page 25

26 appointing a third party to help you look for work seeking specialist advice to improve your prospects of finding work (such as advice from a disability employment adviser read more about disability employment advisers in chapter 4). drawing up a CV drawing up a list of employers to contact about the possibility of a job and/or doing research on employers. The above lists are not exhaustive. How many steps do you have to take to seek work actively? You should take more than two steps each week, unless one or two steps are all that it is reasonable for you to take. (For example, one or two steps might be reasonable if you have housing problems and are spending most of your time trying to tackle this.) It does not matter whether you take steps to seek work every day of the week, or concentrate your jobsearch into a few days (or even one day), so long as you take those steps that are reasonable to satisfy the benefit rule. Jobcentre Plus will take your circumstances into account to decide whether you are actively seeking work. Your Jobseeker s Agreement may specify in greater detail what you will do. The two steps are the legal minimum below which you will be regarded as ineligible for JSA because you are not actively seeking work. The following things will be considered: 29 your skills, qualifications and abilities your physical or mental condition the length of time since you were last in employment your work experience the steps you have taken in previous weeks Chapter 2, Page 26

27 the availability and location of vacancies whether you are treated as available for employment whether you are on, or applying to, an EU-funded course whether you have no living accommodation. Jobcentre Plus will also take into account any time during which you were: carrying out lifeboat or part-time fire-fighting duties engaged in duties for the benefit of others in an emergency attending an Outward Bound course doing a course of training in the use of guide dogs (if you are blind) doing a course of training in the use of special aids to improve your job prospects (if you have a disability) engaged in duties with the Territorial Army participating as a part-time student in an employment-related course participating for fewer than three days in an employment or training programme for which a training allowance is not payable doing voluntary work. People who are highly skilled or qualified may be allowed to restrict their jobsearch (for instance, because they are within their permitted period, see below), and they will have greater flexibility in how they look for work (including registering with specialist employment agencies). Those who are looking for semi-skilled or unskilled work have less flexibility about how they look for work. How to show you are actively seeking work At your first interview, you will receive a jobsearch activity log where you must detail steps you have taken to find work. You should complete the log and show it at your fortnightly review. Evidence of job search can include proof of applications for work, copies of job advertisements for which you have requested more details, lists of Chapter 2, Page 27