I got a career out of one such course and I will always be grateful for the high standard of training they provided with C&G certificates that were really worth the paper they were printed on. It was voluntary as well.

What we have now is a Work Programme which has little to do with real training and more to do with punishing claimants, providing free forced labour and creating unemployment through the displacement of paid employees by free of charge labour supplied by the DWP.

If we can afford to pay them fares and lunches there’s no excuse for anyone else. As far as I’m aware charity shops and campaigning organisations seem to offer these basic benefits as well.

Sometimes doing ‘work experience’ is very valuable so I wouldn’t knock it as such. I got into paid work after volunteering for a campaigning organisation. My daughter interned at an architect practice and I feel sure she got accepted at a university asking for higher grades than she achieved because of that work experience. They paid her fares & lunch as well.

But this is the crucial thing – any work experience has to be just that – experience which will improve your employability. If you already have experience in shelf-stacking, shop work, sweeping up or whatever there’s no benefit in you doing more of the same.

But that’s not what it’s really about is it?

The problem for me is that the entire system is abused ruthlessly by employers. My employer is B an M, a chain of value stores, who through their relationship with the “providers” in effect get the equivalent of a full time worker, that they don’t have to pay for. I don’t blame B an M at all for taking advantage of this system, no employer in their right mind would turn that down, but what it means is that one paid worker or several part time workers are in effect out of a job because of this system. No matter what your views on so-called scroungers are, this has to be a wrong-headed approach.

there is also another problem. the people that are sent from the “providers” are all on some kind of “course” or “pre-employment training” system, set by the provider and, there is no nice way of saying this, but are clearly vulnerable, with medical conditions, obvious learning difficulties, etc, who as a result of their conditions, don’t really appreciate just how they are being exploited and so tend not to make a fuss, when, as employers tend to do, get messed about for breaks etc.

Now again, there is a lot to be said for giving these people some kind of experience that would help them in their search for work, but in practice, there is no job at the end of it for these people, no matter what they are told by the provider.

The system as constructed is not about helping people to work, or even the much fabled workfare idea, which in theory would be a good idea if the benefit levels increased to the minimum wage at least. It is simply abouts giving employers slave labour, the privatisation of the functions of the jobcentre and ultimately cutting the welfare bill.

http://finnspolitics.wordpress.com/2013/02/22/internships-and-the-workfare-scheme-not-a-party-political-activity/

Labour have accepted capitalism and believe that wealth trickles down from the ‘entrepreneurship’ of owners. It should not come as any surprise that they, like the Tories, will follow the logic of that paradigm when an economic downturn threatens the profits of owners.

The fact that the owners themselves caused the downturn is immaterial – due to corruption, careerism and the prevailing dogma, the politicians will be more interested in preserving the existing power structure than in economic justice or alleviating the suffering of citizens.

The reality is, capitalism is a deliberately engineered system of social control and exploitation; it is still widely considered the best system available and there’s a dearth of the imagination and optimism needed to try to find a new and better system.

Commenters saying “I’m no scrounger, but…” are accepting their chains – this acceptance that you should feel ashamed for lazing about and refusing a meaningless job is just an idea that’s programmed into you. You should feel ashamed when you know you are being called upon to do something actually worthwhile but fail to do so. Working in Argos is not such a calling; it is meaningless. There is enough wealth & technology now for everyone to live a nice easy life yet people work longer hours than mediaeval serfs and struggle to pay the rent.

Reject this system outright; don’t try to tame it or argue on its terms. People should never work just to serve some master’s interests; they should only ever work when they see that there’s work that really needs done, that is meaningful to them. This is only healthy, sane and natural. It should not be considered radical or idealistic in a society that supposedly is against slavery & exploitation in principle.

Our aim should be: work because a sick person needs treatment, or because your neighbour needs a lift across town, or because a kid needs to learn how to write – don’t work because you need to pay the rent or because you want to enjoy excessive power and luxury. The essentials of life can and should be guaranteed for everyone – ‘laziness’ is just a matter of engagement, and who can blame anyone for being disengaged these days?