Skip Navigation | Sheffield IMC | UK IMC | Editorial Guidelines | Mission Statement | About Us | Contact | Help | Support Us

UK Indymedia UK Indymedia Sheffield Indymedia Sheffield Indymedia

A4e

Keith Parkins | 19.03.2008 16:03 | Repression | Social Struggles | Workers' Movements | Sheffield

According to the boss and founder of a4e speaking on a BBC business programme last week, they are the unemployed best friend, they 'help' the unemployed back into work!

The Bottom Line is a BBC Radio 4 business programme broadcast on Saturdays sandwiched between the five o'clock and six o'clock news.

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/news/bottomline/bottomline.shtml

Last Saturday (15 March 2008) the guests on the programme were the boss of a recruitment agency who did not understand how social networking sites worked, the French guy who cocked up the Dome and the boss and founder of a4e.

A4e, together with other training providers such as Working Links and CDG (Careers Development Group), are subcontracted to DWP to provided under New Deal training for the unemployed and 'help' them into jobs.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/11/386689.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/12/388044.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/12/388504.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/01/390153.html?c=on
 http://www.schnews.org.uk/archive/news614.htm
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/01/390290.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/390471.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/390638.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/390901.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/390923.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/391396.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/391397.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/02/391531.html
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/03/392830.html

In the light of highly critical comments on Indymedia UK, SchNEWS and elsewhere, I was interested to hear what the boss of a4e (Access for Employment) had to say for herself.

She came across as an idiot with a big mouth. According to her they were helping the unemployed into work, they were the unemployed best friend!

The BBC, displaying its famed impartiality, had no unemployed or jobseekers on the programme to give a contrary view, so her crass comments went unchallenged.

This is a small attempt to address that imbalance.

I have had no direct experience of a4e, I merely note the negative comments that have been published here and elsewhere, but it did strike me listening to her mouthing off, if you are so good, why are the unemployed not queuing up outside your door, why are these courses made compulsory, with threat of loss of benefits for up to six months if you refuse to attend?

If you attend a college course and it is no good, you can drop out, you may even try to get your money back.

The unemployed lack this option when on New Deal training courses. They are forced to attend no matter how bad, and benefits will be stopped if you try to drop out.

For basic skills, jobseekers are better off attending a local college, but Job Centres will even pull people off the courses and force them to attend a scam training course.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2007/11/386689.html?c=on#c189456

One of these scam training providers is CDG. Bullying is rife, jobseekers are forced to apply for four jobs every day, jobseekers are forced to go on compulsory work placements with no prior discussion as to the long term job prospects or even whether the job is suitable, forced to attend training courses which do not match or enhance their existing skills and experience, computer activities illegally monitored, the ever present threat of benefits being stopped for non-compliance. Those who dare criticise what is going on, are quickly pushed out the building, either on job placements or removed from the course with false allegations of misconduct. The most critical have had smear campaigns run against them.

Jobseekers should be able to vote with their feet, walk off these scam training courses, but they cannot. If they try, their benefits are stopped.

If these training providers are so good, why is compulsion necessary to force people to attend?

There is a long overdue need for a thorough inquiry into these scam training companies and an end to the gravy train.

Keith Parkins

Comments

Display the following 6 comments

  1. Nothing is mandatory — Danny
  2. Blessing in disguise — insider
  3. A4e is a scam, a lie and a joke. A sick joke at that...!!!! — Ian C. Matthew
  4. A4E Courses — Paul Matiss
  5. Has anyone heard of BEST? — Ian
  6. test — Ex A4E worker

Kollektives

Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World

Other UK IMCs
Bristol/South West
London
Northern Indymedia
Scotland

Sheffield Topics

Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista

Sheffield [navigation.actions2016]

Sheffield [navigation.actions2015]

Sheffield [navigation.actions2014]

NATO 2014

Sheffield Actions 2013

G8 2013

Sheffield Actions 2012

Workfare

Sheffield Actions 2011

2011 Census Resistance
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Occupy Everywhere

Sheffield Actions 2010

Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands

Sheffield Actions 2009

COP15 Climate Summit 2009
G20 London Summit
Guantánamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
University Occupations for Gaza

Sheffield Actions 2008

2008 Days Of Action For Autonomous Spaces
Campaign against Carmel-Agrexco
Climate Camp 2008
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Smash EDO
Stop Sequani Animal Testing
Stop the BNP's Red White and Blue festival

Sheffield Actions 2007

Climate Camp 2007
DSEi 2007
G8 Germany 2007
Mayday 2007
No Border Camp 2007

Sheffield Actions 2006

April 2006 No Borders Days of Action
Art and Activism Caravan 2006
Climate Camp 2006
Faslane
French CPE uprising 2006
G8 Russia 2006
Lebanon War 2006
March 18 Anti War Protest
Mayday 2006
Oaxaca Uprising
Refugee Week 2006
Rossport Solidarity
SOCPA
Transnational Day of Action Against Migration Controls
WSF 2006

Sheffield Actions 2005

DSEi 2005
G8 2005
WTO Hong Kong 2005

Sheffield Actions 2004

European Social Forum
FBI Server Seizure
May Day 2004
Venezuela

Sheffield Actions 2003

Bush 2003
DSEi 2003
Evian G8
May Day 2003
No War F15
Saloniki Prisoner Support
Thessaloniki EU
WSIS 2003

Server Appeal Radio Page Video Page Indymedia Cinema Offline Newsheet

secure Encrypted Page

You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.

If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

IMCs


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech