Stikkord: The Jobcentre

today I was at the Jobcentre in Aintree, at 3.05 PM, to have a sign-on-meeting, (which I have fourtnightly, since I’m unemployed).

Normally there is a blonde woman in her 30’s/40’s, in box 2 there, (which is the box I’m always being sent to there, for sign-on-meetings).

But today it was a man in his 60’s there, with a bit beard-stubble, I think it’s called.

The man in box 2 asked me if I had gotten the allowance back, (I think it was).

I explained that I had planned to go to the reception-window, after the sign-on-meeting, to hear if the allowance was back again.

(Since I haven’t had my allowance since the middle of April.

Due to that Birkenhead Benefit Centre wanted to see the book-keeping for my small web-shop.

And that this takes some time to look at, and to get the files sent from Aintree to Birkenhead, I think it must be).

The man in box 2 asked me to sit down in the ‘waiting-area’ and he would check on my allowance.

Then a woman in her 40’s/50’s who said her name was Kate, and that she was one of the managers there, at Aintree Jobcentre, wanted to have a meeting with me.

She told me they had gotten a complaint from my, by e-mail, 11/5.

I explained that I wasn’t there to discuss that complaint, but to have a sign-on-meeting and to check up on my allowance.

Kate said I had written the complaint to personal.

I said that I hadn’t read up about that complaint, before the sign-on-meeting today.

And that I hadn’t expected to discuss this today, and didn’t remember exactly what I wrote, in the mentioned complaint, twelwe days ago.

I explained that if I had gotten a letter about this meeting, I could have read up before I went to the Jobcentre.

And I also explained that I hadn’t eaten much lately, due to that I hadn’t gotten my allowance for more than a month now.

So this was an unscheduled meeting, that I didn’t get to know the agenda for, in advance.

I wanted to hear about my allowance, and was a bit ‘tricked’, by the man in box 2, I think.

Since I suddently found myself in a meeting with manager Kate, about something completely different.

Manager Kate and I then agreed I would go to the reception window, to hear about my allowance after this unsheduled meeting.

Manager Kate also mentioned that I had written that I didn’t have food, in my complaint, from twelve days ago.

I explained I had planned to go to CAB after I’d been at the Jobcentre, to try to get a voucher for the food-bank.

(And that my housing association had adviced me to go to the CAB for a voucher like this).

Kate then informed me they could write a voucher for me, at the Jobcentre.

I was surprised.

Since this was a contradiction, to what Nicki in the reception-window had told me, on Monday.

She told me that I had to go to the One Stop Shop, to get a voucher.

And I went there, and they told me to call a number, (0151 233 3053), which also Nicki had given me.

I had explained both at the Council One Stop Shop and to Nicki.

That I didn’t have any credit left on my mobile.

(Since I’d used it trying to call Birkenhead Benefit Centre, but it was a long queue there, and my credit dissapeared, without me getting to speak with anyone there, around the end of April, I guess it must have been).

And now suddently, I’m being told that I can get a voucher for the food-bank, at the Jobcentre, anyway.

That was a direct condradiction, to what Nicki in the reception-window told me on Monday.

(As I recall it).

So I thought I should write a complaint about this.

Claire in the reception window later gave me a voucher for the food-bank, and printed a map for me, explaining where St. Andews church is.

(In the middle of Queens Drive).

She explained that I could get a new voucher there, if this happened again, in a month or a year.

So that was good to know.

I also remember that manager Kate also called me ‘love’, at the start of the meeting, (like her collegue, the ‘box 2 woman’, quite often does).

In Norway, only people who are married calles eachother love, (or people who have an affair).

So I think this is a bit personal.

Which culture is this, I’m wondering a bit.

I feel a bit alienated here.

But I’m from Norway, so I’m not sure if this is considered to be to personal, here in the UK.

But I thought I would mention this, while I wrote this e-mail.

Thanks for the voucher at least!

I have had a dizzyness-attack, the other day, so I didn’t dare to go to sleep.

But I went out to get fresh air, etc.

And I tried to go to the Police Station to get some food or a voucher for the food bank there.

But the Police Station, (in Walton), was closed.

So I’ve also updated the Norwegian Embassy and the Home Defence in Norway about this, (since the Home Defence in Norway placed me in an area there, when I lived in Norway, as part of my conscription service).

Since I thought the situation was a bit serious.

I don’t want to steal to survive.

So I’ve started updating the Norwegian Embassy etc., about the situation, with the missing jobseekers-allowances.

So I also update them in this e-mail.

Thanks again for the voucher for the food-bank.

I’ll go there tomorrow and see if they have some food for me.

Thanks again for the help with this!

Best regards,

Erik Ribsskog

I also thought of something more now, while I was home and got my Jobseekers Diary, etc.

I had to go to the Jobcentre in Aintree now, to copy the book-keeping, for my web-shop.

Even if I have a broadband-line.

This was because Rude, (or if her name was Ruth), at Birkenhead Benefit Centre, have earlier told me, that you ‘don’t respond to e-mails’.

This is very strange, I think.

If you have an e-mail address, you should respond to e-mails, I think.

This is 2013 and not 1993.

Most organisations have an e-mail address.

So has the Jobcentre.

And then you should reply to e-mails, I think.

That’s the norm, I think.

And I haven’t gotten a letter from you saying you’ve stopped replying to e-mails.

So the Jobcentre are bad at giving information, I think.

Another example, you have removed the phones for the unemployed, at Aintree Jobcentre.

(And possibly at all Jobcentres?).

But I can’t remember that I have got a letter from you, informing about this.

Another example of poor information, from the Jobcentre.

Also, you’ve now stopped my Jobseekers Allowance three times, without informing me first.

And the letters you send when the Council want’s to get Council Tax-arrears directly from my Jobseekers Allowance are cryptical, I think.

It isn’t easy to understand them.

They are written in telegram-style, and contains lines like ‘we cannot pay you jobseekers allowance from’.

And it also says my jobseekers allowance is going to be this and that, from this and that date.

So those letters are a bit cryptical, I think.

Also, when I go to the Jobcentre in Aintree, and mentions that I have very little food and no electricity.

(Like I’ve told Nicki and Linda in the reception window there).

Then they don’t advice me what to do.

So I haven’t eaten properly, now in the month of May.

They should give me a voucher for the food bank at least.

Or is it also something called hardship-payments, like I overheard another client mention, the other week at the Jobcentre.

In Norway they say the Government has a duty to guide, (‘veilede’), the citizens.

Don’t you say this in the UK?

That the Government should guide/advice the citizens?

When I mention I don’t have much food, then the jobcentre-clerk should advice me how to get food or money for food, (and electricity), I think.

So the way the Jobcentre gives information is very poor, I think.

Also you aren’t good at communication.

You use ten working days to reply to e-mails.

(Even if you often don’t reply at all, I’ve noticed).

And the Council only use one or two days.

And some of your departments don’t respond to e-mails.

So the Jobcentre is hopeless on communication and information, I think.

Also a letter to me in January, (about the book-keeping for my small web-shop), was sent to the wrong address.

(It was sent to 15 Keith Court, but I live in 10 Keith Court).

When I studied at the academy NHI, in 1991/92.

Then quality-assurance was a topic there, (a choice-topic).

This is more than twenty years ago.

Are the words quality-assurance and ISO-certifications unknown in the UK?

Why do you send letters to the wrong address?

ISO-certification would be right for big organisations like the Jobcentre, I think.

Are you just messing with me?

The Jobcentre are hopeless at information, communication and quality-assurance, it seems to me.

And I have to suffer for this, by almost starving to death, (at least I get a bit dizzy something, when I only eat rice or it could be the tap-water, that’s full of some quick-silver, or something. Who knows).

So this I wanted to complain about.

With disapointed regards,

Erik Ribsskog