Get ready for a slew of fake photos showing smiling claimants with Jobcentre advisors

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This is brilliant, courtesy of Charlotte on the Poor Side of Life blog.

The fact is that people attending Job Centres are bullied by their advisors and by the system. These are not happy places and even the people who work there are discouraged from any form of good humour. Their jobs are about getting people off the benefit books – not necessarily into work, just off the books.

That puts claimants in an extremely precarious position and, as Charlotte notes, it means anyone who is scared and vulnerable may give in to a request for a misleading photograph immediately.

This Blog was discussing the use of the word “propaganda” to describe a Ken Loach film made in support of Jeremy Corbyn yesterday. The argument was that The Guardian was wrong to describe it in that manner as there was no attempt to mislead the public.

Photos of grinning claimants shaking hands with Job Centre advisors would be a different matter. There would be a clear intent to mislead, therefore they would be very obvious propaganda pieces.

Expect to see them in your local newspaper soon.

Whenever I see any DWP promotional material, I and others like to research the validity of their photographs and information. Indeed their new Universal Credit promotional material is extremely misleading and inaccurate. So you can imagine my joy at receiving confirmation of their plot to involve claimants.

Please note that the person involved is not easily intimidated. I’m sure that a person who is scared and vulnerable would give in to their requests straight away. They might think that if they refuse they could be put at risk of a sanction or worse.

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Now, it’s extremely rare for a claimant to be actually smiling inside a Jobcentre. You are usually extremely stressed and it’s the last place that you want to be in. And shaking an advisors hand? This very rarely happens, at best claimants are treated like they have the bubonic plague. A decent advisor still won’t shake your hand. Manners don’t really exist in a Jobcentre.

It’s just more evidence of the DWP trying to send out a completely misleading message.

Kudos to the claimant for sharing this. And watch out for the new fake smiley photos posted in local newspapers and Jobcentres.

Source: Hammersmith Jobcentre approaching claimants to take photographs for DWP promotional material.  – The poor side of life

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7 thoughts on “Get ready for a slew of fake photos showing smiling claimants with Jobcentre advisors

  1. jeffrey davies

    one only has to wait outside a jcp building to see sadness gloom and doom on those about to enter these buildings sadly its not a nice lot to amuze you but take your benefits away from one ouch jeff3

  2. Zippi

    My experience of these places is not good. Often the employees can be condescending, unhelpful, aggressive, although not all. Some are genuinely helpful however, the place, itself, is not one where anybody wants to be. One goes to the JobCentre our of desperation, or because they have been forced to. I avoid them as much as I possibly can.
    Unemployment is part and parcel of my occupation, being (now totally, thanks to this evil government) self-employed. I would rather seek my own work and utilise my enormous overdraught, that go to such a place of doom, where one is required to jump through so many hoops, that’s if you can gain access to the centre that actually near to you, rather than the one several miles away, in the next town but one.
    My last experience, during which I was unable to work, for health reasons, saw me with no money from May until September! What is the point of the service if it is not there for you when you need it? What do we pay our National Insurance for? The time before that, I had found work, before my first payment. The time before that, I was told that, despite the fact that I wasn’t working, because I lived in a shared house and the terms of my tenancy had changed, to make me the sole tenant with subtenants, I wasn’t entitled to anything and the time before that, when I was unemployed through injury, I was given a single payment of £50 Incapacity Benefit, which had to be returned! Is it any wonder why I don’t bother to sign on?
    Depressing is one word for the JobCentre. Plus(!) The only thing that has been added is greater despondency. Perhaps, this is the point. I wonder how many other unemployed persons do not appear in the figures, because they don’t sign on, not through pride but because there is no point. I must point out that this began under Blair.

  3. bo

    It’s almost as if there is an attempt to sanitize claimants views & experiences of DWP practices – it’s very revealing!

  4. Stu

    Pleasant, friendly advisors (job coaches) do actually exist but in my experience they tend to get nastier with each subsequent vist.

    The reason being that they are punished for being too nice and are forced to “tow the line” with the threat of joining those at the other side of the desk if they don’t.

    The Mantra being “All claimants are liars” – I know this from personal experience.

  5. Brian

    Knowing there are no depths to which the DWP will not sink, why not go the whole hog. They could throw a party, with balloons and food n drink, have some upbeat background muzic and a photo opportunity competition for their 1000,000 customer. What a great chance for photo’s from the local press.

  6. John kettle

    Their radio ad states that UC is ‘helping’ thousands into work. Even if this were true (my definition of ‘helping’ differs singnificantly from theirs) shouldn’t the figure be hundreds of thousands or millions by now?

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