Theresa May commends companies who encourage flexible working and says the Government should consider opening Job Centres in the evenings and at weekends

Here is the final installment of answers to the questions you recently posed to shadow work and pensions secretary, Theresa May. Here she covers questions relating to work and unemployment.

We published Theresa's first and second tranches of replies to your questions on the site earlier today.

Question from George Lees: It would seem to me that your Equal Pay and Flexible Working Bill (Currently in the Lords) will be a nightmare for small business to implement and will ultimately cost jobs. Why is this official Conservative piece of legislation when we voted against a similar one in Europe?

Theresa May: Closing the gender pay gap is not an optional extra – equal pay is the law and the bill would only impose requirements on those companies who were found guilty of breaking the law. On flexible working, the fact is that small businesses are leading the way in offering more flexible and fairer working practices and they’ve done this because they recognise it makes good business sense. We are also seeing flexible working being used in the recession – for example companies offering four day weeks or reduced hours in order to cut costs – to help companies through these difficult times while keeping employees in jobs.

Question from James Burdett: The newspapers have trailed government plans to remove passports and driving licences from fathers who fail to live up to their obligations. How is it going to help get fathers to live up to their responsibilities if by restricting their ability to travel you threaten their ability to work?

Theresa May: The Government has said that these sanctions will not be used against parents who need their passports or driving licences for work and we will hold them to that. We have pressed the Government on this issue at the Second Reading of the Welfare Reform Bill and will continue to do so. Whilst it seems to have been successful in securing maintenance payments from absent parents (not just fathers) in other countries, I think the devil will be in the detail.

Question from Chris Southern: The old guild systems created skilled workers within industries. Would it not be an idea to get certain large companies to subsidise privately funded guilds for the modern apprenticeships where people could learn the skills that the companies need within those industries, and to levels that they find acceptable. People could be given help with the funding just like they can gain with education currently, thus helping people from all social standings learn skills needed within industries.

Theresa May: We strongly support apprenticeships as well as Sector Skills Councils, which have some overlap with the old guild system. We have pledged to give them more funding and want them to work with businesses in their sector and with training providers to find the best training solutions. The idea of different firms within an industry coming together to offer training is a good one. Our skills green paper pledged £5 million extra for Group Training Associations which offer this. We have promised 100,000 more apprenticeship places than Labour with more funding for small and medium sized business and full funding for adult apprenticeships, which are currently under-funded.

Question from Karen Allen: Some employees need a car for their work.  It used to be the case that if they drove over 18,000 miles a year for their work that they were not taxed for using a company car, but still paid when using privately. Now, everyone is taxed heavily. This is unfair on those whose work entails a lot of driving.  Will the Conservatives cut this taxation for those whose livelihood depends on use of a car?

Theresa May: As you say, many people need a car for work and Labour have increased the level of taxation on company cars, particularly for those who drive over 18,000 miles a year. I cannot promise to reverse this. We know that the state of the public finances immediately after the next General Election is going to be dreadful and there will be very limited scope for any action in this area; but we would also need to look at the environmental impact of any tax changes and any reforms in the taxation of company cars would need to take this into account. But I understand your concern.

Question from Graham Tasker: I am a chartered software engineer and therefore could be classified as middle class. Can you explain how, having paid 30 years worth of National Insurance, I receive £60.50 unemployed benefit while others get large pay outs having made no contributions (as has happened to one young member of my extended family)?  I am becoming very hostile to N.I. as it is nothing more than a Job Tax rather than Insurance.

Question from Millicent Martin-Smyth: Do you really think £60.50 is an adequate rate for an unemployed person to be paid in this day and age? I fully realise that for every pound a week extra that JSA pays out a further 3,000,000+ will have to be found. But are we ready for the civil unrest that is likely to sweep this nation if extra monies for those recently out of work is not quickly found?

Theresa May: I’m going to answer both of these questions together as they cover the same ground. This is a real issue and one that is going to become more relevant as more people become unemployed, often for the first time in their lives, and realise that all their contributions over the years do not give them anything more than those who have not worked. The fact is though, that Gordon Brown has spent all the money that might have been used to provide more for the unemployed. As it is, our public finance cupboard is bare and we are going to have to be imaginative with the money we do have and ensure that is spent in the best way.

Question from Michael McGough: As well putting on hold the planned closures of 25 Jobcentre plus office do you think the drastic increase in unemployment will require further offices being opened?

Theresa May: I am not sure whether we will need more actual offices but I think with the increased pressure on Job Centre Plus we are going to need more staff to deal with the sheer volume of claimants.

Question from The Bishop Swine: In this day and age can we not expect Job Centres to be open all-day on Saturday, and for a lot longer during week days? Even an 8.00pm closing time would be some improvement.

Theresa May: You make a good point and I think this is definitely something that the Government should consider. Indeed I believe some Job Centres are already doing this. Jobcentre Plus staff work really hard and their jobs are going to become more and more difficult as the recession wears on. Longer opening hours would help them as well as claimants but Government would need to find extra staff to man those extra hours.

Question from Garth Wiseman: Is a Wisconsin style Workfare scheme going to be included in the forthcoming Manifesto or not?

Theresa May: We have looked at a range of international examples, including Wisconsin, and have taken on board the key lessons in our plans. Rebuilding the link between work and benefits is vital – our progressive approach to welfare reform puts this at the heart of our plans. There are lessons to learn from Wisconsin as well as the Australian work for the dole schemes and other systems in Denmark and Germany. Although a system for Britain has to take into account our own unique circumstances I shall certainly be looking further at what has been successful overseas.

Comments

[steve foley]

A good idea opening Jobcentres in the evening and Saturdays. After all when one signs on for the first time they expect the applicant to accept any a job which means Saturday work even if they have always worked Mon-Fri. What's sauce for the goose as they say.

[Tony Makara]

Just looking at the picture of the jobcentreplus logo, has it been changed from that awful pale green? A shade that has been in vogue over the last few years, due, no doubt to eco-awareness and adopted by the likes of ADSA and even the Conservative party itself! I hope so that pale green is awful on the eyes.

[ukipwebmaster]

Did anyone say Jobs?:

http://www.migrationwatchuk.com/pressreleases/pressreleases.asp#187

[Andrew Jones]

Lots of Laugh's with regard to opening Job centre's in the evening and Saturdays.

I don't think Teresa has ever been out of Work - Let me tell you: You have that much time it eats into your soul. Every fortnight you sign on which takes 20 Mins and that includes queuing.

The rest of the time you use your time as you see fit. Sure I look for work and in the last year i have applied for over a thousand jobs with no success. I am a graduate plus qualified Financial Adviser and Mortgage adviser. But no CAS, I was axed before i could get it! I now look at things i would never dream of applying for like being a bus driver.

The Government has not helped me one jot - Labour have delivered nothing to help me. Dole does not even cover many peoples fuel bills, water bills. Nevermind paying for food - if you live in a rented house with a private landlord you will quite often have to pay additional money on top of the local authority housing benifit as they give you insufficient to cover it. Unless you get into more debt there is no help and if you already have debt you have to consider all sorts of unpaletable credit management solutions raking up huge credit card debts etc assuming you can get it.

I could go on!

[chris southern]

woohoo, one of those ideas by Thersa looks familiar :)

@Andrew Jones, i went self employed four or so years ago mate, the reason being if i was going to be poor then i will do so on my terms (i got sick of bouncing from unemployment to minimum wage work and back again)

if Theresa wants more info on the industry training idea i would be happy to pass on all of the idea to her.

[snegchui]

But if you make the Jobcentre staff come in evenings and weekends, they will be crueller and more horrible than at present. Their children will waste away from the lack of emotional and physical nourishment.
Also it will allow the moonlighting, work all day, sign on at the weekend. Reminds me of when in Brixton in 1980s, signing on was every 8 weeks, so people in Ireland took a long weekend from theiir work over there every two months and signed on over here. Luvverly

[steve foley]

Why should those who run the Jobcentres be exempt from the pain? Make them work the days and hours they would force us to work.

[a-tracy]

Opening job centres at nights and weekends is an unnecessary expense.

If flexible working is such a boom and makes such good business sense, and if businesses big and small recognise what an excellent benefit it is - why do we need legislation?

Theresa do you accept that some businesses, in very competitive areas of the market, have to survive on minimal numbers of staff and couldn't afford to provide spare staff to cover for lost hours. They can't let staff take every Friday afternoon off, or go home when the schools close if the phone still rings until 6pm. Do you know how difficult it is to get staff just from 3pm to 6pm to cover for the missing worker? A one size fits all legislative approach to business will bring this Country to it's knees.

[Yet Another Anon]

Opening jobcentres longer means having to spend more on paying staff and on heating, lighting, general maintenance, how much would this cost?

[NigelJ]

Having seen the Digby Jones documentary the other night we shouldn't be thinking about opening up Job Centres more, we should be closing them down, and outsourcing to private recruitment companies that could probably do with the work right now, and do it a great deal better and probably with a great deal more sensitivity