Scrap sanctions targets and keep the bottom rung

There are a lot of things in the Scottish Labour manifesto which Calton does not agree with, however, scrapping benefit sanctions targets is one policy he can wholeheartedly support. It is totally iniquitous to set sanctions targets for job centre staff when they are supposed to be helping folk into work. It is a system open to abuse and is one of the reasons for the rise in foodbanks we have seen recently. There is nothing wrong with sanctions for those who are claiming jobseekers allowance while having no intention of looking for work. Such people are actually a tiny minority. What is wrong is sanctioning people who genuinely want to find work for things like not turning up to the job centre because they were at a job interview! The success or otherwise of job centres should not be measured by the number of sanctions they dish out but by the number of people they help back into work, and by "work" Calton means a proper job with a decent number of hours and job security, not a zero hours contract. Job centres also need to end the practice of pushing the unemployed into self-employment when they don't actually have a viable business plan which will earn them a sufficient income. Starting your own business is not an easy route out of unemployment, as many failed entrepreneurs can testify. It is not for the faint-hearted and what bothers Calton about all the calls for a higher minimum wage from Labour and other parties is that, if implemented, it could well either discourage employers from taking on more staff or put them out of business altogether. We need to be making it easier for businesses to employ people, not harder because, at the end of the day, if we knock out the bottom rung of the employment ladder (ie minimum wage jobs), we will consign ever more people to endless unemployment and that is not a good thing for any of us.

Running scared - the political elite

It seems to Calton that the main political parties are running scared of UKIP and with good reason. The trendy liberal political elite are completely out of touch with ordinary voters. They seem to have no idea what it is like to see your grown up children spending their days either in bed or on the computer playing games because they can't get a job. For many parents the fear of the empty nest has been replaced by anxiety over whether their offspring will ever manage to fledge and fly the nest. Many of these youngsters have been through further education, supported by their parents and yet they still can't find a job. For people like these, the news today that there was a 7% increase in the number of NI numbers issued to workers from overseas in 2013, compared with 2012, is not good news. The government can say all it likes about controlling immigration and bringing down the numbers but, as long as we remain in the EU, we have no control over immigration from the EU, which makes up the bulk of that 7% increase. UKIP are on course to win the EU elections, with the possibility of an MEP in Scotland, because they scratch an itch the other parties are not reaching. They are also constellating an anti-EU sentiment which is not able to be expressed in any other way. If the main political parties were really serious about spiking UKIP's guns, all they need to do is take us out of the EU, thus removing UKIP's raison d'etre in one fell swoop. Or at least offer a referendum. Instead, the old-boy establishment (including the BBC) has ganged up on the newcomer who is daring to challenge them and has resorted to playing the loony/racist card, conveniently ignoring the loonies/racists in their own woodpiles. It is a strategy almost certain to backfire. Voters are not that stupid.

A sad start to 2014

It is sad that, only two days into the new year, The Prince's Trust is reporting that more than three quarters of a million young people in Britain think that they have nothing to live for due to unemployment and almost a third of young people who are long-term unemployed have contemplated suicide. This is a problem which is just not going away and will only be made worse if competition for available jobs becomes greater due to an increase in immigration from Eastern Europe. What is really sad is that employers would rather advertise for workers in Romania and Bulgaria than employ our own youngsters. It's not the employers' fault - we live in a competitive, capitalism society and they want the cheapest and best workers. It's not the fault of the immigrants - they are just trying to better their lives and they are entitled to come here due to decisions made by successive UK governments. In Calton's opinion, the root of the problem goes back to when we started talking about rights without talking about responsibilities, when discipline became a dirty word in schools, when we started inculcating a sense of entitlement into our children without teaching them that there is no such thing as a free lunch. The result is a generation who are unemployable. The Prince's Trust manages to pick up the pieces for some but what is really needed is prevention and that means a change in attitude. Perhaps if the Bank of England stopped printing money, children would learn that it does not grow on trees.

Hobson's Choice - the army or unemployment?

While Calton can understand calls for the army recruiting age to be raised to 18, he does not agree with them. No-one is forcing 16 year olds to enlist and they cannot do so without the consent of their parents. They also do not see active service until they are 18. Yes, joining the army may result in significant mental, emotional and physical injury or death. So does becoming one of the many unemployed youth with no hope of finding a job. A recent review by the World Health Organisation has highlighted joblessness as a major health risk to young people, with suicide an immediate risk and chronic diseases such as cancer and stroke a risk in the long term. In an ideal world there would be no wars and there would be plenty of jobs for school-leavers. This is not an ideal world and closing the door to one viable career option for 16 year olds will not make it any better. Staying on at school until 18 is not appropriate for all young people - for some, the alternative of going into the forces provides them with the discipline they need and training which will stand them in good stead. On this day, as we remember the fallen, we also demonstrate our support for our armed forces. We need to take better care of them when they come out of the army, whether by choice, by redundancy or through injury and we need to take care of the youngsters who stay at home and struggle to find a job. Our young people deserve better than Hobson's choice.

It's not the immigrants who are the problem

Calton has never disputed the fact that most immigrants to this country are hard-working and make a positive contribution to our economy. It is no surprise to find that, in recent years, they are less likely to be in receipt of benefits than Brits. The problem is, the ready supply of skilled people with a good work ethic has allowed us to ignore the fact that many of our young people are unemployable and many of our unemployed do not want to work. If we did not have uncontrolled immigration from the EU, genuine jobseekers would find it a lot easier to find a job and the work-shy would find it a lot harder to hide. We would not have such a huge problem with youth unemployment and business owners would be putting a lot more pressure on the government to sort out our education system so that it turns out employable youngsters. As it is, the influx of Eastern Europeans is masking a growing problem within our society. It is also fuelling resentment because, now, they are not just doing the jobs Brits don't want to do - they are doing jobs that some Brits do want to do. Recession has made us less fussy when it comes to a job, which would be no bad thing if the jobs were available. Given the announcement today of up to 1000 job cuts at BAE Systems yards north and south of the border, it is time for both the Scottish and Westminster governments to take a serious look at whether we can afford a further influx of Eastern Europeans at the end of the year, especially when we have no idea how many will come. We should let in the immigrants we need and the ones who need asylum but call a halt to unrestricted immigration from the EU.

Give them a bike

In the 19th century, people moved from other parts of Scotland to Glasgow to find work. Now it seems that a reverse migration is needed, with the news that Glasgow has the highest number of workless households in the UK, never mind Scotland. Unfortunately, the sluggish state of the housing market and a general lack of affordable rented homes in most, if not all, parts of Scotland makes moving to find work very difficult. It also seems to Calton that the welfare system does not encourage relocation. Moving costs money, something which the unemployed do not have. It also requires motivation - the confidence that a move will bring an improvement. The sad thing is that Eastern Europeans are more motivated to come and work in Scotland than some Scots are to move to the other side of the country to find a job. Instead of taking the initiative, many unemployed seem to expect the state to provide for them, both in terms of benefits while unemployed and also by subsidising companies to set up businesses in areas of high unemployment. Instead of moving to find work, people expect work to come to them. Sadly, companies which receive large amounts of public money to locate in Scotland quite often leave when the subsidies dry up. The Scottish Government would be better advised to spend the money on improving public transport and providing affordable rented homes in areas where there are jobs. Grants to enable unemployed families to relocate to areas where workers are needed might also be a good idea. The Government needs to encourage mobility but there's no point in telling people to get on their bike when they don't have a bike to get on.

Strength in numbers

Before we all get too excited about the news that Scottish unemployment is falling, we need to reflect on the fact that a new study commissioned by the Scottish Government shows a rise in underemployment. More than 10% of the workforce are underemployed i.e. working less hours than they would like. There are less full-time jobs now than in 2008, although the situation is improving, and wages have fallen. More people are self-employed, partly as a response to the lack of jobs but also, worryingly, due to a trend for small employers to put people who should be employees on to self-employed contracts, in breach of HMRC rules. Such employers know that it is more than their job's worth in these hard times for employees to complain about the change which robs them of the right to paid holidays, sick pay and other rights as employees. It is in these circumstances that trade union membership comes into its own. Calton was not a supporter of the militant trade unionism of the Thatcher years but he is a believer in the value of trade unions when it comes to ensuring a fair deal for low paid workers. He also believes that health and safety whistle-blowers should be protected, not blacklisted. Times are hard, but that doesn't mean that unscrupulous employers should be allowed to exploit this.

Good week, bad week

Calton has just had an email informing him that his energy bill will be increased by 27.5% as of next month. How much of this, he wonders, is going to fund wind turbines like the one in Hatton, Aberdeenshire which blew down in a gale recently? If, instead of subsidising windfarms, our government subsidised clean coal power stations, perhaps Scottish Coal would not now be in administration with the loss of nearly 600 jobs. Miners facing redundancy will hardly be cheered by the sight of turbines popping up all over the countryside, as windfarms do not bring much long-term employment, although there may be some jobs going in clearing up the fallen ones after every storm. There's no such thing as an ill wind......That was the bad week. The good week is that this blog will not be affected by the new press regulation, seeing as how the turnover is zilch and the number of employees is zero, Calton being the sole, self-employed author. Also, those who, like Calton, are feeling somewhat disenfranchised by the main Scottish political parties now have a new one to vote for - The Alliance Party of Scotland. About time too.

Standing up for the underemployed

Calton has always wondered how the Office for National Statistics comes up with the figure for the total number of people out of work, given that the only hard measure which we have is the number of people claiming jobseekers allowance, and this is always lower than the total unemployment figure. Be that as it may, it is encouraging to see a fall in the number of unemployed in Scotland, coupled with a rise in the number of people in work. What is not so encouraging is the rise in recent years of the 'underemployed' - those who are in work but not for as many hours as they would like to be, or not using their skills fully. Calton is not convinced that the answer to this is more training - it's not lack of skills which is the problem but a lack of decent, full-time jobs - however it is good to see that the plight of the underemployed has been recognised by the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee at Holyrood. According to the Convener of the Committee, Murdo Fraser MSP, the effect of underemployment can be similar to that of unemployment on both income and the ability to get a job in the future. While there is a limit to what the Scottish Government can do in this situation, cracking down on unscrupulous employers who are moving employees onto self-employed or zero-hours contracts would be a good start. Employees are in a vulnerable position at the moment due to the recession - the government needs to ensure that their rights are protected.

The nanny state - colluding in child abuse?

Calton does not think for a minute that all those on benefits are swinging it or are having kids just to get the child benefit, however you don't have to knock on too many doors in our towns and cities to find out that quite a lot of people know of at least one family in their neighbourhood who are doing quite nicely on the state, thankyou very much. Like the single mum with five kids who was given a privately rented 5 bedroom house, opposite a lady Calton knows, and who had enough money to afford regular taxis here, there and everywhere, plus a boyfriend who, although not living with her, put in a fairly regular appearance. Philpott was an extreme but there are plenty of others who have made a career out of not working, assisted by the state. We know that there is now a problem with generational unemployment - no wonder when kids see their parents doing well without having to go out to work. Such children may be well-looked after and well-behaved but they are learning to be dependent on welfare, not on their own efforts. Is that not a subtle form of child abuse, colluded in by the nanny state?

Cheap and dirty - the way to go

Not only are American households seeing lower energy bills thanks to fracking, it now transpires that the US is dumping coal they no longer want on to the international market with the result that Scottish coal miners now face redundancy because the price has dropped. Good news for the US but bad news for Scotland. Our energy policy is in a mess - we are desecrating our wild land with windfarms and yet a wave power facility in Inverness is closing, coal is cheap and plentiful and yet we are converting Cockenzie to run on gas instead. We really need to get our act together and formulate an energy policy that keeps the lights on and the bills down while sustaining Scottish jobs -  just building windfarms is not going to do it. Time for the Scottish Government to recognise that clean and green is all very well but cheap and dirty is better. Otherwise the First Minister's words today about providing support to miners facing redundancy will be pretty cold comfort.

We need to talk about immigration

The publication of The Prince's Trust Youth Index 2013 Report yesterday has triggered quite a bit of debate about the plight of our young NEETs. Basically, young people who are Not in Employment, Education or Training are twice as likely to feel that they can't cope with life compared with their employed peers and many young people despair of ever finding a job. There has been much discussion on the part family breakdown plays in all this (major) and the effects of the recession (great) however no-one seems to be mentioning the obvious elephant in the room - immigration. Easy availability of hard working young people from other EU countries who are willing to work here for low pay has kept businesses going and has allowed our politicians to ignore for too long the fact that many of our own young people are unemployable. No wonder politicians think that immigration is a good thing! They have been hiding the failings of our education system and the bitter fruit of easier divorce laws behind it and our youngsters are now paying the price. Youth unemployment has rocketed and won't get any better once the Bulgarians and Romanians are also allowed to come and work here. How can any country control its economy when it can't control its borders? Unfortunately, immigration has become the new taboo subject - if you don't believe Calton, just try mentioning it at the next dinner party you go to!

The poverty trap

Calton is not convinced that poverty is the cause of poorer health. Rather, poverty and poor health are both symptoms of a deeper malaise - low self-esteem and hopelessness. If you don't have any self-esteem you will find it very hard to get a job and work your way out of poverty. Ditto if you feel hopeless and you believe that there are no opportunities. It's easier in those circumstances to rely on the state for handouts and drink/drugs/food to dull the pain of a miserable life. If we really want to lift people out of a life of poverty and ill-health we need to give them something to hope for and something to work for. An incentive to better themselves. The message that they have a choice, that it doesn't have to be this way. That hard work and effort pay. Somehow that message has got lost in this country, unlike the USA. Our welfare system has turned people into benefit dependent victims totally lacking in initiative instead of giving them a leg-up. The last Labour Government created a false economy where businesses didn't need to pay a decent wage because the government topped it up with working tax credit. Now we are in a situation where many workers are not paid anything like a living wage and so, for many, work doesn't pay. That has to change. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to repair the damage of the Labour years.

Right to Work wrong on work experience

One of the big things our young people need these days is work experience. The longer a person is out of a job, the harder it is to get one, irrespective of what age they are, and the problem is compounded when the person is young and has never worked. Calton therefore thinks it is really unfortunate that the latest UK Government scheme to give young people work experience has been tarnished to such an extent that companies are exiting it in droves. Of course it is wrong for companies to use unemployed youngsters as cheap labour with no intention of giving them a permanent job at the end of it, however, a properly run scheme with real jobs for those who make the grade has much to commend it. Hopefully something can be hammered out between the DWP and businesses so that those who are not content to sit around on the dole and who would like work experience can get it. No-one has a right to work but those who want to work should be given every help and encouragement.

Poles apart - more's the pity

Two items on Radio Scotland caught Calton's attention today - one was the program Poles Apart on Polish immigrants in Inverness and the other was a report on youth unemployment in Newsdrive. Some think that the two issues are connected. The simplistic argument is that lots of Eastern Europeans have flooded into Scotland, taking all the jobs, and so our young people can't find work, hence the rise in youth unemployment. Calton thinks the issue is a lot more complex, one of the problems being that some of our young people are, quite frankly, unemployable. They aren't interested in menial work, they have no self-discipline, they have no qualifications and, as long as the state pays them dole money and their parents provide free board & lodging, they have no incentive to get a job. Maybe it's time to get tough on our able-bodied, unemployed youth because, if Poles can come over here and get jobs, so can they.

The great benefits black hole

There's been a bit of a hoo-ha tonight over the Lords' vote to exclude child benefit from the Government's proposed household benefit cap but Calton thinks it's a bit of a distraction, given that the real black hole into which benefit money is disappearing is excessive rents on large private properties rented by unemployed families. Properties which working families can only dream of owning (or renting). Many working families have to relocate to find or keep a job. What's so wrong about unemployed families having to do the same in order to find a cheaper place to live and so be less of a burden on the taxpayer? The current situation, where a single mother can live in a privately rented 5-bedroom, double-garage house in a nice area all paid for by the state, while a few doors down, an elderly woman who has worked all her life, along with her husband, to bring up a family has never been able to afford more than a small 3-bedroom home, cannot be allowed to continue. It's just not fair.

The old blame game

Like Johann Lamont, Calton is getting a little tired of hearing Alex Salmond trot out the same old chestnut about not having the economic levers necessary to help the Scottish economy. Not because it isn't true - the First Minister is quite correct in saying that Westminster still holds many of the powers he would like to deploy - but because, even if Scotland becomes independent, he will still not have the economic levers if we stay in the EU. Perhaps that is why the SNP is so keen on continued EU membership - it is much easier to stand up and complain that, much though one would like to help the unemployed, one's hands are tied, than to actually do something about it. At the moment the First Minister spends a lot of time blaming Westminster. The prospect of him spending the years post-2014 blaming Brussels is a very real one, although not one Calton particularly wishes to contemplate.
'Plus ca change - c'est la meme chose'.