Eligibility for income support and unemployment benefit after the social security act 1989

Abstract

In 1988 (“Training for Employment,” Department of Employment 1988) the government gave notice of its concern that failure to seek work, ineffective job search methods, and the wage and occupational inflexibility of the claimant unemployed were a major cause of unemployment. This article explains how the Social Security Act 1989 has sought to alter claimants' behaviour in these respects.

Research being undertaken by the Low Pay Unit will assess the extent to which these changes governing benefit eligibility have assisted in placing claimants in work. This article explains how some claimants have fallen foul of the new regulations, suffering benefit penalties as a result. The article raises a concern that the tightening up of eligibility rules is occurring at a time when questions are being raised about the adequacy of the adjudication process, and the appropriateness of benefit sanctions in getting claimants into work.