Logo of Jobcentre Plus

Jobcentre Plus (Welsh: Canolfan Byd Gwaith) is the government-funded employment agency facility and the social security office for working-age people in the United Kingdom. The agency was formed when the Employment Service, which operated Jobcentres and existed alongside separate social security benefits offices, merged with the Benefits Agency to become re-branded as Jobcentre Plus on 1 April 2002. It is an executive agency of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and reports directly to the Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform. The current Minister is Caroline Flint MP. The Chief Executive of the agency is Lesley Strathie. Image File history File links JobCentre_Plus_logo. ... Image File history File links JobCentre_Plus_logo. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... An employment agency is a company that matches workers to open jobs. ... Social security primarily refers to social welfare service concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. ... Social security primarily refers to social welfare service concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. ... Social welfare can be taken to mean the welfare or well-being of a society. ... An Executive Agency is a British public institution that carries out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Executive, Welsh Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive. ... The Department for Work and Pensions is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the Employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security. ... Minister of State is a title borne by officials in certain countries governed under the parliamentary system. ... Caroline Louise Flint (born 20 September 1961 in Twickenham, England) is a British politician. ...

Role of Jobcentre Plus

Jobcentre Plus typically provides resources to enable the unemployed to find work, including posting vacant job listings using a computer system called LMS (Labour Market System) which can be accessed by customers through Jobpoints (touch-screen computer terminals) and via the Jobcentre Plus website and the telephone service Jobseeker Direct (0845 60 60 234). It also provides jobsearch help and information about training opportunities for those who have been registered as unemployed for some time. Part of the organisation is engaged in administering claims for benefits such as Jobseeker's Allowance. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relates to specific useful skills. ... In the United Kingdom Jobseekers Allowance (JSA), colloquially known as The Dole, is a form of unemployment benefit that is paid by the government to people who are unemployed ie. ...

History

The forerunners of the Jobcentre Plus were the government-run Employment Exchanges, originally the vision of Winston Churchill, President of the Board of Trade and William Beveridge, who had worked for a more efficient labour system in the early years of the 20th century. This was intended to address the chaos of the labour market and the problems of casual employment. “Churchill” redirects here. ... The President of the Board of Trade the title of a cabinet position in the United Kingdom government. ... William Henry Beveridge, 1st Baron Beveridge (5 March 1879 – 16 March 1963) was a British economist and social reformer. ...

In 1908 Beveridge was commissioned to devise a scheme which would combine labour exchanges with a new government-funded unemployment benefit. The Labour Exchanges Bill was rushed through Parliament and passed in September 1909 and, after months of planning and recruitment of clerks, 62 Labour Exchanges were opened on February 1, 1910. The number of offices rose to 430 within four years. In 1916 these were renamed as Employment Exchanges, so as to more accurately reflect their purpose and function. Unemployment benefits are payments made by governments to unemployed people. ... is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday [1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

The National Insurance Act was passed in 1911 and the first payments were made at Exchanges in January 1913. Initially this covered only elected trades, such as building, engineering and shipbuilding. Weekly contributions were paid by workers, employers and the State in the form of stamps which were affixed to an Unemployment Book (later called the National Insurance card). When no work was available, benefit was payable. The National Insurance Act 1911 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom, passed in 1911. ... For other uses, see Building (disambiguation). ... Engineering is the applied science of acquiring and applying knowledge to design, analysis, and/or construction of works for practical purposes. ... Men from Francisco de Orellanas expedition building a small brigantine, the San Pedro, to be used in the search for food Shipbuilding is the construction of ships. ...

The basic rules and administration regarding claims and the disallowance of benefit remain unaltered today. From 1918, payments were also made to unemployed ex-soldiers and their dependants, as well as to civilians who found themselves unemployed due to the decline of war production industries. The out-of-work donation scheme (the original "Dole") was originally only a temporary measure. Unemployment benefits are sums of money given to the unemployed by the government or a compulsory para-governmental insurance system. ...

At the suggestion of the Prime Minister David Lloyd-George, from January 1917 the Labour Exchanges came under the new Ministry of Labour and were renamed Employment Exchanges. David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor, OM (January 17, 1863–March 26, 1945) was a British statesman and the last Liberal to be Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... The Ministry of Labour was a British civil service department established in the early 20th century. ...

Changes to the service

Recent major cuts to Civil Service staffing levels mean that Jobcentre Plus is no longer able to provide help to jobseekers of all categories as it traditionally has done, for example those who are already employed or those who are unemployed but not claiming any benefits. Staff of the Department for Work and Pensions have been instructed to give help only to those in so-called "high priority groups", that is, those who are long-term claimants of Jobseekers Allowance, lone parents or those receiving other benefits such as Income Support or Incapacity Benefit. However, jobsearch facilities are available to anyone via the Jobcentre Plus website, through touch screen interactive jobpoints in local Jobcentres and over the phone via Jobseeker Direct (0845 6060234). The Jobcentre Plus website is the UK's most visited recruitment website with over a million visitors each week. Vacancy information is also available through the UK government's direct.gov.uk portal - over time, all government content is expected to migrate to this single site (as recommended in the Varney report). The Byzantine civil service in action. ... The Department for Work and Pensions is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the Employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security. ... In the United Kingdom Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) is a form of unemployment benefit that is paid by the government to people who are unemployed and seeking work. ... It has been suggested that Baby mama be merged into this article or section. ... Social welfare can be taken to mean the welfare or well-being of a society. ... Income Support is an income-related benefit in the United Kingdom for people who are on a low income. ... This is a United Kingdom state benefit intended for those below the State Pension age who cannot work because of illness or disability. ...

Jobcentre Plus also offers services to employers and employment agencies - who can register their vacancies online through the Employer Direct online service or by calling Employer Direct on 0845 601 2001. Vacancies are available immediately through the channels above - (online, phone, and interactive jobpoints).

Alongside these changes, Jobcentre Plus has also changed the way in which claims to benefits are processed. In the past, claimants contacted their local benefits office, were asked to manually complete the appropriate forms, and then booked an interview with an adviser in order to discuss work related issues (as appropriate) and submit the benefits claim for processing. The new system instead asks individuals to call a Jobcentre Plus contact centre on 0800 055 6688, where details of the claim are taken over the phone and entered directly to the computer system by the call agent. Claimants are then asked to attend an interview at their local Jobcentre to discuss work issues with an adviser, and finalise their claim. Social welfare can be taken to mean the welfare or well-being of a society. ...

In addition, the actual processing of claims to benefit is also changing, with benefits processing at a smaller number of larger processing centres rather than local benefit offices.

Recent controversy

Together with cuts to staffing levels, these major changes in how services are delivered are the subject of much internal controversy within the department and are being opposed by the trades unions representing staff, such as the Public and Commercial Services Union, whose members (as at January 2006) have been balloted and have voted in favour of strike action. The Department for Work and Pensions is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the Employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security. ... The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) is the sixth largest union trade union in the United Kingdom. ... January 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accuses European nations of trying to complete the Holocaust by creating a Jewish camp Israel in the Middle East. ... Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal by employees to perform work. ...

In September 2005, an internal memo obtained by to the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), who represent a majority of employees led by Mark Serwotka, revealed alleged plans to privatise Jobcentre Plus, although this was denied by the then Work and Pensions Secretary, David Blunkett. Since then it has emerged that the then DWP Minister of State Margaret Hodge and high-level civil servants have conducted feasibility studies to consider the outsourcing of some Jobcentre work such as building maintenance, translation services and other work that does not require mainstream Civil Servants duplicating the work available at lower cost in the private sector. 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in September September 28 : Constance Baker Motley September 25 : M. Scott Peck September 25 : Don Adams September 20 : Simon Wiesenthal September 14 : Robert Wise September 10 : Hermann Bondi September 8 : Donald Horne September 7 : Moussa Arafat... The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) is the sixth largest union trade union in the United Kingdom. ... Mark Serwotka (born 1963) is the General Secretary of British trade union the PCS. He took office on 1 June 2002. ... Privatization (sometimes privatisation, denationalization, or — especially in India — disinvestment) is the process of transferring property, from public ownership to private ownership. ... The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is a position in the UK cabinet, responsible for the Department for Work and Pensions. ... David Blunkett (born 6 June 1947) is a British Labour Party politician and has been Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside since 1987. ... Minister of State is a title borne by officials in certain countries governed under the parliamentary system. ... Rt. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

In March 2006, then Minister of State Margaret Hodge and Jobcentre Plus management were severely criticised by a House of Commons Parliamentary Select Committee for failing to disclose the failings within Jobcentre Plus and for its management of staff cuts. Jobcentre Plus management also drew criticism by the cross party committee of Members of Parliament for introducing new IT-based benefit systems and procedures that were not fully tried or tested before their introduction. March 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Fijian Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase announces that the 2006 Fiji general elections will be held in the second week of May 2006 from the 6th to the 13th. ... Type Lower House Speaker of the House of Commons Leader of the House of Commons Michael Martin, (Non-affiliated) since October 23, 2000 Harriet Harman, QC, (Labour) since June 28, 2007 Shadow Leader of the House of Commons Theresa May, PC, (Conservative) since December 6, 2005 Members 646 Political groups... A Select Committee is a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues originating in the Westminster System of parliamentary democracy. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ...

The Select Committee highlighted what they described as a "catastrophic failure" and a "truly appalling" level of service provided by Jobcentre Plus in the summer of 2005. The report concluded that the staff cuts (planned at 30,000) within Jobcentre Plus had been poorly planned and implemented by management and should be slowed. Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Unions, membership of which represent a majority of staff, continue to protest (April 2006) at the inadequacies of some of the services offered to customers and to maintain the assurance that there will be no impact on the number of Civil Servants employed or to the lucrative Civil Service pension provision. April 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Marcos Pontes, Brazils first astronaut, reaches the International Space Station. ...

Proposals for reform of Incapacity Benefit and its eventual replacement with the new Employment and Support Allowance is also causing concern in some quarters, particularly with charities and support groups for the disabled. This is a United Kingdom state benefit intended for those below the State Pension age who cannot work because of illness or disability. ... Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) will be a UK Government State Benefit to replace new claims for Incapacity Benefit and Income Support for most claimants from October 2008. ... // Legal definitions A charity is a trust, company or unincorporated association established for charitable purposes only. ... Support groups exist to combat or legitimise conditions or behaviours. ... The term disability, as it is applied to humans, refers to any condition that impedes the completion of daily tasks using traditional methods. ...

Popular Culture

An image of the local Job Centre in Wallsend Metro station labelled "Forum Venaticium" in reference to Wallsend's Roman past

The Jobcentre Plus service (and its forerunners the Social Security office, Unemployment Benefit office and Jobcentre/Labour Exchange) have featured in all forms of popular culture, often depicted in a general way to suggest poverty or an uncaring society. In the 1980s in particular, the Social Security office was frequently used as shorthand for the British recession. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 542 pixelsFull resolution (807 × 547 pixel, file size: 112 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Wallsend Metro Station, showing signs in Latin I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 542 pixelsFull resolution (807 × 547 pixel, file size: 112 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Wallsend Metro Station, showing signs in Latin I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Wallsend station is probably the only station in Britain with signs in Latin. ... The 1980s refers to the years from 1980 to 1989. ... In macroeconomics, the definition of recession is a decline in any countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive quarters of a year. ...

Dramatic representations have included the sitcoms Hancock's Half Hour, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, Shelley, Bread, Rab C. Nesbitt, the drama series Boys from the Blackstuff and the films Made in Britain and The Full Monty. A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Hancocks Half Hour was a famous BBC radio comedy series of the 1950s starring Tony Hancock. ... Frank Spencer sporting his trademark beret in a scene with Broadcaster David Jacobs Some Mothers Do Ave Em (1973-1978) was a BBC situation comedy, written by Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice. ... Shelley is a British sitcom originally broadcast on ITV from 1979 to 1992, with occasional hiatuses lasting between one and five years. ... Categories: Possible copyright violations ... Rab C. Nesbitt was a Scottish sitcom that ran from 1988 to 1999. ... Boys from the Blackstuff is a British television drama serial of five episodes, originally transmitted from October 10 to November 7, 1982 on BBC TWO. The serial was written by Liverpudlian playwright Alan Bleasdale, and was a sequel to a television play called The Black Stuff, which he had originally... Made in Britain is a state-of-the-nation style short film (70 minutes) directed by Alan Clarke and written by David Leland. ... This article is about the film. ...

In the black comedy series The League of Gentlemen, a recurring character is Pauline Campbell-Jones (played by Steve Pemberton), the demented leader of a Restart course for a group of unemployed (and unemployable) people. It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled Black comedy and List of black comedies, accessible from a disambiguation page. ... The League of Gentlemen is a troupe of British comedy performers, and the name of their stage, radio, and latterly television series. ... Steve Pemberton Steve Pemberton (b. ...

In music, the reggae group UB40 took their name from the card used to 'sign on' at the Unemployment Benefit office. The initials "DHSS" are recited several times by singer George Michael in Wham!'s 1983 hit single Wham Rap!, a tongue-in-cheek celebration of wilful unemployment. The first album by Half Man Half Biscuit was called Back in the DHSS, a play on the Beatles song Back in the USSR (which ironically was itself a parody of a Chuck Berry song). Reggae is a music genre developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. ... UB40 are a British dub/reggae band formed in 1978 in Birmingham. ... This article is about the musician. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) was a song by British pop duo Wham!, released in 1983 on Innervision records. ... Sarcasm is the making of remarks intended to mock the person referred to (who is normally the person addressed), a situation or thing. ... Nigel Blackwell, singer, guitarist and songwriter Half Man Half Biscuit, often abbreviated to HMHB, are a UK rock band from Birkenhead, active sporadically since the mid-1980s, known for their satirical, sardonic and sometimes surreal songs. ... Back in The D.H.S.S is the first album released by UK rock band Half Man Half Biscuit in 1985. ... The White Album, see The Beatles (album). ... Back in the U.S.S.R. is a song by The Beatles written by Paul McCartney (John Lennon shares songwriting credits), and which opens the double-disc album The Beatles (a. ... Charles Edward Anderson Chuck Berry (born 18 October 1926, St. ...

See also

• Unemployment
• Recruitment

This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Recruitment refers to the process of finding possible candidates for a job or function, usually undertaken by recruiters. ...

External links

• Jobcentre Plus job search
• Direct Gov jobs and training search
• Public and Commercial Services Union
• The Guardian
• Restart The Musical - Jobcentre-related Theatrical satire
• BBC report into the Work and Pensions Select Committee report into job cuts and poor services at Jobcentre Plus
• March 2006 Select Committee report into Efficiency Savings Programme in Jobcentre Plus
• Written and Oral evidence submitted to the Work and Pensions Select Committee into the failure of the Efficiency Savings Programme in Jobcentre Plus
• Varney Report (Pre Budget 2006) - transforming the delivery of public services. The review looks at how the channels through which services are delivered can be made more efficient and responsive to the needs of citizens and businesses.
• Employer Direct online - allows employers and agencies to register their vacancies on the national job bank