End of welfare to work?

A4e Work Programme dismal results 

It appears all that is needed for A4e is the final nail in the coffin, not only have A4e selected where to rest, the type of coffin and jumped in.. it has even put the lid on! They might have even planned and paid for the funeral.

What has once been a few fraud allegations and four arrests has been growing due to A4e stupidity. This began back in 2010 just before David Cameron appointed her. Emma Harrison CBE, got cocky – some would say too cocky – after the big relationship with the Government landed her an role paid in kind by opening doors for more contracts. A sort of gentleman’s agreement. Yes, Emma is a woman although a tom boy type – only female using chairman instead of chairperson. She plays a lot on it ffs Emma, there is women in business too!!

A4e, despite a large turnover, and nice profits, is a very poorly run enterprise. Criticised for every aspect of delivery (or lack of). Most popular in 2010 was failing to file business accounts (so did YMCA Training), losing peoples personal information, another fraud enquiry hotting up and if that wasn’t enough Emma Harrison CBE opened her big mouth saying cuts are fantastic!

A4e got fined a record £60,000 for the data security breach. Emma Harrison got appointed to work for the Government for free (in kind for contracts for A4e aka corruption). She upset a few people with her comments before trying to claim she never said the words or knew the person who did. Something along the lines of the person who wrote the story didn’t know her and never met her – the same can be said for me, I have never met her – doesn’t change the facts being reported here.

So at this point it wasn’t looking too good for A4e: fraud, fines, bad publicity, and doubt. They got away with it for another year or two… or so they thought. Previously been investigated and found guilty of fraud – they thought it would again be swept under the carpet so no one would notice. Indeed one wouldn’t, except it was clearly visible under the carpet… line a big hill or mountain.

They in effect created a time bomb, the problems didn’t go away, although the criticism died down for a while. It just got more intense waiting for the shit to hit the fan! In 2010, people had patience with A4e, it seems its growing thin now even with politicians.

What else went wrong? Emma Harrison CBE was greedy… she decided to pay herself (and other shareholders) a bumped dividend. All fair and well, (from a private company perspective, not performance/taxpayer perspective) but was at the wrong time. She couldn’t have any control over timing, so its fate. Appears her luck has run out forcing her to step down from A4e.

We will get to the Work Programme figures in a little while!!

Then what could get worse? A4e deploying PHA Media, a PR agency not solicitor, trying to censorship the internet and silence people it sees as a threat. Emma Harrison CBE threatening to sue everyone who stands in A4e’s way. Paying money into 2 companies and a pension fund for hiring out her home for meetings – which might be money laundering and tax evasion. And as recently, publishing statistics against DWP’s wishes, and hundreds of other documents; some of which are entitled “PRIVATE” in the filename without any other form of protection/security.

A4e cannot be trusted with taxpayer money, its own data OR jobseekers personal information!

The statistics…

A4e performance…crap!

Actually I have to shake the hand of A4e’s CEO, Andrew Dutton, soon to be legendary cowboy mastermind… with an electric shock handshake… with the current turned up!! How on earth can you deliver a scheme so terrible that those being on it could stand 15 times more chance of securing work without your help?

This lack of performance, whilst pocketing millions from the taxpayer, is clearly fraud in itself especially after claiming getting someone a job every 7 minutes. Its not a little white lie, but fraud!

Income

A total figure of 20,362 referrals @ 85.6% attachment rate leaves 17,430

The fee is £400 per jobseeker (excluding any outcome payments) – we are using this figure as we do not know the ratio of jobseekers to ESA claimants. The latter group is £600.

17,430 (people) x £400 (fee) = £6,972,000

(Note: A4e wouldn’t get to keep all this as some will be distributed to its partners etc.)

1812 people have entered work (of some description – could be a day or week – no expected outcome yet – 1426 without expected outcome – 386 with outcome expected) leaves a pre-outcome calculation of £3847 per person put into work. This figure will come down as many more are put into work.

As with those already expected for an outcome (386) makes £18,062 per person pre-outcome.

These are only revenue – not profits – overheads will need to be accounted for etc but we are displaying these figures due to the fact more people would have found work without A4e’s help so is this expenditure from the Government (or should I say taxpayers purse) justified?

Percentages

At current (as of this data) A4e has only managed a 1.9% outcome rate, frankly disgusting.

It has however, an 8.9% “Job Entry Rate” which is extremely poor, far below expectations of a poor performer under the Work Programme contracts.

Which percentage do we consider? The high or low one? The 8.9% figure would be a nice one as a benchmark but it solely considers that someone has had an offer of employment and that participants have not necessary obtained sustainable work suitable for a job outcome – excluding that included in the 1.9% of course. The 1.9% figure suggests around 2% (we are being generous) have entered a job expecting to last enough for a job outcome.

End of welfare to work?

Is this the end of welfare to work? Recently, the largest welfare to work provider of all time, announced founder and chairperson Emma Harrison CBE will quit as her company crumbles AND dodgy two-time Finance Director is stepping down again – ironically enough, in the new fiscal year following a fraud investigation that is promoted to the public, the second time.

The Government expects around 30% outcome as a natural occurrence of people finding work without provider help. Just how over half of people apparently sign off after 6 months and assumed to be in work. This might have something to do with time limited contributory based Jobseekers Allowance more than anything else.

This clearly shows that Welfare to Work:
* does not work
* is very expensive
* not good value to the taxpayer
* full of fraud

Ipswich Unemployed Action proposes that all welfare-to-work contracts are terminated with immediate effect with such money savings being spent on more important things like the NHS or making a move-on with the proposed High Speed rail project which is quite frankly a joke that keeps getting delayed and put off.

Actually I would rather they replaced the Downing Street gates with solid gold gates… one would say a waste of money but at least jobseekers and the disabled aren’t turned into slaves and abused!!

We also propose Direct Action against all welfare-to-work providers (prime contractors and subcontractors) alongside the existing actions against workfare. We demand benefit sanctions are abolished and providers such as A4e are prosecuted for fraud.