The WCA - what "work" does it mean?

See link below.

http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2011-10-18a.74139.h&s=speaker%3A10920#g74139.r0

Chris Grayling claims suppliers have longer than ever to find people sustained jobs through the infamous "Work Programme" and they will need it.  There is a whole raft of issues in this area that have not been thought through, not least of which is the fact the WCA itself does not establish quite what type of work it is checking your capabilities to perform – a steeplejack or a mattress tester?  This is a bit like using a pass/fail QA process without knowing what the test criteria are. 

DWP tries to step round this by claiming you are tested for “general work” whatever that means.  I have asked them to give me some examples of jobs they think I could do and jobs they think I could not manage, but they refuse.  When I give them the examples for a yes/no, they won’t answer these either.  Nor will they explain the characteristics of the type of work they say I can do – full time or part time, shifts etc.  – all a complete cop-out! 

Likewise, the WCA pays little or no attention to the basic disciplines needed to holds down a job – getting there at the same time every day with a condition that is variable, for example.

The way this works according to DWP is that you then discuss any constraints with JC Plus staff, by which time your ESA has stopped and you may be receiving JSA.  You may of course find that the constraints are such that there are realistically no jobs that fit the bill – even at times when overall unemployment is far lower than it us now.  So what happens then as there is no route back to ESA?  They will no doubt manufacture a situation where your inability to find a job is purely your own fault and then stop JSA too – you are just not looking hard enough I’m afraid. 

Do not be under any illusion that there is any intention to help you back into your career/profession – you will be expected to apply for anything and everything.