I never received my “Brucey Bonus” from Ingeus! Hehehe… Because of all my problems with them, and all the negotiating for my £30 prize for winning a competition, they would only pay me the £130 once I had started work, so I slapped my consent withdrawal letter on my advisors desk! I’ve re-signed the letter now “silly me” but, only because I wanted to be referred to Sencia for 18 weeks. I’m on my second week with them, dull & boring courses like basic computer usage (e-mails etc)… Anything’s better than Ingeus I suppose. What happens is… If I find a job then : · Ingeus get their Brucey Bonuses · Then, Sencia get their cut · Whilst I earn £6 an hour, for a job that I found myself! Lol I’m not sure if I did need to re-sign consent with Ingeus? I’m assuming I did so that they could pass my details onto Sencia? This Sencia place won’t pay my parking but pay 25p per mile, whereas Ingeus pay 20p per mile, Its swings and roundabouts I suppose. I like it at Sencia, they have a more relaxed approach to job searching, whereas Ingeus treat you like a prisoner/army soldier/regimental approach! Lol Ingeus can have their £130, I’m with Sencia now so I’m trying to claim money for a suit. Hopefully I will find a job within the 18 weeks I’m with Sencia, so I can live a better life… What does worry me though is the whole “Sanction” process!!! I really need to be careful of what job I take and sign off to do. I was lucky that illegal activities were going on with my previous employment… So, when I get another job offer I’m going to do a work trial before I sign off!!! Thanks for all the help!

I won my appeal with this letter…. Dear Sir/Madam, I am writing this to disagree with your decision that I am not entitled to JSA as per your letter dated 28/05/12. I would first like to say I’ve been actively seeking work whilst I’ve been claiming job seekers allowance, and regularly participate in the work programme 3-5 times a week to do Job searches etc. I’m currently with Ingeus and apply for 20-30 jobs per week as stated in my job seekers agreement. I’ve even attended an interview in Stoke on Trent, which is 70 miles away. I’ve had lots of interviews recently and I even send spec letters, and do anything I can to seek employment. I have even attended two interviews this weekend (9th and 10th June). I can also provide evidence of jobs applied for recently if required. Moving onto the case in question: I attended an interview at $£%%£^ social club in late March, which $£%£%^ (the manager) gave me. I was more or less offered the job straight away, but I needed a Personal Licence before I could start. I then proceeded to Ingeus based in Preston for some financial help towards my Personal Licence, to which I was told they couldn’t provide any financial assistance. So, off to Preston job centre I went to ask for some advice/possible funding. I was told it’s the work programmes duty to help with any funding. I then went back to Ingeus, who then offered me £100, but only once I had started my Job! So, in other words, pay for the licence yourself and when you start the Job we will reimburse the costs! I fell out with Ingeus at this point and my father funded me the £110 plus the £70 for the licence and CRB check. I then paid for the BIIAB course and passed. I then did my first shift at %$£%^£^ Social Club on 02/04/2012, which at first I thoroughly enjoyed. Although, the only training I was given was for about 10-15 minutes and I soon realised that I shouldn’t be making any mistakes! I was not happy with this due to the fact that I had never worked there before, never handled their tills and obviously did not know what offers were on. When I asked for some help, %£"$%"$ aggressively shouted at me “I’ve already told you once”. I’ve never worked for a company before which on my first day made me feel as uncomfortable as that. I was very surprised that I was expected to know everything and not make any mistakes given the training that was given. I believe that I should have been treated with a little more care on my first day, and more help given to me when asked, rather than aggressive shouting by the manager when I asked for help. I was also met with abusive customers who shouted foul language at me; they were heavily drunk and could hardly stand up. I’ve worked behind a bar in the past and I wasn’t allowed to serve customers like that. When I confronted my Manager ($^£%^£%£) she called these drunks regulars, and said I should serve them. Whilst I did by BIIAB exam (Certificate for Personal Licence Holders) I was informed that serving drunks was an offence under the Licensing Act 2003 (please see attached sheet for full details of the law). You may ask how I could tell that these customers were drunk. Well, abusive behaviour and staggering customers were the give-away. I was expected to serve them in this state, due to them being called “regulars” by my Manager. I was very uncomfortable serving them knowing full well the consequences if I was to get caught on a spot check. This would also mean that I would lose my personal licence and this would also mean losing out on any future jobs that require me to have the licence. This is the main reason why I felt I could not continue my employment with ^$£^%£% Social Club. I would also like to mention that a 15 year old glass collector who works for ^$£^%£% Social Club drinks alcohol that has been bought for him on the premises. I never mentioned this in the past, as I thought my other reasons for ending my Job early would have been sufficient evidence. I now hope that you understand all the reasons why I left my job voluntarily giving all the facts I have stated above. Please reconsider your decision and if you cannot reconsider then please accept this as my appeal. I look forward to hearing back from you soon.

Thanks everyone… Imagine if I got caught serving a drunk and got slapped a massive fine, do you think DWP would pay it? I think not! Like debt4get says I think I need to cite the “law”. I’ll fill in the GL24 form and update you all, in the meantime its play the waiting game…

Only my experience which obviously wasn’t a good enough reason according to the decision maker. I feel like contacting my local Police Station and reporting the Pub for selling drinks to underage people (15 year old lad) Oh $£%£ I should have given this as a reason too, Damn! Plus, they might send a Police officer to do an inspection, and then I can get my benefits sorted out…

I need some advice please… I passed my Personal Licence exam in March which I had to fund myself at nearly £200! I started a Bar Job in April, but only lasted for 2 days. The Manager was a complete nightmare, and she expected me to serve drunks etc… She called these drunks “regulars” and half the time they could hardly stand up! I refused to serve them due to the fact that it’s against the law to serve a drunk which could lead to a fine in the thousands! I then proceeded to do a rapid-reclaim and was questioned why I had left etc…I responded with the fact that I was expected to serve drunks, and I didn’t want to risk breaking the law etc. I received a letter from the job centre saying I’m sanctioned for 3 months!!! Wtf!!! So, the job centre expect me to break the law? Can someone please advise me of how to appeal, and what to say? Cheers, Rick

You were right! I now await a letter/phone call from Ingeus…

Well, if Ingeus want to contact me then fair enough. They’ve never contacted me since I started my previous job, so I will wait and see… Cheers, Rick

@flumps1976 I have a rapid-reclaim appointment on Wednesday. My local Job Centre accepted my reasons for ending the Job early and have agreed to pay me. You’ve probably read my previous posts regarding my Personal Licence and Ingeus? Well, I know I’m assigned to Ingeus for a 2 years period, but what happens next?... Will my Job Centre contact Ingeus, or am I expected to contact them myself? Should I take my withdrawal of consent letter with me to my appointment, to highlight the reasons/problems I had with Ingeus before I signed off? Cheers, Rick

I tried negotiating for a Personal Licence pay-out, but they would only meet me half way! You can try negotiating with the “pimps” but they can be tough at times. I dealt with things in the wrong way to be honest. I should have given Ingeus the option, either they can have my withdrawal of consent letter, or the cash in my bank/back pocket by 5pm! I ended up quitting the job I started, due to mistreatment by my boss. I have 2 interviews today so hope to be back in employment soon! Otherwise it’s the rapid reclaim route, and the sanction stamp from Ingeus for what I did to them. Hehehehe…………

Someone call 999, hahaha I nearly had an heart attack from laughing! Yes I did stand up to them as it was needed. They refused to pay my £30 prize for winning a competition until they confirmed the job with my new employer. I turned down £130 from Ingeus, and also the £100 back to work grant? I’m not sure if I will get the £100 back to work grant, but I will wait and see. When dealing with Private companies like Ingeus, would they have paid the £130 once they received the job outcome? I didn’t want to take the risk to be honest! If this job go’s pear shaped I’ll be in a horrible situation! Imagine doing a rapid-reclaim and having to be sent back to Ingeus. The sanction stamp would always be next to me! Lol. I’m sure Ingeus would make my life a living hell! So, I need to stick out this job whether I love it or not.

Congratulations on finding yourself a job! I wish you all the best with your new career. I found my job myself, so why should Ingeus get any money from all the hard work I put in?!?! Yes, Ingeus do help with Travel costs and other things. But when I asked for help regarding a personal license they refused to help me. I had to negotiate with Ingeus who then offered me £100, but only once they knew my new employer details. You say the younger generation expect to be handed everything on a plate?...Obviously you know me because I am young? I believe Ingeus expect everything on a plate! They wanted to claim outcome related payments for doing nothing! I FOUND THE JOB MYSELF!!! I loved the look on my Advisors face when I gave him my withdrawal of consent letter.

I’ve been lucky! Ingeus never placed me with another company whilst I was with them. Ive been released from Prison and back on the work ladder once again. As the old saying goes… “Don’t do the crime if ya can’t do the time!” What crime you may ask?... None what so ever! I believe that being placed on these work programmes, is like being sent to Prison for up to 2 years. I would get a better response from a Blackpool Donkey than from an Ingeus Advisor (lol). I hope this work programme goes “down under” where it belongs, back in Australia where it started!

Ingeus is a hell hole!!! The place made me depressed and angry. I’m really glad I’ll be working in the next few weeks. Not once have I felt helped by Ingeus and their staff… I get myself a job and they “refuse” to pay for my Personal License. It’s not like I was asking for £800-£1000 for a HGV test/License! My Advisor told me I’ve been reimbursed £242 in travel since I started. I explained that I’ve never claimed for a suit/shoes etc… In the long run it would cost Ingeus more to keep paying my £3-20 travel everyday! I attend 4-5 times a week to do my job searches. Imagine if I didn’t take this job offer and continued to keep attending Ingeus everyday… Ingeus need to realise that funding money into a job outcome (within reason) is better than just stupidly handing it out for other things.

I’d work in a sex shop for free! haha, just kidding…

I had an Interview today and got the job. As the old saying go’s it’s not what you know, it’s who you know! It’s a Bar job (24 Hours Min) so better than what the dole pays. I need a Personal License though which I assumed Ingeus would pay for… I then proceeded to tell Ingeus the good news to which I was told we can’t fund nearly £200! I explained that it’s a guaranteed job but i cant start it without a Personal License and.... I don’t have £200 spare!!! I asked my Job Centre for help to which they also said no! Back to Ingeus I went to be told they could fund £100 towards it if I provide evidence (Written/Signed) The thing that bugs me is I’ve never claimed for a Suit/Shoes. People I know have been claiming £60 suits for interviews, yet all I want is a Personal License for a guaranteed job outcome.

@ HELLY13 I don’t know anything about Scientiam to be honest... All my appointments seem to be with Ingeus at the moment, but I’ve heard that some Ingeus clients get referred to other Private companies. The sooner I get a job the better! Being unemployed is making me feel so depressed at times. I attend the Preston Ingeus branch most days to do my job search. I do like the facilities they provide to be honest, I take full advantage of the printer/Franking Machine. I think these Private sector companies such as Ingeus/A4e would have a better reputation if they concentrated on finding you the “right job”. With the Government throwing money away to these companies, it would be better if they put this money into Education and Training. Like the old YTS schemes, but for Adults!

Thanks! I was just curious to be honest… What an employer says to Ingeus is out of my hands! I’m trying to find out the ins and outs of how these Private sector companies work. I’m in £3000 worth of debt from a failed self-employed venture over a year ago. I can only just about afford the min payments, so when I get a job it will take me a year to pay off my debts. Ingeus would come out better off than me! Lol…

I’ve signed the waiver form so Ingeus can/could contact a potential employer. What would happen if I found myself a job and my new employer refused to give information about me?... Does this then mean that Ingeus would struggle to claim from myself getting a job? I’ve heard people say that Ingeus need to find out the employers full name? My point being… Would this Waiver form be “void” if a new employer didn’t give any information?

Hey, http://www.uplandsrecruitment.co.uk/ I don’t know too much about them to be honest. Tina (Managing Director) who interviewed me seemed nice, but she promised to call me at 1:30pm today and failed to contact me. I won’t be applying for another agency job if this is how they treat me! I hate it when someone promises to contact you by phone and doesn’t. To be honest all this job searching is making me feel depressed. I’m applying for over 50 jobs a week and rarely hearing back from any. Job searching is a “full time job” and the moment that the “Employed” people realise this the better!

I applied for a job yesterday through the job centre website. I didn’t realise it was through a recruitment agency until I turned up for the interview this morning. The Interview was held at Marriot Hotel based in Preston, but when I asked more about the job the interview Lady politely said “I can’t tell you where the job is based”. I don’t understand why she wouldn’t tell me more about the job? So, what am I supposed to do? If she offers me the job and I say yes… But then realise it’s not the right place for me! I’ve never had a job through a Recruitment agency before, and to give Ingeus some credit at least they tell you where the job is etc.

I applied for a job with A4e and I got this “fantastic” e-mail! :- Hi Richard Vacancy Ref: JN464, Thank you for your recent interest in joining A4e and for taking the time to apply. Unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances we have had to put this vacancy on hold for the time being. Please be assured that this decision is in no way a reflection on your skills or suitability for the role. We appreciate that this is disappointing news and please accept our apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused you. We will be in touch with you as soon as we can with an update. In the meantime we would encourage you to continue to visit our careers website www.a4ecareers.com where you can view the most up to date list of our current vacancies. Thank you once again for your time and interest in A4e. Kind Regards HR Resourcing Team ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Don’t tell Ingeus I applied for a job with A4e! lol…..

Yeah I have a telephone interview next week so please enlighten me. I was informed it would last 30 minutes and would include role play, and why you want to work for us etc...

Ahhhhhh Bisto!

silv.surfer... I sent you a Message yesterday. Bizzaro... Did you get an email regarding a telephone interview? If so, did you do it? I asked my advisor at the job centre last Tuesday about college and Learn Direct courses. My Advisor said they have lost the contract for Learn Direct??? Can anyone update me?

Really good watch!