Those who work more than nine hours but still claim Universal Credit are on the so-called ‘light contact’ scheme, meaning they don’t have to go to jobcentres on a regular basis and don’t have access to job coaches. From next week, that limit will rise to 12 hours and Mr Kwarteng will announce that from January it will rise to 15 hours, meaning anyone earning less than £618 a month will be subject to the more intensive regime. The changes will apply in England, Scotland and Wales. The proposed changes will affect 120,000 people.
“People who work extra hours are better off”
Under the scheme, newly unemployed over-50s will receive nine months of targeted sessions with a job coach, and over-50s who have been unemployed for a year or more will receive a booster session followed by three months of intensive employment support. A Treasury spokesman said people working extra hours would be better off as their income would be higher than the Universal Credit payments they would otherwise rely on. It will also save taxpayers money because people will be earning money instead of being given handouts. Anyone working full-time on the National Living Wage currently earns around £130 a week more than they would be given on Universal Credit. Chloe Smith, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said the new regime would “remove barriers to progress”.
