Posts Tagged ‘Jobseeker’s Allowance’

Guest blog: Universal Credit and the legacy of JSA sanctions

March 19, 2018     Leave a Comment

Much of the recent debate surrounding the controversial rollout of Universal Credit (UC) has focused on the six week wait for UC claimants to receive support. One core feature of UC that has been largely overlooked in this discussion, however, is the disciplinary role of sanctions and the various adverse impacts that they have on individuals. In this new blog, researcher Evan Williams shows how the rise of sanctioning in UK social security has transferred to the new system.

Universal Credit and the legacy of JSA sanctions

March 19, 2018     Leave a Comment

Researcher Evan Williams shows how the rise of sanctioning in UK social security has transferred to the new system

Much of the recent media, think tank and parliamentary debate surrounding the controversial rollout of Universal Credit (UC) has focused on the harmful six week wait for UC claimants to receive support. One core feature of UC that has been largely overlooked in this discussion, however, is the disciplinary role of sanctions and the various adverse impacts that they have on individuals. This short piece provides some context to the current UC sanctions regime by focusing on sanctioning policy for Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) claimants – one of the six existing means-tested benefits that UC replaces – under the previous Coalition Government (2010-2015). Read More

Guest blog: sanctions and the right to human dignity

November 18, 2015     Leave a Comment

Our latest guest blogger Mark Simpson of Ulster University explores questions about what respect for human dignity means in law. Following unsuccessful judicial challenges on human rights grounds to the household benefit cap and to mandatory work placements, he considers whether the fundamental right to human dignity is respected by a third pillar of the UK’s ‘welfare-to-work’ regime – Jobseeker’s Allowance sanctions. Read the blog here

The right to human dignity in the workfare state

November 18, 2015     Leave a Comment

Following unsuccessful judicial challenges on human rights grounds to the household benefit cap and to mandatory work placements, Mark Simpson of Ulster University considers whether the fundamental right to human dignity is respected by a third pillar of the UK’s ‘welfare-to-work’ regime – Jobseeker’s Allowance sanctions

Human dignity is a fundamental concept in human rights law, whose protection is arguably the objective of all human rights. Although a precise definition can be elusive, Christopher McCrudden (writing in the European Journal of International Law) proposes that dignity demands: protection from inhuman and degrading treatment, ability to meet one’s essential needs, individual autonomy and protection of cultural identity. Read More

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