Less than one week out of the country, on JSA

CamillaRhodes

Hi, I've just signed up for JSA though it hasn't come through yet (and am hoping it will do so in the next few weeks). My boyfriend is living overseas and I really need to see him for a little bit, chase the lonely blues away. I've read about the 2 week holiday entitlement, for which I know I need to fill in a form, but I wasn't planning on going away for so long, maybe just 4 or 5 days (that's all I can afford!) So my question is, if I'm going to be out of the country (and therefore not actively looking for work in Ireland), but I won't miss my sign-on/payment day, do I still need to inform the social? And if so, does it get deducted from my 2 week allowance?

It's possible my assessment won't even have come through by the time I want to go (a month from now, and I submitted my application 10 days ago), so if I've heard nothing from the social in the meantime, what should I do?

I was also wondering if the same would apply if I went over to London looking for a job? I've begun to realise I have much better employment options over there, but am reluctant to move over there with all the expense that entails until I've sussed things out over there a bit, maybe visited a few recruitment agencies, that sort of thing. Again, I would try to time it to go in between my sign-on/payment day (Tues).

Thanks for any guidance.

Xiney

you do have to tell them that you're going.

However, if you go somewhere to look for work, I'm not sure if they deduct that from your holidays.

CamillaRhodes

Ok thanks Xiney - can I ask who I tell, and how? i.e. does it need to be in writing, and/or do i need to go down to my SWO, or can I just do it at the post office?

And do the same questions apply if my application hasn't been approved by then?!?

Xiney

you have to go down to your social welfare office

if they try to contact you and you're out of the country and you haven't told them, they will assume you are trying to hide it from them which is fraud.

It doesn't matter that they haven't dealt with your application yet.

CamillaRhodes

Thanks for your prompt responses, Xiney, it sounds like you know what you're talking about. I don't mean to play devil's advocate with you, but:

- I should go down to the social and queue up for another 90 minutes, in order to do what exactly? Just inform somebody verbally that I'm going away for a few days, or do I have a form to fill in, or...? Knowing how busy my local SWO is, it seems rather excessive to go through such a procedure unless it's formally recorded in some way...

- Hypothetically (of course still playing devil's advocate), if I didn't inform anybody, but was still contactable by mobile etc, why would it be any different if I was in Budapest rather than Cork, for example? Let's be honest, not every single job seeker spends every minute of every day of unemployment actively job-seeking. In fact, some days we spend with our loved ones, not job-seeking but trying to preserve our sanity, whether we're doing it in Dublin or Cork or elsewhere. (Sorry if this offends anybody, but try spending a signficant portion of your life feeling like a professional failure with a desolate future and see how long it takes you to be in need of some support from your loved ones). If the social wanted to contact me, and I remained contactable (i.e. on my mobile), but was not at my home address for a few days, what would be the consequences?

Why is it fraud to not be at my home address every day? Surely they don't expect that job-seekers sit at home all day every day waiting for the phone to ring? (Not exactly proactive job-seeking behaviour, in my experience)

tommy21

CamillaRhodes wrote: »

Thanks for your prompt responses, Xiney, it sounds like you know what you're talking about. I don't mean to play devil's advocate with you, but:

- I should go down to the social and queue up for another 90 minutes, in order to do what exactly? Just inform somebody verbally that I'm going away for a few days, or do I have a form to fill in, or...? Knowing how busy my local SWO is, it seems rather excessive to go through such a procedure unless it's formally recorded in some way...

- Hypothetically (of course still playing devil's advocate), if I didn't inform anybody, but was still contactable by mobile etc, why would it be any different if I was in Budapest rather than Cork, for example? Let's be honest, not every single job seeker spends every minute of every day of unemployment actively job-seeking. In fact, some days we spend with our loved ones, not job-seeking but trying to preserve our sanity, whether we're doing it in Dublin or Cork or elsewhere. (Sorry if this offends anybody, but try spending a signficant portion of your life feeling like a professional failure with a desolate future and see how long it takes you to be in need of some support from your loved ones). If the social wanted to contact me, and I remained contactable (i.e. on my mobile), but was not at my home address for a few days, what would be the consequences?

Why is it fraud to not be at my home address every day? Surely they don't expect that job-seekers sit at home all day every day waiting for the phone to ring? (Not exactly proactive job-seeking behaviour, in my experience)

Look you seem very nice but on here nobody is going to tell you that you can go and commit fraud, because that's what it is.Of course nobody spends every day job searching but say your abroad and applying for jobs and the owner tells you to come in the following day for an interview? It also comes down to fairness. The vast majority of people won't head off without telling the welfare because of a common sense of decency. I get that your feeling lonely but I think it best to go in and declare it. I even did this when I went to Dublin for 2 days a couple of months back. The social welfare can just as easily send an inspector to your house without notice, it is rare enough they give notice of their impending arrival. If they discover your out of the country they will not look kindly on it. Also take into account if your means are being tested and they see you took out money from a foreign ATM when your abroad, this would be another measure of finding out. If you go down to the social welfare they will have you fill out a form. Just my two cents, up to you at end of day and hope its not patronizing. A frustrating situation but since you say you only have enough money for 4/5 days anyway, why take the risk of being struck off social welfare when you come back?

tailgunner

It is a hassle having to go into the office and queue for over an hour just to fill out a form, but that's the way it is unfortunately. You have to look at it (job-hunting) sort of like a job in itself. If you need a few days off work, you have to inform your employer (social welfare office) in advance, same as everybody else who is lucky enough to be employed.

Xiney

absolutely - jobseeking is your job right now, and the government is paying you to do it.

Sure, you don't spend every hour of every day looking for work, but you are AVAILABLE for work if an employer were to call you and ask you to come in that afternoon or the following morning.

Bring a book, go in, wait to be called to the desk (I sometimes go out for a coffee if I can tell it's going to be more than an hour) and you'll fill out your holiday sheet with them there. They keep it in your file so there's no other way to do it.

CamillaRhodes

Fair enough guys, I take all your comments in grace. Once/if I get some flights booked, I'll head down for a reading session in the social.

Your time taken in responding is much appreciated, ta