unemployed - sign on by text !!!

PCPhoto · 28-05-2010 09:32AM #1

Seriously .... theres something fundamentally wrong with the people in the government.... talk about trying to encourage thole on the dole to become lazier*

*= not claiming that dole recipients are lazy or anything like that.

http://examiner.ie/ireland/social-welfare-claimants-to-sign-on-via-text-120978.html

JUST a year after it said social welfare recipients should produce photo ID because it was losing millions in fraudulent claims, the Government is planning to let claimants "sign on" by text.

In a move which Fine Gael TDs say will leave the system wide open to fraud, the Department for Social Protection has awarded a €1m contract to Hewlett Packard in Kildare to "develop and support a mobile phone-based solution for dynamic selection of and self-certification by claimants of unemployment benefits".

To qualify for jobseeker’s benefit or jobseeker’s allowance, a jobseeker must fulfil a number of conditions, including being available for and genuinely seeking work. At regular intervals they must make a declaration that they are still unemployed, available for and actively seeking work.

At present this certification process is done by attending the social welfare local office. However, the department’s new project "examines the potential to develop an additional channel for Jobseeker’s certification via the mobile phone".

It said selected customers would be invited to register for and avail of this service, which would be rolled out on a phased basis, once a "solution performance evaluation" process has been completed.

"This service will potentially allow people who receive Jobseeker’s Allowance and Jobseeker’s Benefit to complete the certification process by mobile phone," a spokeswoman said.

"Potentially the service will provide an alternative to the requirement for Jobseeker’s Allowance and Jobseeker’s Benefit claimants to attend their Social Welfare Local Office to certify and it will provide improved customer service and also reduce the departmental resources required to administer certification."

Cost savings would accrue from reducing the effort required to certify jobseekers at the department’s local offices, meaning staff would be freed to concentrate on client, claim, payment and control issues. However, Fine Gael’s social and family affairs spokes-woman Olwyn Enright said the proposed scheme left "huge room" for fraud, for example claiming while not even in the country.

"Why did they bother changing the legislation so that new people have to sign on and be visible?"

Last year a spot check found up to 10% of dole claims were fraudulent – mostly made by, or in the name of, people living outside of Ireland. At the time it was decided photographic identification would be required of the growing number of people collecting the dole and other social welfare payments.

Hewlett Packard has refused to comment on the new scheme.

Minstrel27 · 28-05-2010 09:33AM

How easy is it going to be to defraud the system now. They have lost their minds in Leinster House.

Fuhrer · 28-05-2010 09:33AM

Walking down to the office and signing a few pieces of paper is hard.

and the unemployed are busy enough as it is, you cant expect them to have to do that in person.

WindSock · 28-05-2010 09:39AM

Handy to know for when I leave the country to get another job. Oh but you still have to collect from the Post Office now though?

Bazzy · 28-05-2010 09:47AM

in before mary harney is mentioned

sponsoredwalk · 28-05-2010 09:52AM

PCPhoto wrote: »

Seriously .... theres something fundamentally wrong with the people in the government.... talk about trying to encourage thole on the dole to become lazier*

I don't understand how freeing up the employees to devote more time to dealing with claims & reviewing cases will increase fraud? You would think with more time on employee's hands they could cross examine people more, investigate suspicious claims etc...

It would seem to me that that is the view taken by these people & that they have a viable plan in order to convince the government to go along with the situation.

Also, why does the author include 'Fine Gael TD's'? Why them??

Truley · 28-05-2010 09:53AM

Blah Blah Blah the dole is too much/too easy to get noone will want to get a job now and the country will implode on itself... They should all be given loaves of bread ... I pay taxes etc etc *gets coat*

munchkin_utd · 28-05-2010 09:55AM

so someone on the dole can now sign on from the beach in Lanzarotte by text!

Niiiiiiiice!!!

stovelid · 28-05-2010 09:57AM

People should be forced to walk to the furthest possible dole office from their home to sign on. In bare feet. And carrying a rucksack full of bricks.

And OP, despite your protestations, lazier is the comparative of lazy which implies that those who become lazier are indubitably lazy to begin with. I suggest you rephrase if, as you say, you don't want to imply that people on the dole are lazy.

biko · 28-05-2010 09:59AM

They should hand out the dole every day at 9 somewhere in town.
It would be like having a job to get up to but then you get the rest of the day off.

LoanShark · 28-05-2010 10:02AM

Why couldn't this have been available when I was on the Dole????

All those mornings I had to stand in line in the rain and snow and the hail, When I could have stayed in the bed and signed on by text!!

This country makes so many efforts to stop fradulant claims and ALMOST succeeds, then they do something stupid like this.....Back to Square one!!

Antar Bolaeisk · 28-05-2010 10:04AM

Something like this could work but they could do a random check telling them to go into the office to get their allowance every couple of weeks as a means of cutting down on fraud. If it saves money while not opening up the Dole to massive abuse then it's not too bad.

Of course the easiest way to save money would be to axe the dole....

Stark · 28-05-2010 10:05AM

WindSock wrote: »

Handy to know for when I leave the country to get another job. Oh but you still have to collect from the Post Office now though?

I got it transferred directly to my bank account when I was between jobs before. As far as I know, you still can. Only had to call in once a month to confirm I was still in the country.

Standard Toaster · 28-05-2010 10:06AM

You can shedule sending texts on most online mobile sites.

That's it, handing in notice today

gsxr1 · 28-05-2010 10:13AM

there is some bull**** comments on here.

Seriously .... theres something fundamentally wrong with the people in the government.... talk about trying to encourage thole on the dole to become lazier*

*= not claiming that dole recipients are lazy or anything like that.

They should hand out the dole every day at 9 somewhere in town.
It would be like having a job to get up to but then you get the rest of the day off.

People should be forced to walk to the furthest possible dole office from their home to sign on. In bare feet. And carrying a rucksack full of bricks.

And OP, despite your protestations, lazier is the comparative of lazy which implies that those who become lazier are indubitably lazy to begin with. I suggest you rephrase if, as you say, you don't want to imply that people on the dole are lazy.

Do you *****les truly believe that people are unemployed by there own fault!!

Why not go up to Pfizer right now and talk like that. Yeah . The small group of the 100000s who have all there stamps payed and have now no work to go to anymore.

Ye wont be so smug when it happens to yourselves.

as for texting . Its sounds silly to me . If they cant handle the volume, why not employ some of the people crying out to work .

Fizman · 28-05-2010 10:16AM

This government are so far down the syndrome scale that they need to come up for air.

Mr Benevolent · 28-05-2010 10:19AM

At last, the government has a single good idea.

Chorcai · 28-05-2010 10:24AM

Stark wrote: »

I got it transferred directly to my bank account when I was between jobs before. As far as I know, you still can. Only had to call in once a month to confirm I was still in the country.

Last time I signed on was in Sept, everytime I collect at the post office my signing on date gets pushed forward it's now out to the 22/6. I only had to sign on once so far. Bit of a joke if ya ask me.

I don't know how it works if it's paid into the bank, is there a note/comment left by the SW when you get your statment ?

xhappyx · 28-05-2010 10:29AM

The system is totally screwed up anyway so why not add on something even more ridiculous. For those who think that those on the dole are "lazy" - think again. I have been working for 20 years, paid tens of thousands in taxes and have made redundant. It is humiliating to say the least to have people call you lazy when you spend hours per day trying to find work only to get a PFO letter (if you are lucky!), usually they don't even bother to acknowledge or respond to your application. I spent 1.5 hours in the dole office on Tues last while 6 people sat behind cubicles and not one person was called to the counter for a full 20mins. The place was packed and they didn't give a damn. I only went there in person because no one answered the repeated telephone calls which I made. There was not even an answering machine to leave an irate message on. So finally, if they don't answer the phones, who is going to check the text messages.

28-05-2010 10:32AM

Having to queue up at the welfare office to sign on is no deterrent to fraud. They removed the option to have your dole transferred to a bank account (except in highly specialized circumstances), so you have to go down to the post office and sign for your payment every week anyway. Sign-on days take up a lot of resources from the welfare offices and doesn't do anything useful, so why not get rid of it?

Stark · 28-05-2010 10:35AM

Chorcai wrote: »

Last time I signed on was in Sept, everytime I collect at the post office my signing on date gets pushed forward it's now out to the 22/6. I only had to sign on once so far. Bit of a joke if ya ask me.

I don't know how it works if it's paid into the bank, is there a note/comment left by the SW when you get your statment ?

You see "CT DFSA" or something similar on your statement.

28-05-2010 10:38AM

Text messaging is tracable, if the text was sent from and unusual source it would be easy to spot!

Anyway, random spotchecks would be a far more efficient way to catch fraudsters.

gsxr1 · 28-05-2010 10:41AM

xhappyx wrote: »

The system is totally screwed up anyway so why not add on something even more ridiculous. For those who think that those on the dole are "lazy" - think again. I have been working for 20 years, paid tens of thousands in taxes and have made redundant. It is humiliating to say the least to have people call you lazy when you spend hours per day trying to find work only to get a PFO letter (if you are lucky!), usually they don't even bother to acknowledge or respond to your application. I spent 1.5 hours in the dole office on Tues last while 6 people sat behind cubicles and not one person was called to the counter for a full 20mins. The place was packed and they didn't give a damn. I only went there in person because no one answered the repeated telephone calls which I made. There was not even an answering machine to leave an irate message on. So finally, if they don't answer the phones, who is going to check the text messages.

as said. If they took a few off the dole. Even part time just to help out with admin.

I am off it for now. But know how frustrating it is up there. Even if you have to get a insurance claim form stamped. Its 4 hours in a line.

It seems strange that every 3rd or 4th applicant needs to bring an east European interpretor to communicate in English. There is something really fishy going on there.

If they tightened up on security against the fraud then there would be less admin work in the long run

liah · 28-05-2010 10:41AM

I was about to be shocked, then I remembered this is the same country that accidentally banned cigarettes and has a blasphemy law in place.

Somehow not surprised.

Thepones · 28-05-2010 10:42AM

If they really are discussing something like "signing on by mobile service" then they all should be sectioned.

Mongs

marco_polo · 28-05-2010 10:49AM

I work in IT athough for any of the parties involved, From what I have heard throught 'unofficial pub channels' is that the system will have the ability to initiate automated spot check calls, incorporating voice recognition technology, to ensure that the right person answers the call, as well as the ability to tell if that person is in the country or not from the mobile ringtone.

But anyway rabble rabble rabble .......

Thepones · 28-05-2010 10:52AM

What if you run out of credit though. Will they set up an allowance for that?

gsxr1 · 28-05-2010 10:53AM

marco_polo wrote: »

I work in IT athough for any of the parties involved, From what I have heard throught 'unofficial pub channels' is that the system will have the ability to initiate automated spot check calls, incorporating voice recognition technology, to ensure that the right person answers the call, as well as the ability to tell if that person is in the country or not from the mobile ringtone.

But anyway rabble rabble rabble .......

What if your missus answered your phone. Jasuzzzz. imagine the trouble ye would get into lol

Banned Account · 28-05-2010 10:54AM

This is the most ridiculous idea I have ever heard.

punchdrunk · 28-05-2010 10:55AM

as a dole stealing lowlife myself,I whole heartedly welcome this venture

it means I don't have to wash clean clothes to leave the house that day
and can stay in,watch Jeremy kyle and shoot up between my toes

Banned Account · 28-05-2010 10:59AM

punchdrunk wrote: »

as a dole stealing lowlife myself,I whole heartedly welcome this venture

it means I don't have to wash clean clothes to leave the house that day
and can stay in,watch Jeremy kyle and shoot up between my toes

You still have the toe option available? - obviously not long term unemployed then, I just used the last of my mickey yesterday.

unemployed - sign on by text !!!

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