MSM hacks are VILIFYING the disabled

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[mashfnch]

This is psychotic, I have worked as an access to work support worker for individuals with both physical disabilities and those who are neurodivergent and this article paints a picture that could not be further from the truth.

Getting access to work is a process that takes the overwhelming majority of disabled workers over 6 months to gain access to, is extremely difficult to negotiate with to advocate for adjustments. It used to only take 4 weeks some years ago but it keeps getting harder and harder.

You can only have access to work for 3 years and it is hyper means tested, regularly reviewed and the only thing that you consistently can get without much pushback is travel costs if you have conditions that affect your ability to use or access transport. There is very little flexibility in terms of the support you receive unless you advocate and explain your needs very precisely (just like all disability benefits) and almost 0 actual practical guidance on how to navigate the bureaucracy

Many disabled workers simply cannot hold down their jobs with 0 support during that waiting time and the overwhelming majority of companies, even 'disability confident' ones will fight you on even the smallest adjustments yet still refuse to assist you with applying for access to work so that the cost of employing you is offset for them.

And then when you do finally get access to work your employer will constantly be hounding you about how much money they can claim back from access to work because the cost is backdated and involves filling out a set of extremely tedious forms in a very specific way that is never actually explained. They will then often reject them and refuse to reimburse your employer without fully guiding you through why they were rejected in many cases. The online portals don't work properly and the whole program is so underfunded and understaffed that you can't get hold of anyone.

This is before you even get into who the real scammers are, which are the companies that overcharge employers for equipment, coaching and other aspects which is where most of the money goes to.

Even worse are the firms that help people with things like learning disabilities into work, who scam by claiming for fake support worker hours by hiring 1 support worker who somehow finds time to support multiple employees at the same time whilst never actually turning up

If you want an actual access to work support worker good luck because basically nobody provides them and you get 0 guidance on how to find one, and the DWP are such morons they haven't even figured out that perhaps if they had some kind of agency system for them it would be easier to get disabled people into work like they keep claiming they want to do.

It's all bullshit, the whole fucking lot of it, they want disabled people in work camps or dead.

[JonotJoe]

I'm sick to death of this kind of benefit porn, both written and on television. I wasn't born disabled but had a terrible life changing accident, however my sister was born with cerebral palsy so know what it's like from all angles. Having seen/felt how much extra it costs to be disabled on top of the actual stress caused by the disability itself, these disgusted sub humans who think it's ok to continuously bash us are the lowest of the low. I would love them to spend a year in my shoes. They should keep in mind that, like myself, your health can be taken away in the blink of an eye. During the time Iain Duncan Smith was at the Department of Wilful Persecution I actually became agoraphobic because I was so frightened of someone saying I was not deserving of social security payments (some spiteful people out there) and I was just getting by because the amounts are not that great, hardly a life of luxury. I still suffer agoraphobia to this day thanks to this sort of persecution.

[bishton]

What's classy when you're rich but trashy if you're poor? Getting money from the government.

[vintagesoup]

Helena, you are one of the few voices on the online left that regularly talks about the vilification of the disabled. I truly wish more people did and I am absolutely terrified not only for me, but my autistic son. Thanks for everything you do.

[willowtdog]

Thank you for talking about this story. Ableism is so ingrained in our society, people generally don’t even understand when it’s happening—aside from the most extreme circumstances.

[MelissaGarrett]

I have to say I am sick, sick, sick of feeling like hell everyday, struggling to even get out of bed, largely housebound and constantly on the verge of a breakdown, only to be told by these lying animals that I’m a fraud and not worth the oxygen I breathe.

They also fail to understand that “disabled” and “chronically sick” are two different things. Someone in need of an aid for certain activities may still be able to work, in the right circumstances – but imagine feeling as if you have flu every day, and being told you have to go to work or be left in poverty.

[adammorgan]

Not only are disabled people the most attacked group going, it's also denied that this is the case too with claims of "they get lots of support and anti-discrimination laws are in place" (this is BS of course).

Disabled people are easy targets, but what's worse is those that go along with the hate in society. People need to remember, no one is immune from becoming disabled and/or ill.

Another thing that's ignored is (in relation to work), many disabled people would like to work, the issue is lack of support, lack of flexibility, and even more so (the biggest barrier) is the huge amount of prejudice from employers who just refuse to hire disabled people. For more disabled people to get work, employers need to change their discriminatory attitudes.

I have noticed that over the last few decades, especially the last decade, disability hate and incitement has hugely increased, with attacks from MSM, government, and gullible/hateful people in society massively increasing. I guess some forms of hate and incitement is perfectly fine, especially against the target groups.

I can state that I would give up all social security if it meant I would no longer have my genetic health condition anymore. I want a career and a comfortable life without financial concerns.

[AnEnemy]

Particularly unpleasant knowing that far more benefits go unclaimed than are claimed fraudulently. Letting people know what their rights are is the decent thing to do.

[Kitgilmore]

ive had access to work, and the company i work for actually had to pay for most of my stuff because of the size of the company. They help you learn what is out there that can help. A rising desk because I cant sit down all day, a chair that i can cope sitting in when i can sit at all. Speech to text software because I cant type all day. Is it really too much to ask that I receive help to be in less pain while I work. I work as many hours as im able to, the equipment helps. You cant get help for ADHD or anything that you cant get a diagnosis for and its like platting fog trying to get a diagnosis so how people are "scamming" like this is just a lie. Thanks for the work you do NJMTG these are issues many wont discuss and support like this

[rod]

I always used to say that I wouldn't wish my condition on any one. Now there are a select few who I do wish it on. Thanks for your work Helena, atb.

[Clubberdude-spgw]

Do the Telegraph (or the Daily Mail for that matter) even pay the correct levels of tax in the UK?

[missyprime]

It's no wonder mental health issues have increased, it's virtually impossible to get MH support/treatment on the NHS due to underfunding meaning this is one of the services that got decimated after 14yrs of Tory rule (I'm not holding my breath for it to be fixed by Labour).
I have PTSD due to years of violence in public for being trans & the NHS MH team that deals with PTSD has rejected my referrals due to me being trans!! (On letters they say "we cannot meet your special requirements")

[DrSpooglemon]

Stop calling them journalists. They are stenographers.

[wintergirll]

Time to direct this energy to MP’s who claim expenses when they are fit for work and earn more in a year than a disabled person on benefits would receive in almost 10 years.

Also; I’ve been on a waiting list for ADHD for over 6 years now. It’s very annoying when people expect you to have a diagnosis or to have your condition in control when there is literally no help available.

[PaddyWV]

There's a simple problem.
Employers don't want to employ Disabled People!
They consider they are not "Cost Effective".
A "Drain on Resources".
Direct quotes from a multinational company who bailked at meeting half of £600 for computer software for a Disabled Person I know.

Sometimes an experienced DP can be a better, more accurate worker than (often) lazy waste of space able bodied workers around them. A friend often had to clear up other people's sloppy work in order to get their own done!

Also Access to Work isn't worth a penny and won't buy you a pencil. It has been non existent since Osborne's cuts.

[jlewis]

I don’t know what to say any more I’ve gone through pip and know first hand what this culture of demonisation of disability is doing to people but regardless welfare state is a good thing we should look after our fellow citizens by paying taxes

[FlummoxedCartwright]

8 months ago I applied for Access to Work. Still haven't heard anything back. The idea that the system is being abused is laughable

[machidaman]

The biggest problem with access to work is it doesn't work particularly well. Like PIP it is almost arbitrary with awards varying wildly largely based on who is assessing you, their profession, and of course their values.

[markwelch]

Do the Telegraph misinterpret statistics because they don't understand them, or because they are arseholes looking to punch down?

Rhetorical question - we all know it's both!

[DX]

Hacks, hacks and frauds all of them (uk journos)