The "Economic Inactivity" Crisis Explained

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In this video, we’ll take a look at the UK’s economic inactivity crisis, how Labour plan to ‘get Britain working’, and whether they can achieve it.
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Sources:
Get Britain Working White Paper
www.gov.uk/gov...
UK Sickness Benefits
www.benefitstr...

[@YearRoundHibernater]

Fine companies for advertising jobs they don't have openings for. It's something like 35% of job ads are just fake and 80% of big employers admit to posting ads without positions open.

[@arcan762]

this! the real job posting figures are far lower than the official ones

[@funonthebun888]

Why the hell would they do that? It costs money to post those ads..

[@rossmckechnie4491]

​@@funonthebun888 all the reasons are scummy

[@rossmckechnie4491]

that fine should go to the job seekers who applied. edit : Why do people think the iIm saying "fine the job seekers"

[@lupin8750]

@@funonthebun888 Optics, they need to meet certain performance targets and more job openings look good.

[@trob1299]

I feel like the main issue is houses have become so unaffordable there is no need to earn more because you don't have a mortgage to pay and (probably) live with your parents if you're in your 20s. I speak to my friends that are economically inactive and this was their response - "Why work? I'm never buying a house, I can just chill at home and enjoy my time". The equation is literally as simple as : Work = No house No work = No house

[@pachomiussinanicus1728]

since the rise of globalization in 1980s, the property bubble rises as the capital withdraws from industries to properties in developed countries.

[@martinthomson8666]

you're entirely 100% correct. Politicians don't want to fix it either because most of them are profiting from monopolised housing market

[@D.B-s9x]

@@martinthomson8666this. Government as usual focussing on one narrow issue without looking at wider context.

[@JackChurchill101]

Basically... No need to save, no need to earn, because it isn't going to do you any good.

[@UkSapyy]

I'm in my mid 20s. I have a house with a mortgage... well I have half a mortgage with a friend on a shared ownership. That is 10 years of work for a part of a prize I should have by now. 2 more years and I'll likely have enough to support myself in my own house. It is ridiculous, people expect those in the 20s to work up without extra pay. I honestly agree with people being economically inactive because we are busting our arses for shite. Might as well work the easy job or not work, live with parents and go on holidays. Better life than grinding for shit all, waiting on a promotion or opportunity that never comes.

[@rhys6685]

London aside, the UK has no industry. We’ve decimated our manufacturing services and neglected public services. It’s genuinely disgraceful how expensive train tickets are when compared to other EU countries. Labour can’t fix this. It’s going to take years.

[@jasongrundy1717]

They're doing the opposite, they're mass immigrating people who don't work.

[@parker9012]

Even including London. The UK decided to destroy their economy, it's really sad. I'm a American and just looked it up, the average person in the UK takes home $35k usd, while the average person in Mississippi (the poorest US state) takes home $46k. In my home state the average take home salary is $71k, more than twice the UK. This was a result of UK decisions to implement high regulatory barriers to business. I have a friend who works in fracking and was telling me, if the company he works for wants to start a well in Texas, the government offices are open 12hrs a day 365days a year, and they can be breaking ground on the new well within a month. In the UK the offices are open 9-5, business days only with lots of holidays off. If you're case gets assigned to a official who goes on vacation, it might just sit on their desk for weeks. Typically it takes 6months if you're lucky, years if you're unlucky to break ground. If that's true for other businesses, it's no wonder companies would rather pay American workers twice as much, to get the operation started in 1/6th the time.

[@cpkingadam5]

Fracking is banned in the UK, so it obviously won't get off the ground. But your point still stands in terms of our planning system. In the US, your zoning laws allow more freedom somewhat but also create the soulless suburbs we see today. In the UK, everything must be approved. A mix of the two systems would work far better

[@parker9012]

@cpkingadam5 sorry, yes when he's talking about oil extraction in the UK I'm assuming he's talking about conventional. Kinda getting this third hand, since my friend does US oil/gas but his co workers have done UK oil/gas.

[@steinarjakobsen4947]

At least they’re trying, can’t say the same about the previous government

[@teafanatic8452]

After dropping out of school at 17(I believe in 2018, my sense of time is skewed completely), I attempted to find work & apprenticeships, I stubbornly refused to go into college/re-take a-levels (A stupid idea, biggest mistake of my life) after being turned down multiple times over and over, people abandoning/giving up on me, I took a job stacking shelves in Tesco part-time. 18 years old, no future, no plan, no goals, abandoned and hopeless- I ultimatey became depressed, had a break down at work and was fired for not turning up, was put on some pretty heavy meds whilst trying to get therapy (Took me the best part of a year to get face-to-face, in the mean time shout out to iseo, they were nice) THEN covid hit! I've finally overcome my depression, i've been off work/out of education for 5 years now and i seriously have no idea where to go or what to do with my life. I feel like a shameless leech to society, I've hidden myself from all family and friends out of sheer shame for what i've become yet I simply do not know what or where to go. I believe my best course is to simply go back into education.

[@gnoccialpesto]

Indeed it is. Get those A-levels done.

[@teafanatic8452]

also contrary to what some people in the comments are saying- I do NOT make a living wage off UC, however I live with my parents (I cannot thank their support enough), I make enough to pay for a share of the bills and food. I don't know how much more money is provided if you don't live with people yet I can only assume it isn't much, just barely enough to get by, there're plenty of documentaries and videos of people who're barely scraping by off UC. It's enough to live, not to thrive or enjoy your life. I am grateful and thankful for all the financial support UC has given me, it'll be enough to pay for education bills (I will have to stop paying my family bills whilst in education however) Thank you to the people who work to support this system as well

[@EuroExpert_]

Sorry to hear that. I had a very similar situation. You'll find your passion one day!

[@GTOUranus]

Find an apprenticeship, tradesmen and women earn good money

[@Hanoth]

Have you considered doing maybe a years voluntary work to bulk out the CV and then looking for a sparky/plumber to apprentice for?

[@jaxsai5641]

The harsh truth is that most employers have little interest in truly empowering disabled individuals through meaningful employment. The moment you fill disability column in the application, you automatically fail the shortlisting. Instead, employers prefer to donate to disability charities, ensuring their contributions are highly publicized with staged photos for social media and glossy publications. It’s a calculated move to polish their image with no intention to help the vulnerable people of our society by giving them employment.

[@melindagallegan5093]

And do these disability charities pay out to the disabled?

[@SedosoEstrella]

Big bad employers 😂 Go start a business that employs the disabled and see how many consumers will pay a premium or put up with bad service from your company. If you are disabled, get a government job, governments don't have to worry about going out fo business.

[@melindagallegan5093]

@ Government jobs will eventually push disabled people out too.

[@partlyawesome]

@@melindagallegan5093 A charity helping the people the charity claims to help? Are you insane? of course not!

[@melindagallegan5093]

@@partlyawesome And that is the irony, isn’t it?

[@ranjitpuri83]

One of the biggest problem with working properly in this country is transportation. A single trip to London from southwest is ~£250. This is a monthly expense for similar distance in Germany… why is nobody talking about this ???? The transpiration is just crazy

[@mabeSc]

Let's not also talk about the bus service. It's completely unreliable and so expensive with a day-saver ticket being £5 (whole day ticket) - a ticket that is only going to be used twice in a day (going to work and coming back). And nearly always crammed up so full and stuck in traffic which makes the experience unbearable. Relying on the bus service to reliably get you to work is just insanity.

[@tuskular]

100%

[@motormouthalmighty]

250 pounds?you can't be serious!just imagine if you lived on the dark side of the moon!

[@Eltener123]

I literally just looked at train prices for London to Cornwall and it's £60 1-way so where you getting £250 from?

[@ranjitpuri83]

@@motormouthalmighty can you just now see the price for Monday from Bristol to London. It’s a journey of 1h:14m and coming out as 265£. And I don’t have any other way to travel. Just check now….

[@AeroJules]

Look, we are done working hard!!!! We always worked hard and for what?? Shitty apartements, shitty salary, shitty life. I have. PHD and 14 years of experience and I can barely pay my bills and house. This is no way to live?!!

[@JackChurchill101]

Social studies?

[@97Bobson]

What is your PhD in? Something you have a passion for I hope

[@arcan762]

@@JackChurchill101 or Elizabethan Literature 🤣

[@James-dv1df]

​@@JackChurchill101 I think maybe UK has gone university mad, in other countries like Germany I don't think the percentage of the population attending is as high

[@James-dv1df]

​@@97Bobsondo you think people focus too much on passion and then find the area they go into is over subscribed?

[@adamrandles4055]

The Uk is broken, everyone I know is working harder than previous generations ever did and still skint.

[@cowboy4378]

This comment is offensive to anyone who got to hear the experiences of the older generations. They may have been better compensated, but they were worked much harder

[@adamrandles4055]

@ I know in many aspects previous generations had a tougher gig, but on the surface of today vs yesterday, every job role that’s done today used to be shared by about 3 people and they came home to a wife who didn’t work and had dinner on the table. Now both parents have to work and still have no money and the companies make that Individual do the work of 3 men because they want company profits.

[@cowboy4378]

@@adamrandles4055 I hate my job, i hate my stagnant wages that dont keep up with inflation, i hate that house prices grow faster than my savings account interest rate. But i am so thankful i didnt grow up with my grandfather, being a dynamite boy for the local quarry at 15, or with my grandmother who had no other choice in life but to keep the house tidy. I have a chance, they never did. Although, ask them and they say theyd rather do it all again than grow up today.

[@daysofend]

@@cowboy4378 Every generation tends to have it better than the last. Lucky them, their grandparents died of simple bacterial infections. We can only realistically measure against our own times. The argument disappears if you compare any hard-working generation against medieval peasants.

[@trevorkeast]

@@cowboy4378 If you got a Victorian and brought them to 2024 in a time machine to work they would be having a mental breakdown by lunchtime.

[@elektix1]

When hard work stopped meaning progression and increased pay; despite companies reporting record profits year on year... that was when things became a problem. Everyone is doing the bare minimum and trying to just enjoy what little of their lives they can; with what little they're paid. Any one from the millenial generation will understand how ridiculous the economy has become and no doubt heard at some point from the generations above us how they were earning the same money we are now... 25 years ago... The younger generations can barely afford to rent a house, never mind buy one. Having a family is completely out of the question and the statistics are showing this. Best of luck trying to get a pension with a reducing population... But it's ok... because we have more billionaires than ever... that's what matters... right?

[@martinh8784]

If there were lots of decently paying jobs around that resulted in a significantly higher disposable income than benefits, the challenge would fix itself.

[@Patrick-y4d1z]

So basically, fix migration and pay and people are happier to work

[@modarkthemauler]

@@Patrick-y4d1z Fixing one would fix the other. If you don't bring in cheap labour you have to pay the local guy more and higher wages means less people economically inactive.

[@MEHOLE]

Restrict immigration and benefits.

[@Bigjunk9999]

End the benefits. People will work or starve.

[@uanime1]

@@Bigjunk9999 "People will work or starve." Or commit crimes and go to prison, which will cost the taxpayers much more than benefits.

[@iielysiumx5811]

Pay people more, people don’t wanna work 40 plus hours a week to barely scrap by

[@jacobmacdonagh4070]

This isn’t an issue of pay, it’s an issue of cost, mainly housing and energy costs which are all created by massive govt intervention in the market. Uk wages would be good if the basics weren’t so inflated by lack of supply caused by regulation.

[@jerryn9690]

@@jacobmacdonagh4070 no uk wages are very low. our European friends have higher wages.

[@inbb510]

@@jerryn9690 , they have higher costs too.

[@firstlast-wg2on]

@@inbb510relatively though the quality of living and cost of living is skewed here.

[@jerryn9690]

@inbb510 wages in Europe are also low though. Outside costs don't justify them being low. All wages need to be higher.

[@outtheredude]

So, as per usual, they're focusing on how to become employable and find a job, while not putting in an equal amount of effort making the jobs required to be employed in. No matter how much busy work people are forced to do, you can't get them into work if the work is not there. Let's also ignore if people can actually do the work based on their abilities, skills and experience in relation to what the work demands, the costs involved in commuting or relocating to where the work is if they live somewhere else (assuming there isn't a cost of living and housing crisis to enable social mobility), whether people are able to no longer have to look after loved ones, whether their disability (if they have one) doesn't get in the way of them doing the work, whether employers are willing to make the adjustments needed for a wide range of disabilities, or if they're even willing to hire these people in the first place, and so on.

[@SonHNguyen-qz5dg]

@@NoumenonAndPhenomenon The purpose of work is to survive. Too bad not everyone is talent enough to be a CEO. If everybody becomes a CEO, societies would struggle.

[@Liam-m3x6d]

You're right

[@jjbell150]

​@@SonHNguyen-qz5dgPlenty of people do useless jobs that just push paper around for the sake of it, only a fraction of people actually work for our survival

[@neilrmartin1984]

I think most folk would find/be able to work if the welfare safety net wasn't there - or was significantly reduced and time limited

[@Liam-m3x6d]

@neilrmartin1984 not true. There are not enough jobs for the numbers unemployed. Removing the safety net will not magic up jobs. It would just make people homeless and in absolute poverty

[@Polorutz]

My wife and I cannot afford her going back into the workforce with the cost of childcare in the UK being higher than her potential salary.

[@inbb510]

@@Polorutz The traditional nuclear family model is cheaper and better for the child in the long term anyways. My parents spent £0 on childcare as my mum was a stay at home and I came home to home cooked food everyday. Why have children if you are just going to dump them at a stranger's place to take care of it?

[@alexpark472]

@@inbb510 That only works if both parents aren't forced to work just to pay bills but yes it would be better.

[@inbb510]

@@alexpark472 , not true, I live in the South East and my parents had 6 kids including me and managed on a £18k income after the financial crisis. It ultimately comes down to about choices that parents make. Having a stay at home mother looking after kids saves a lot of money and time as the husband doesn't need to spend thousands of pounds on childcare and eating out (cooking in bulk is way cheaper in the long-run than eating junk food). Furthermore the chores can be divided between the wife and the husband.

[@JSmith19858]

@@inbb510 I call BS, or they had a council house with low council rent and every benefit available. And an £18k income in 2008 would be around £28k now

[@inbb510]

@@JSmith19858 you're forgetting that we didn't have to pay for childcare and mum cooked everything from scratch. We didn't even go on holidays every year either. It is perfectly possible. Parenting and having children always was about sacrifice. It's just that in order to do so means modern men and women taking what seems like to them unpalatable decisions (being a stay at home mum, reducing spending on indulgence, cooking from scratch, not eating out, spending savings on children).

[@Badger8200]

I'm waiting for the "Pull yourself by the boot straps" comments

[@simonhopkins3867]

My personal favourite is. Man Up 💪.

[@outtheredude]

Sure, all I need to do is pay for a strong pair of boots with reinforced bootstraps, a crane, and a rope and pulley system. Oh wait, where am I supposed to get the money from to be able to do all that in the first place again?

[@cmck1777]

It's there. Lots of 'work or starve' (aka, arbeit macht frei) in the comments.

[@Badger8200]

@@simonhopkins3867 cringe we never say "women up"

[@ChrisLitton]

@@simonhopkins3867 tbh the job market is dire right now. I was made redundant from a company I'd worked for 10 years. I could only get a year contract after but I have since jumped to a permanent position again.

[@CLaw-tb5gg]

You know why people aren’t working? Because work sucks! We’re working more and being paid less for it than ever before, and out of that an obscene amount instantly vanishes in rent or a mortgage. Work just doesn’t pay. This week I’m working 58 hours, 82 when you factor in travel, and I’m actually *losing* money every month, doing a highly-qualified incredibly stressful job. I could just about afford the mortgage on a shitty tiny ex-council flat in London. I completely understand why people drop out and go on benefits instead of doing that if they can make it work. The answer is making work actually pay and getting rents down. But they’re not going to do that.

[@jackjennings6143]

It's because none of us can afford to move out of our parents' houses and, as a result, don’t see a need to seek full-time jobs. It's the overwhelming feeling of hopelessness in young people that causes this. WE NEED TO LET THE HOUSING MARKET GO DOWN. It's impossible for the government to let this happen because a lot of the voting population has their house as their largest investment and, as such, don’t want this to happen. Instead, we are just kicking the can down the road... onto a train track where the economy is going to get hit by a freight train doing 120 mph.

[@angryherbalgerbil]

Late stage empire collapse bud. Asset class economics is just one sign, debt-based financing another, over-taxed poor and under-taxed wealth and business class, loss of natiinal ownership of resources and services. I could go on, but all the same problems that affected the collapse of Rome have steadily been on the rise since the end of WW2. How Starmer expects people to work when we have an inverted age pyramid, and no way for the young to progress is beyond me, not when they keep increading the pension age resulting in job-sitting, meanwhile homes are over-priced because it's the only (false) wealth that people have as an investment. The nation is screwed and cracking the whip to get the serfs back to the grindstone won't change a damn thing!

[@melindagallegan5093]

@@angryherbalgerbilIf anything, even more are likely to give up.

[@Carl-hs420a]

Even amongst people who earn a decent wage, they aren't spending like it's the 90's. Too much anxiety about tomorrow has us saving and investing instead of buying shiny new things that could otherwise kick-start the economy. It's not helped at all that owning and operating a business is an expensive, confusing, and time consuming affair; a giant tax gift-wrapped in red tape.

[@selseyonetwenty4631]

your faith that 'the voting population' have any control over house prices, or anything else, is touching.

[@Seth9809]

A lot of England is underpopulated because it's neglected and not close enough to London. If they took advantage of the slightly cheaper real estate and built some factories or data centers, people would move. Or they could just build some affordable housing in a "run down" part of England and make it possible to move there.

[@TedPoppy]

I am 24, I have a mortgage and finance on a car (with no help from anyone, just alot of work) i accomplished this just as the cost of living started in 2022. The job i have no longer pays enough and i am just scraping by each month. I have good qualifications and experience, yet for over 2 years now i have been unable to find another job that pays more than minimum wage, and I look EVERY DAY! I am now considering selling my car which would give me an extra £120pm but that will massively reduce the amount of jobs im able to apply for. I don't understand how we are the 6th richest country, and even a household with two full time incomes can have to deal with this.

[@MustraOrdo]

Richest country doesn't evidently equate to all the classes being well off. I've noticed Anglo countries in particular have severely bad inequality gaps.

[@tuskular]

So many many jobs that your applying for don't actually exist, and many businesses have and encumbrance of 0 hour contracts temps who are desperate for a job, that they can pull from, 0 hour contracts need to be banned!

[@UIM_Moose]

It sounds like your mortgage is unaffordable if your car payments are only £120 a month and you're struggling, the wages/house price disparity is absolutely insane, and sadly it's not just our country dealing with this. I myself had to take out a loan for the deposit on my house, I could afford the repayments (it was actually cheaper to pay the mortgage AND the the loan than it was to rent), but saving up 27K for a deposit would take me at least 7 years, and I didn't want to be renting for another 7 years.

[@BiTurbo228]

​@@UIM_MooseProbably. Most mortgages in the UK are unaffordable. That's one of the symptoms of our housing crisis.

[@Cenitopius]

Class divide is crazy in this country. I grew up rich (rich enough - my folks had a big house, several cars, and about a million in the bank. Probably they had about £2.5m net worth), disowned my own rich family and am now (and have been since becoming an adult) living totally independently. I've seen both sides of it, and while my rich-ass parents were running a pharma business and renting out 3 properties (and amazingly close to making a loss on all 3. They were dumb as rocks), they were still worrying about finances right up until the day I said I was done knowing them. They were making like 10k a month, at a rough guess. I made £23.5k for the first 6 months I lived alone, and never more than £30k for the next three years. I was *hemorraging* money renting a small 2 bed mold-infested terrace for me, my girlfriend and my brother, and I was only (personally) paying £200 a month of rent. in the middle of nowhere, working mostly remotely (so few car expenses) and barely ever heating my home. I was still far from the poorest person I know, but if it weren't for the savings that I and my girlfriend had, we'd have been kicked out and starved in the streets, since neither of us had parents to go back to. Genuinely if it weren't for the rediculous amount of fiscal privilege I had growing up, I'd almost certainly be homeless, if not dead.

[@mabeSc]

Why not focus on the people that are out of work but willing to start working within 2 weeks? These people are the most likely to accept nearly any job but, due to the state of the UK or location (usually living in very deprived areas), are unable to find any type of meaningful work. I know so many people stuck on UC because they are unable to find permanent employment, even if it's warehousing or cleaning. And many end up working multiple temporary roles during the year. Wouldn't it be better if the government offered jobs directly through the Job Centres to jobseekers? They could collaborate with companies that need staffing and offer such roles to people that are looking for employment (the government also has all the data regarding the jobseekers and which roles they have experience in, too).

[@play4dc]

I worked in adult social care. I absolutely believe that number. Simultaneously the way we have historically been approaching it is dreadful. People who aren't qualified assess people are on whether someone can work. They are incentivised to take people off benefits and given targets. 70% of people who appeal their benefits withdrawal win their case. We need accessible work places that don't treat people like sh** so people aren't miserable going into an underpaid job where they see no hope in progression or being able to afford a good quality of life. Most disabities don't stop you working with reasonable adjustments, its sad employers don't feel that way.

[@raindancer80]

None of this will work when simultaneously they've made it much more expensive to employ people. Jobs are more likely to be cut than created thanks to the budget, and that will result in a loss for the Treasury. A pity Rachel from the complaints department isn't actually an economist. The other reason it won't improve is that people in the UK have been brought up to believe themselves owned by the state. The government takes everything from you and gives a little bit back, and everyone is grateful.

[@cmck1777]

Nope. The problem is not being addressed. The issue is that enormous money was made by the super-wealthy during COVID, the housing price spiked, the economy has shifted to being 'asset based' just as companies are being endlessly pelted with promises that AI will enable cost-saving measures without having to hire new staff. No government that isn't harshly socialist and willing to enact sweeping reforms against the mega-rich (which would risk crippling the country) could fix this. ...maybe... IDK.

[@jasongrundy1717]

Housing spiked because they mass immigrate people faster than they build houses. They've choked the streets, choked the NHS, choked the power supply, chokes the sewer system and water supply, choked the electricity production.

[@Grand_Edict]

Also they increased interest rates to prop up asset prices, bonds, property, stocks etc Delve deeper and look at what proportion of that wealth is owned by the top… And you realise these policies that have fd everyone over are only enacted in times when the wealth of the very few is under threat

[@Mitjitsu]

We've been an asset based or as I would call it "capital economy" ever since the 80's. It's more a generational problem, because those who entered the workforce before the mid 90's have been the ones who've benefited from the Thatcher/Major policies.

[@inbb510]

@@cmck1777 what privileged drivel. Society has always worked to survive. It's just years of colonialism and exploitation of other countries has warped your brain into thinking the government needs to provide you with the honey as a pre-condition to work. Get over yourself. Get the work boots on and get to work. Welcome to the real post-colonial world where you have to work if you want good shite.

[@mydogeatspuke]

I don't know what they're all thinking is going to happen when they replace people with AI. Obviously more of them are going to be out of work and need government assistance to stay afloat. All any government seems to think about is the positives of all these changes they want to make. Increase employment, boost the economy, all the AI everywhere.. but how? More AI roles means less people roles, less employment, less disposable income, crashing economy. But at least the rich will be richer, that's what really matters. So then they start on at people who can't do anything about their situation, people who can't work and haven't been able to for a long time, and now it's their fault everything is awful? Bonkers island we're on.

[@OnlineEnglish-wl5rp]

There are only 840,000 job vacancies for roughly 2.7 million people out of work. Not exactly sure what you want the others to do... Britain actually has one of the highest ratios of working age people employed in the OECD: 75% so really this looks like an attempt to blame ordinary British people for the utter failure of the British Establishment

[@Seth9809]

And Labor hasn't been in power for so long, but they want to be the Establishment.

[@mydogeatspuke]

It's blaming ordinary disabled British people, actually 😋

[@scottcameron-baker6800]

The biggest problem and obstacle getting people into work is the wage doesn't match the cost of running a house, a percentage of people claiming universal credit are actually working and some of them are using food banks because they arent making enough to get by. Labour should have put minimum wage to £15 - £ 16 per hour minimum to get people out of poverty and make working feel worth while

[@leesimpson6334]

From personal experience... The modern work place is toxic to health. Gig type work and employment uncertainty, companies reducing staff but work load increasing (which leads to poor physical health/workplace injuries and increased stress). Imo the only way to fix that is to employ more people but companies are more goal orientated towards increasing shareholder dividends than investing in their business and workforce. On the part of shareholders, in particular investment companies and funds. They just want big dividends and can easily drop a company and move on to the next one if those dividends drop with limited liability. There isn't a quick fix as the system is broken, you just have to look at the state of the water companies to see that

[@SaintGerbilUK]

It just sounds like you are working for the wrong type of companies, or maybe are in the wrong field. What do you like to do? And then how can you make money from doing that?

[@JJ-qd9yl]

@@SaintGerbilUK not as easy as you make it sound, we can’t all have the same job can we? All work should be rewarding

[@SaintGerbilUK]

@@JJ-qd9yl I'm not saying we should all do the same thing, quite the opposite, too many people work in an office and hate it. As I said what do you like to do? It may not be your favourite thing but top 5 for sure there's something you can make money from.

[@Bozebo]

Companies also can't employ more people because... we are quite close to full employment, which would be a disaster if we were.

[@SaintGerbilUK]

@@Bozebo there's no such thing, the poor economy is stifling new companies and bankrupting small companies, which is why mostly big companies exist and they can only hire so many people. If we had more companies there would be more jobs.

[@Randomstuffs261]

One thing missing in this discussion. Is that Autism is the most common condition that leads to economic inactivity. And most employment is actively discriminatory against people with ASD. Even shelf-stacking jobs advertise themselves as requiring "excellent social skills". In the past, they'd be able to get manufacturing jobs. But our service-based economy is locking them out of stable employment.

[@paullegend6798]

Failure to take personal responsibility is the most common condition that leads to economic inactivity. 1 in 10 people are not unable to work, you know that from your own life experience. Imagine if the resources used up by scroungers were made available to actual seriously autistic people? Our limited resources needs to go to and only go to, those who really really need it.

[@uanime1]

@@paullegend6798 "Failure to take personal responsibility is the most common condition that leads to economic inactivity." Translation: pull yourself up by your boot straps. "Imagine if the resources used up by scroungers were made available to actual seriously autistic people?" Well it's clear you've been reading too much Daily Mail and not spent enough time in real life. "Our limited resources needs to go to and only go to, those who really really need it." Like the unemployed.

[@tommydoez]

​@paullegend6798 "the issue is that Autistic people are not allowed serve in a society that priotises social etiquette over work" "Oh my god you mentioned autistic people and now i got to get on my soapbox on how no one wants to work and everyone only wants benefits and blah blah blah" Guy up top isn't even asking for disability accomodation, he's just asking to be allowed to work lmao.

[@Talisguy]

​@@paullegend6798 Jobs are legally required to make reasonable concessions for employees with additional support needs, but there's technically nothing stopping people from advertising a job with skills that are not needed and would cause autistic applicants to self-select themselves out of contention, and many do.

[@treevsy]

I think it's a bit of a swing and a miss. If you did factory work you'd see just how empty they are compared to 30-40 years ago where every job had a head assigned to it. Now in modern workplaces, every head is assigned several jobs. This is called "modernising the workforce." But in realty it's increasing profits and withdrawing funds from the community by employing less local people.

[@KeldonA]

The problem is that he's not helping them into work but forcing them into it. He's ignoring the reason why they're economically inactive and resorting to coercion.

[@Yo-Two]

Who is? Let's not forget the reason we are in this position... The Tories. They are to blame. The country has been destroyed under their watch.

[@mydogeatspuke]

@@Yo-Two the Tories starting it doesn't mean Labour aren't continuing it..

[@Yo-Two]

@@mydogeatspuke I hate both parties. They're the same. I'm voting Reform. The only party that will put British people first. The only reason everything is so out of control is because of the constant increase in population. 1 million unskilled people a year coming here. Such a drain on our country.

[@Yo-Two]

@@mydogeatspuke the real reason everything is so bad is immigration being out of control. I'll never vote Labour or Tories again. Voting Reform.

[@Yo-Two]

Our population constantly increasing by 1 million per year. Most unskilled. Most either on benefits or sending money out the country. Draining public services. Insanity. That's the real reason. Vote Reform

[@adam7802]

In 5 years? Absolutely not. Things are too fundamentally broken.

[@cmck1777]

Glad to see someone saying it but no one wants to hear it... People want to believe everything is fine so badly they're willing to lie to themselves. It's incredibly sad.

[@justthatguy-yq2py]

​@cmck1777 Most people know it's going shit but you gotta remember, tldr is a very left wing channel with a young left wing audience and since Labour are in power (and left wing) the channel and it's audience have noticeably started ignoring the issues a bit more

[@SaintGerbilUK]

Then why did we elect them?

[@cmck1777]

@@SaintGerbilUK politics is a slow process. You elect the people you hope will make changes but changes can't be made overnight. One sure fire sign you have elected someone that isn't a lying bastard is that don't promise you the moon and don't lie about how difficult the situation is. Only a child or a moron would think there is an easy fix to the situation we find ourselves in.

[@cmck1777]

@@justthatguy-yq2py in what way do you feel they are left wing?

[@arandmorgan]

No value in pay, no work.

[@laurynasjagelo5075]

Why? Everyone loves to work for minimum wage with a Bachelor's or masters and minimum of 5 years of experience. Also, if you're good, you might even pass the personality test to work in McDoLaNdS (I didn't)

[@ajn2370]

Just repeating what the government says isn't really quality journalism. What's your explanation for the economic inactivity situation?

[@PomuLeafEveryday]

Its TLDR news, they're just passing on the news in an easy to digest manner. They're not here to give opinions or analysis, and that's not what many of us are here for. We just want to know what's happening. What did you expect?

[@ajn2370]

@Binzlebabble the video title is: The "Economic Inactivity" Crisis Explained.

[@robinwhitebeam4386]

No mention has been made of transport to educational establishments or work, a very large problem for all of us , but particularly young people under 26. Many areas of the country have no access to buses or trains and rely on others to transport them by car. Arriving at University for the first time involves finding a parking space ! £6 per day to go to College is no joke for 16 -18 year olds , if you have a bus to travel on that is.

[@Btecthor]

Step 1: increase pay and lower taxes. Make possible to live on a standard full time job and support a family somewhat. Step 2: That’s it. The problem will fix it self. Instead Labour will play these bullshit games to make it seem like they care about fixing rush problem, when they’re just the same as every government before them. They don’t give a fuck about you doing better, they just want you to obey, conform and pay taxes. Only a revolution will save the UK tbh 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@melindagallegan5093]

Don’t you get it, economic inactivity IS the revolution.

[@shawngrinter2747]

1) Make work worthwhile In days of yore tfe deal was work hard and you will also benefit, you know run a family, have a home, eat, have holidays, afford the odd luxury. Now you work get eff all and just make someone else rich ( I’m looking at you Bezos et al)

[@adam7802]

We work to survive is the best way to put it. The only thing that drives me is that I'm trying to get up the career ladder to where there might be some hope, but without that I'd probably be spiralling myself.

[@randomlygeneratedname7171]

@@adam7802The modern economy is not based on survival it’s based on desires

[@edaleman2758]

Britains workers have a ruling class to support 🎩🪓👑🪓

[@jakkers94]

We could look at local businesses to give money to instead, (easier said than done Amazon is a very convenient service 😅) If enough people did this people would be better off.

[@adam7802]

​@@randomlygeneratedname7171 well the modern economy is not going to last much longer when nobody can afford to spend based on desire is it?

[@Doomedcreatures]

I know a lot of 55 to 66 year olds who have sort of retired early. Their houses cost nothingso paid them off decades ago . And they didn't like how they were treated during covid

[@dw9646]

It's not worth working any more. You're just a tax slave. It's too expensive to live, I'm opting out

[@MustraOrdo]

@@youaresohistory Stop talking to that mirror and fill in your counter argment already.

[@TedPoppy]

Don't let the bastard's grind you down

[@inbb510]

@@dw9646 "oh no I have pay taxes to fund the things I use. I hate that I can't resort to colonialist exploitation to get things more cheaply like my ancestors did? You have to work to survive??? Nah that's for the peasants even though it has been that way for virtually all of history."

[@xeanderman6688]

As the Betteridge's law of headlines goes - any headline that ends with a question mark can be answered with the word "No"

[@Bean_guy2]

PM KEEPING SECRET WINE RESERVE?

[@_Aliens_]

Lolz guys

[@LulfsBloodbag]

Maybe if minimum wage wasn't age dependent and if working while on universal credit didn't decimate your benefits, more people would work. I had a part time retail job. 7.49 an hour because I was under 21. Then, for every £1 I earned I lost £0.56 of benefits. I was working for £4.19 an hour. After uc decuctions and travel costs to get to work, I was about £20 a week better off. For 16 hours of work, travelling to and from, and standing on my feet all day, I was getting £20 more money to spend. Fucking ridiculous.

[@Stepbystep74]

How about the price of assets are too high, businesses can’t invest in growth because all their money goes on rent, and workers feel no incentive to work harder as they feel like they cannot own assets and don’t succeed when the company they work from succeeds

[@ItsTheCatSpeaking24]

100%. The economy can't boom when the majority of our paychecks go into the pockets of landlords who wealth hoard, rather than letting us spend it on products etc

[@cmck1777]

Yeeeee boyeeeee. I wrote the same thing.

[@AndyLongden]

Labour logic "We need more people working so what we'll do is increase NI on employers 🤦‍♂️ That way when business' have to close or make redundancies there will b..... Oh wait! But we need all that tax for ourselves and the climate You want people to work without being off through depression and stress, how about make their wages worth earning! If they working and STILL can't afford to live then this will continue.

[@saschao7966]

I'm out of work and have basically given up. Salaries seem to have only gotten lower and it seems impossible to get a job which can pay my bills. What's the point then?

[@tuskular]

There is a record number of ghost jobs and so many employers have temps with 0 hour contracts and keep it that way so they can abuse the fact that they have no workers rights.

[@davidmylchreest3306]

I have had difficulties with mental health over the last decade and each time I have went to the NHS for help the service has gotten worse. Waiting lists are now years long and all they can offer in the meantime is pills that can make matters worse.

[@mydogeatspuke]

To be fair, it was just as bad 20 years ago. I know that doesn't help, but it's certainly not a new situation in that regard.

[@Todayyespresentno]

it's basically impossible to find any job with a livable wage, no surprise people just claim benefits and chill

[@anjelkanja8032]

Benifts do not supply a living wage

[@elijahjohnson1952]

At least in my state, you can live on entry level. Although it's still tight, it is something you can do if you have too.I still recommend living with family if it's comfortable. Savings is still a fever dream for me, though.

[@AaronVanWolfen]

It happens when you vote to get out of the biggest economic zone in the world... now there is no company that is able to pay a decent wage because they cant even sell their products to their neighbours without paying a tariff. Brits still are very delusional to accept that they f***** with Brexit.

[@davidty2006]

Or well crime... Crime pays quite well, can get half a weeks shopping per go.

[@kb4903]

How entitled - You have to build yourself up.

[@polixthepole]

I hope so. No other issue can be solved when the economy isnt functioning

[@SonHNguyen-qz5dg]

@Commonsense-u1h The rich pay more tax than anywhere else and they generate large portion of UK economy. UK GDP per capita is still high compare to the develop world.

[@paulharris2331]

@SonHNguyen-qz5dg Your English is poor, your username has random digits and letter after the main name which implies you're a bot and you're the exact definition of a temporarily embarrassed millionaire so your points are irrelevant.

[@inbb510]

@Commonsense-u1h not really. We don't need to spend more. We need to spend better. The NHS is a HEALTH service. Not a HOSPITAL service. We should focus on prevention instead of burning taxpayers cash on treatment just to accommodate British people's unhealthy lifestyles. Furthermore, you can't really fight climate change and the housing crisis at the same time. Either embrace multi-generational living which is the most sustainable solution to the housing crisis or embrace urban sprawl like Tokyo. There really isn't a middle ground on this. Furthermore, Germany's economy is going through what Britain did in the 1980s since the Ukraine war. Their population is some of the oldest in Europe so of course they are going to spend more on healthcare. Germany also has an increasing skills vacancy. Grass isn't greener clearly. Especially when parties like the AfD and BSW are on the rise.

[@aealiex]

There is no incentive to work. Wages are too low. Working a full time job you still can’t afford anything.

[@Jamal-Ahmed786]

If people's cost of living is going to be more than wages, then obviously people will be put off from working.

[@Chomp-Rock]

Higher wages = higher prices = higher cost of living.

[@uanime1]

@@Chomp-Rock "Higher wages = higher prices = higher cost of living." Someone tell the 1% they're driving up inflation with their huge pay packages.

[@Chomp-Rock]

@@uanime1 don't forget not paying taxes.

[@VeryIntellijent]

I'm 30 and have been out of work for 4.5 years. I don't claim benefits, I just live with my savings from a lucky break I got during my early working years between 16 and 25. That luck went south with Covid and so I decided to go back to University and study for an engineering degree. I graduated 15 months ago but have never faced so much rejection in my life. Thousands of applications and 56 interviews later, I've checked out. I'm not going to lick the balls of a system that actively doesn't want me. I'll probably enjoy my savings then call it a day.

[@SJ44-tu8ow]

What do you mean by call it a day?

[@TH3YGXNE]

@@SJ44-tu8owI think he means he’s done. Checked out. Kicking the bucket. Early exit

[@ZeetherBit]

The fact that the solution towards too many employers can't fill jobs due to skills shortages is giving people more training has made me lose all hope that this government actually understands how to fix these problems. It's been shown that employers are far too demanding and unwilling to train or invest in their workers for niche jobs that do not have any formal training or education beyond actually working in that position. Canada is a great example of this, where plenty of research was done by Statistic Canada into these issues specifically, and it showed that employers' lack of investment in workers is leading to a significant skills shortage and reduction in labour productivity. It makes me really wonder who is doing policy research for these ministers because this is embarrassing. Really, "adults need more skills training" I guarantee zero research was done when coming up with this conclusion; this is a response you'd get from a random bloke in a Spoons if he was posed the question.

[@samuelmelton8353]

Diet, health, transport, access to free training, improved efficiency in systems and urban design, increased automation With this you will see improved productivity

[@user-fk9mo2ld6w]

Mate, people don't want to work when they can just claim benefits. You need to force people to work not give them more free stuff.

[@effluxi9587]

​@@user-fk9mo2ld6wforcing it is liable to only make them MORE resistant. Improve quality of life, fix the job market (no more ghost listings, for a start, then ensuring working being actually worth more than benefits mathmatically). Then you will see people WANT to work. We know this. Psychologists have been studying it for years by now.

[@Leberteich]

Reality: Lower food standards, NHS on its knees, Uni fees, public transport services shut down.

[@SpaceOtter45]

@@user-fk9mo2ld6w No offence mate but you are really showing your ignorance here. The idea that a majority "just want to claim benefits" has been disproven time and time again. Not only that but the points made above would not even be free! They would be paid for through the increased taxes gathered through the enabled income. Your just spouting classic Daily Mail crappy talking points used to justify income inequality.

[@inbb510]

​​​@@SpaceOtter45these studies are flawed. My dad works in the DWP and there are a lot of scroungers that take more than what graduates earn as a starting salary. These studies don't take into account that people can basically just lie about their position. Do you realise how easy it is to get your kid diagnosed on DID or( the favourite one parents go to these days is )fibromyalgia? Once you get that doctor's note that they hand like sweets, this scenario is treated as a "legitimate claim" by the study and hence conclude that benefit fraud is small. Another scenario which is common is that they will pump out kids to claim more child benefits which is also treated as a "legitimate claim" (no, the two child cap does NOT apply to child benefit contrary to popular belief and it only applies to Universal Credit). This happens with Muslim parents a lot where women think it is " duty from Allah " to have as many children as possible despite it making them dirt poor in the long-term. And you wonder why economic inactivity is higher among Muslim neighbourhoods like Ladywood.

[@jorgemartinez875]

Labour can’t fix everything that’s been slowly developing for 14 years, there is only so much that can be done right now, it will get worse before it gets better

[@glassmuxxic]

Worse: the economic inactivity problem is the product of more than just the last 14 awful years. The UK decided to stop investing in infrastructure 3-4 decades ago and use the proceeds of the end of the Cold War and globalisation to expand welfare and opex. It is now (politically) stuck with a population that has adjusted to that breadth of services, without the infrastructure and capacity to actually fund it. Governments have continually tried to fill that growing gap by bringing in vast sums of labour from outside, but even that is now failing/unsustainable.

[@mepds9]

@@glassmuxxic Refreshing to hear this. While I am not a tory supporter, people keep talking about the last 14 years - Mate, it has been FORTY (40) years of Thatcherism, which in my honest opinion includes New Labour. The country's infrastructure and institutional investment is sunken far more than people are willing to admit, I think partly because they do not see the problem in the first place. Couple that with a general lack of belief that things can be done differently and this is how the result looks like.

[@BOZ_11]

@@mepds9 nah, under New Labour GP waiting times were 2 days. Public services were better. From around 2018-ish (8 years after the Tories got in), that expanded to 3 weeks, and even longer. Foreign policy was demonic, but domestically we were OK. Hell, people had real disposable income, and now that's severely diminished. 2008 was the inflection point, not 1997!

[@paullegend6798]

The Tories of the last 14 years did not run the country, the civil service did, while the MP's sat around being manage/doing nothing. Don't confuse that with Thatcher, when we still had competent leaders in politics and with people who had a vision, rather than simply a narcissistic desire for power. Thacher's years and Blairs years are polar opposites. Thatcher is a personal freedom orientated free marketeer. The Blair project fundamentally changed our constitution and operation of our institutions e.g. a supreme court that thinks it can overturn the policies of the democratically elected govt, ECHR loss of sovereignty, unelected powerful Quangos making public policies decision. This is party why the Tories were so ineffective, they failed to reserve the changes Blair made and sat in the system he created (therefore obediently following the policy blueprints he set out, whether they realised it or not)

[@BOZ_11]

@@paullegend6798 lol, the gap between productivity and compensation began to diverge under Thatcher, and we had TWO recessions and a riot under that imbecile.

[@rafaelcosta3238]

I have my own company. If the day comes that I cannot do all the work my clients request by myself, and have to choose between hiring someone or turn down work, I will turn down work. Taxes are just too high to be worth it.

[@theconqueringram5295]

The UK is just drowning in crises.

[@Nanowith1]

It all boils down to one thing: wages. If these open positions offered an enticing salary that allowed people to save for a future then they'd be snatched up. But instead we've got the worst pay compression since the Great Depression and record costs for housing, children, and general costs of living. What's the point of working a dead-end soul-crushing job if you barely earn enough to scrape by? Far easier to just live with your parents and do things you enjoy. The offerings aren't good enough.

[@NANA-dv5ix]

Adding more slaves to the economy to benefit billionaires does not grow said economy, I thought we learned this from the bourgeoisie.

[@angryherbalgerbil]

Two Tier Kier won't hear that. He's still figuring out if it's okay to say whether he knows what a woman is or not.

[@alphamikeomega5728]

More workers means more taxes, which means you can either lower tax rates or improve public services.

[@jayc342009]

​@@alphamikeomega5728 neither of those things will happen, ever.

[@stuartjones3001]

Excellent video and great to see lady do a video! Keep up the good work! We need more lady presenters!

[@danehollyoak4897]

Let’s hope the uk will be ok.

[@braydonmarsh4691]

I hope we'll be ok too

[@edaleman2758]

It's unlikely, it's full of thickos who think chucking immigrants out will solve everything 🤣💩🧠🇬🇧

[@R53Hole]

Obliterated Kingdom?

[@SaintGerbilUK]

Its not looking good under Labour. The Tories promise managed decline, Labour are saying "We can do it faster"

[@DoodleDan]

Lol

[@kyledabearsfan]

Wages aren't livable, so people don't work. Same thing in the US. Add on ghost job postings and of course people say "ehh screw it".

[@jorgemartinez875]

They are attempting to prevent illness and reduce waiting time and help people keep their jobs? How is this a bad thing

[@BillboMC]

Anything can be bad if the side effects are worse. Not saying that’s the case here because I don’t know. But thought I’d give an explanation.

[@Jim-James-Jimbo]

Also the sort of minimum wage. work out there . barely covers the costs of living . but also alot of work place perks/bonuses have gone

[@jorgemartinez875]

I can understand both points but is there any alternative? Are they to let unemployment continue to rise endlessly whilst minimum wage doesn’t go up? People are too quick to give a negative take on something that is necessary

[@Jennyeq]

The only reason there are more "ill" people now than 10 years ago is because being on benefits pays better than getting a job

[@Jim-James-Jimbo]

@jorgemartinez875 I Don't think it's as simple as raising minimum wage. Because as soon as it goes up landlords utility companies n so on are going to all jump on that first. My employer used to give staff bonuses time and a half on Saturdays and 20% discount now we get just 10%

[@mossbears3288]

I'm currently studying a master's to increase my job prospects. Constant rejections , half the jobs don't exist. Manager jobs that pay 12 . I'm in a capital city as well , none of these jobs would actually cover my rent . No job without experience , no experience without a job . Can't even remember the number of things I've applied to as most of the time they don't even bother to send an automatic rejection email. Did get on benefits - 500 to cover rent anywhere in the country - this figure hasn't gone up in 5+ years (and that's the maximum you can get). Went to the job centre and there was a huge patronising poster saying 'work more earn more' . If only I'd thought of that , how stupid of me

[@yusaki8064]

Improving healthcare is always a plus. Although for my particular health problem which has made me unable to get a job, the government banned the healthcare that would have helped me for under 18’s. Causing my health to deteriorate further. I have emailed my MP about this now as an adult. And only received the confirmation that the ban would be upheld, and denying the evidence of the deaths that have been caused by the ban. I hope this plan works for other people. But for my particular situation. I don’t see how it will help me.

[@mabeSc]

Can I ask what is your particular problem? If you feel like sharing.

[@Snipehunter08]

i want her for all content, her voice makes it so clear and calm 👍

[@H-Lambda-]

Employment is indentured servitude. Pay people the money they deserve or they won't work, simple as that. The Tories and Brexit drove out many migrants willing to accept shitty jobs only because locals knew better, it's not a fair or sustainable system. The onus is on employers to be better, not potential employees. If a business cannot afford it then let it fail. These "schemes" to get young people earning/learning are going to be nothing but a moneypit that employers can use for cheap labour and tax subsidies that will cost the country more than they save and barely benefit anyone in them. We have seen it in the past before.

[@bloodfiredrake7259]

Get a job

[@H-Lambda-]

@bloodfiredrake7259 been employed since I was 17, this is coming from experience, loser

[@mydogeatspuke]

It's 2003 and they're all being put on New Deal.

[@stuartjones3001]

As a county councillor who sits on education and youth service and social services this group tell me that the reason they are economically inactive is due to disability or lack of skills or transport issues Furthermore they may have dependents who they can’t get the care for so can’t get full time work

[@wildfire9280]

The best time for Britain to adopt a land value tax was when it was conceptualized. The second best time for Britain to adopt a land value tax was when the Liberal Party adopted it. The third best time is now.

[@timothydenyer7749]

that will fix the job problem for sure....

[@jjbell150]

​@@timothydenyer7749Plenty of people turn down extra work because the taxes make it hardly worth it, increasing taxes on assets and lowering income taxes would make working more worthwhile

[@inbb510]

@@jjbell150 companies need assets to grow though. If this is punished too much, then this will be a problem as the UK and EU don't have their own tech companies that come close to competing with their American/Chinese equivalents. Tech companies need a lot of upfront cash and assets to flourish into the long-term future so punishing this too much is cause for concern.

[@TH3YGXNE]

@@inbb510the companies haven’t been doing much “growing” in the first place so it’s not really gonna have an effect. If companies were hiring, training and maintaining their employees then I would argue against this but it’s not the case

[@wildfire9280]

@@inbb510 Land is not any asset. It is an appreciating asset the landowner would passively collect land rent from for none of their efforts. By taxing the value of land, you incentivize productivity. But you also do so within the economic limits of productivity for the location’s value.

[@VictorKB96]

It's good to take care of working class. However, the problem with UK economy is that it has not much to offer to the country nor the world. London does have some financial sector that makes the region rich. Yet, in the rest of the country, the economy is deindustrialized. People, on top of working under bad conditions, simply have no ambition

[@D.B-s9x]

That is true… we will end up like Portugal or Greece. Just some has-been nation living off past glories

[@moosemcr]

The amount of reform required to reverse 14 years of heavy decline and mismanagement is going to take 2 terms, lets hope labour can make some progress over the next few years to warrant a re-election.

[@humanperson8418]

Yes. We need Reform.

[@SJ44-tu8ow]

27 years.

[@ciarand2823]

Work doesn't pay like it used to, unless you're a ceo

[@Carl-hs420a]

problem: "Too many people are in insecure, poor quality and often low paid work" solution: "They need support to stay in employment" lmao wat

[@jgomo3877]

Labour would need to overhaul the entire education and employment systems to even begin solving this problem; and in the face of the fastest pace of job automation in history.

[@MustraOrdo]

In other words, not gonna make it.

[@Pilps]

No

[@jackmarshall2496]

Lol i was going to comment the same 😅 With their increases in ni on employers, they seem to be incentivising shrinking the private sector which pays for everything.

[@mamoonaghauri8997]

Most uk work environments are unfortunately incredibly toxic and hoghly pressured where workplace bullying is rife leading to a workforce struggling with mental health problems just as a result

[@justsomeone64]

Ai will take jobs into the hundred thousands. 1) Self driving vans - Taking all delivery jobs 2) Delivery robots (Like Amazon) - Axing all of postal 3) Till-less retail (like Amazon Go) - Aldi opened their first in 2022 - Sainsbury opened theirs in 2018 (along with Amazon) - And Tesco's in 2021 Will the government support that unfathomable amount of people? Would they even blink at corporations collapsing the UK economy with hundred thousands of jobs losses? Doubt. Will people even care? They certainly won't act like it. They don't now, they likely won't then.

[@jjbell150]

Delivery jobs will still exist, the self driving car can't just dump the parcel or letter onto the street in front of the house, doubly so for flats. You can't really automate that last mile. And plenty of stores are closing their automated tills, because each one apparently loses more money from theft in an hour than the wages would be for an actual till attendant. I know I'm guilty of getting the fancy organic produce and ringing it up as standard, or holding the top of the bag on the scale to lower the weight - I was never trained how to properly use these machines, not my fault. If most people do the same by accident or intent, then surely it can't be worth it for them

[@justsomeone64]

@jayleaf201 Delivery jobs will go. That "last mile" happens already with no driver needed. In house staff unload vans right now. Earning income through retail, inches closer and closer to being like gold dust with each passing day. Till-less shops being less profitable now, won't stop shops from improving and going again later. Once one becomes flawless, they'll swap out as many current stores as they can afford. And do so as quickly as robots and self driving cars will let them. And yes, it will be robots, because Tesla has had robots moving boxes in their warehouses, since mid 2023. (And that's just as far as I've seen, could be before that). I'd love some optimism like you tried to bring, but so long as people pay the rich to replace the poor... Changes. Will. Happen.

[@mydogeatspuke]

This is what I don't get about the massive AI push. Yeah, businesses will be making more money because they'll be paying less people to do the jobs the AI can do. But then there will be less jobs, and so more people without jobs. Isn't the whole point to get more people into jobs?

[@justsomeone64]

@@mydogeatspuke Their main priority is more money in their pockets. And less in everyone elses

[@mydogeatspuke]

@justsomeone64 well yeah, obviously. I'm just not sure how they're going to achieve that if the welfare bill increases exponentially in response to automation.

[@micheal6898]

Labour make a Budget that Makes it more expensive to hire People , then Try to Intervene to get more people working.... These people Have No idea what they are doing !

[@SJ44-tu8ow]

The government are only mid managers who oversee the managed decline of the country.

[@tommylawrence2]

Get more people into work?!? They’ve just increased employers NI. I know many businesses who have made 5% or more cuts as they can’t handle to increase taxation in SMEs. Someone teach them economics.

[@br5380]

An increase in NI impacts every business, and the more efficient ones LESS.

[@Yo-Two]

Businesses CAN afford to contribute more to the economy. The average person CANNOT afford to cover those expenses. Maybe you need to learn economics. The average person is at breaking point with finances. The average person CANNOT afford any more. Businesses need to take the hit on their profits and stop being greedy. It's the only way forward at this point.

[@mceetb10]

Business owner here, employing more than 100 people accross europe. My bet is that none of this would move a needle. Poland has a working scheme for under 25s and it works well because there is not employer NI and employee NI and zero income tax from employment until you are 25. So there is a real incentive to hire young people, cause the cost of hiring 23 yo is 40% less than hiring 28 yo. Once u hire the 23 year old, train them, of course u are going to keep them after they turned 25. Everyone benefits. I dont know why the government is not asking business owners for advice. They are surely smart ppl. Must be the politics game, where u just need to show u r doing smth doesnt have to be effective

[@TH3YGXNE]

I thought of something similar but I’m not old enough to be an MP

[@andriibakhtiozin4477]

Im feeling like having ur own property is some sort of unreachable dream. Property is basic need for human. All those house investment assosiations/funds make it really like a life time goal. Take a mortgage and pay close to retirement and only if u are in good conditions, ur job is secure and a lot of other obstacles

[@mabeSc]

But owning a house in the UK is indeed only for the rich. There is no way around this, you either bought your house long ago or you're extremely well off. I'd argue that even being able to buy, maintain and pay insurance for a car is a sign of wealth given how expensive it has gotten - and things are likely to get much worse. Finding permanent employment, even just a basic unskilled job, is incredibly challenging.

[@Jay_Richardson]

It isnt inactivity its certain roles that people dont have the qaulifications or experience or mass applications. I have applied for over 90 jobs in the last 4 months and I've had 1 interview. With 17 years of Retail experience, 4 years in Warehousing, 4 years as a Retail Manager, 2 years as a Warehouse Coach and I cant land anything whilst self studying Front End Development, i applied for retail, warehouse, cleaner, admin, receptionist. The problem is the amount of people applying. For that 1 interview i had they said they had over 600 applications, next round 200, then interview stage last 20 (me) for 1 position.... so it isnt just inactivity, every industry is fcked with mass applications, loss of trade, less profit, certain roles etc. And when I did work the employers want some body to kill themselves for the job ie doing 2-3 peoples work load and the managers, higher ups attitude is "dont like it? Then leave" what great value towards staff and what we do isnt it. Shows how out of touch these aristicrates are with the real world, just look at numbers on a piece of paper and go 'oh bad numbers' need to fix. job oppenings 847,000 Out of work 2.7 milliion. Sorry but who cant do basic Maths in Gov? You've got 3x less the amount of jobs oppenings compares to out of workers.... again looked at piece of paper and thought "bad numbers" but cant do basic Maths. Hence my experience 600+ applications for 1 position.

[@Fenrir1373]

I’m sure there’s plenty of things that labour WANT to do, that can be said for any government. But no mention of HOW they plan to deliver more decent paying jobs for a highly educated and debt saddled population… from the budget they’ve already delivered, I have no reason to have any faith in them

[@jayaitch2194]

How about addressing rampant ageism? Pension age is now 67y but a number of people I know personally have been squeezed out of their jobs in "restructures" to give those jobs to "go-getters" in 30s while ensuring the older worker is there to support/bail out the younger person, in some cases the younger person was too early in their career to take on some of the management responsibilities. Equality should apply right across the workforce, not everyone in their 50s has a health condition anymore than every [fill in the cliche about 20 30 and 40yr olds]. Everyone is an individual, making sweeping generalisations based on age (or any other characteristic) is out of order! (edited for spelling)

[@manuel0695]

The real question here is: why the ammount of people with long term sickness is growing since 2020?!

[@jeffreypetchharrison4363]

the nhs has gone tits up thats why ... jeff

[@larkop6504]

Good luck to him, with the current economic policies there are going to be a lot more people out of work

[@l.j.turner185]

I find it incredible that huge industries all across the country were shut down decades ago with zero plan on what was going to replace those jobs. And to this day, we haven't figured that one out.

[@Bozebo]

We are actually quite close to full employment now despite this bullshit rhetoric, full employment would be a very bad thing. The problem is people earn nothing for their time, you have to earn over 40k to not be subsidised by others which also means all private industry employers paying below 40k are being subsidised...

[@angryherbalgerbil]

Woah don't bring Thatcher into this! Can't say anything about who closed our industries or why.

[@tuskular]

@@Bozebo We really arent tho, a large % of people who are "employed" are actually in 0 hour contracts and barely get any work, and sometimes even no work for months at a time, the unemployment rate is much higher than it is claimed to be.

[@SmugLookingBarrel]

They're saying the right words, let's just see if they can act on them.

[@MustraOrdo]

I do NOT have any faith left in politicians saying the right words.

[@cloudyskies1323]

If employers choose to not give someone a chance none of this will work. The government can’t compel businesses to hire. Just increased employee costs by £600 per employee from April 25. I’m no economist, still it’s a tax on the spenders. Where’s the funding coming from for employers to poke their nose into employees healthcare? Only a qualified consultant can determine a long term health condition.

[@Makalon102]

Imagine if employers got tax cuts if they hire people who were on benefits or have been out of work for a long period

[@delbroox]

Love it 👏👏👏 come on! Get it done! That’s how you gradually fix a country economy for everyone.

[@TrouserSn4ck]

How can they raise taxes and national insurance for companies and then expect them to be able to hire more?

[@SJ44-tu8ow]

It must be decline by design.

[@wildfire9280]

You can’t raise taxes on productivity and activity when there isn’t any. Labour has an opportunity with the best circumstances to take a page out of history here-without leaving any of the contributing factors unaddressed. What Britain and many other countries need is not so much to be “business-friendly” as productivity-friendly. A country needs to make productivity a worthwhile venture for people to prioritize labor over leisure (assuming they even have leisure and are not resigning from discouragement), and for labor to actually be available. When businesses start offering wages at the level people can live on without being cost-burdened (let alone with no disposable income), real wage growth, and invest in people to build the talent they require do the most, labor is at its most valuable to leisure (again, assuming “leisure” is leisure and not resignation). But it is the businesses that do the most to expand their bottom line that are the most successful. So in order for a country to have the productivity it needs, it needs to be the most rewarding to the most productive. To do that, the bottom line either has to be dangled in front of them or put on the line. There is one such proposal in tax reform that shows a solid premise for both: raising revenue from land value while slashing taxes on productivity as much as possible. Simply put, if there is wealth to be made anywhere in a country there will be value in its land. For a country to do the most it can to bring out productivity that can be realized but (for a myriad of reasons) is not being realized, it has to tax land. *But it cannot be structured the way a council tax is.* Council tax is arranged in bands like income tax is arranged in brackets for progressivity. While you might argue this is necessary for income tax, it is far less so for property tax and can even be counterproductive. Furthermore, because there are no bands above the current top starting at £320,000 *(and in 1991 value),* more expensive properties are proportionally paying less for their higher value than less expensive properties under the top valuation. Instead, Britain needs to look at abolishing and replacing the council tax with a tax on the unimproved value of land, or “economic rent” and then shift away from taxes elsewhere. If the resulting shift of the tax burden from economic productivity and activity to economic rent proves to be too expensive for lower income owner-occupiers, it could then be appropriate to split land tax into bands for places of principle residence (bands which actually keep up with land value as an appreciating asset) at amounts for the same revenue as a flat rate on all other properties. However, what would be most economically appropriate is allowing for the development of multi-family housing and, if need be, covering the cost of development for them. The inability for lower incomes to acquire homeownership is problematic under current circumstances where people are forced into extortionately high rent that leaves them cost-burdened or without disposable income, which in turn kneecaps the consumption expenditure which drives the economy. That’s why it’s important that another pressure of land value tax is lowering the price land sells for and keeping it low. This pressure increases the closer the rate is to a “full” land value tax. So when people are priced out of homeownership (or any landownership), *as they already are,* the closer to a “full rate” a land value tax is, the more the rental market will cave to lower prices for maximal occupancy as well as prioritize development scaling with land value. (Additionally, stronger safeguards for this can be found in successful social housing models and housing cooperatives. I see little reason why this wouldn’t work across the political spectrum.) This an effective solution for both housing inaffordability and housing supply shortages, on top of the best revenue source for promoting productivity without penalty, avoiding tax inefficiency creating deadweight loss, and providing reliable revenue. And there is no better time for it than now. Labour (and, for different reasons, LibDem) leadership needs to at least consider it.

[@boredphysicist]

I know a lot of people who ended up getting jobs in recruitment because they couldnt find any other work We simply seem to have a system in the UK where companies are hiring but arent actually taking anyone on, we desperately need to fix this. This country is screwed if young educated people are kept out of careers due to companies only hiring those already in the industry We are on a path towards brain drain

[@R53Hole]

So the people finding workers for employees couldn't find jobs for themselves?

[@jackjohnston_jj2004]

You’re already at brain drain, look at how many Brits emigrate to my home of Oz

[@boredphysicist]

@R53Hole Yep, its mental I also know multiple people who couldnt get a PhD so started working in unpaid programmes that supposedly increase your chance of getting a PhD assignment. Increasing the recruitment sectors size is not good for the economy, theyre just taking commission from other companies. A hyper competetive job market is a clear sign of a problem, it is not a sign of anything good.

[@1943colin]

"The "Economic Inactivity" Crisis Explained"... We don't want it explained, we want it SOLVED!

[@Alex-pr6zv]

Productivity is pointless unless you have the right products

[@elliotwilmo1286]

Great vids. This new presenter is really good too 😊

[@Damnnnbruh]

Everyone is an economic expert in the commments 😂😂

[@SuccessMindset2180]

Increasing employment rate just by itself would cut salaries in half, thus increasing issues of housing crisis and fertility crisis

[@MustraOrdo]

Or don't cut salaries in half since the rich class can afford to not have a 3rd yacht?

[@ciandoyle3315]

How about not importing literally millions of people a year who will do jobs with zero protections for dirt cheap pay.

[@SJ44-tu8ow]

That's part of the reason they are imported.

[@TonklinFallen]

Make sure that work pays. That's all we need to get working. Why is it so difficult for people in charge to understand money?

[@jorgemartinez875]

So they’re going to get 18-21 year olds guaranteed work or education? Sounds good to me

[@Writeescape]

I mean, they could bring back national service. Problem solved

[@jorgemartinez875]

@@Writeescapegenius idea! At a time where tensions are the highest, let’s send all our young people to the army! That definitely won’t rise tensions and risk our youth to get killed

[@edaleman2758]

​@@Writeescapenational service will be as popular as cold diarrhoea

[@Alexander-yb1zc]

​@@Writeescape A huge expense to the economy, very little benefit and very unpopular.

[@jgomo3877]

I was once placed into one of these schemes in the 2000's, and later had referred people to them in the 2010's; these "guaranteed employment or training" schemes are a total joke, they are run by quangos or "consulting companies", who take benefit claimants off the hands of the DWP for a week or 2, hot houses them in large groups where they are taught nothing helpful, and then dump them back on the street so the DWP gets to tick the "guaranteed training or employment" box. Its a employmeny ponzi scheme.

[@ArmaGeezer]

I'm not on benefits but I was thinking of going back to work this year, being off for too long over covid made me incredibly unfit. After hearing what you can go to prison for now in this insane country, I must avoid talking to people at all costs until this gender/race baiting madness is over.

[@Stampedrope]

Id love to work again however their are alot of issues that need to be fixed treatment of people is one as alot of people treat you like shit or single you out for no reason other than they juat dont like you this can cause alot of mental health problems as well pretty explanatory another is heath issues my current condition stops me from working in the sector i started in so i have to learn a new skill to work again (with im currently doing) but that has an affect to amd then one other issue i personally experienced is insurance companies, i went for an interview and told the manger my health conditions after i told him he ended the interview saying he cant employ me as the insurance company would charge me for me because of my condition so in his eyes i wasnt worth the risk so yeee theres a few issues

[@BUFUmic]

The main issues are, we have a service based economy, not manufacturing, houses are expensive so the younger generations without the help of bank of mum and dad, are highly unlikely to be able to afford to buy their own place, even if they are working. Lastly as someone currently out of work in the LCWRAG, mainly due to being the main carer to my kids but also due to depression and anxiety, wages are absolutely shocking still, I earned more when I first passed my HGV test some 13 years ago, compared to the wages advertised now for most positions. You're highly unlikely to be able to afford a decent level of luxury in life if you are working for someone else.

[@ViewOf]

Want to talk about economically inactive? Try landlords. Fix maximum rent at 20% of the median income (of the workplaces) of a city. Luxury houses and flats can still be sold like every other good in existence.

[@Nasrudith]

Later: "Why is nobody building any new housing?!"

[@ViewOf]

@@Nasrudith The rent to wage ratio was much lower in the past and housing market was way more active back then.

[@harrisonbergeron9746]

economically inactive, you mean not paying income tax?

[@GG-hi5if]

Yes, not working.

[@harrisonbergeron9746]

@@GG-hi5if lol not the same thing at all old boy

[@GG-hi5if]

@@harrisonbergeron9746 If you are derive your income through other means, e.g CGT. - You probably are economically active as well.