November 21, 2024
A record nearly 2.8 million people in the UK are currently out of work or looking for work due to long-term illness.
Words by: Milena Dambelli
There were many hands pushing 51-year-old Jamie on a downward spiral – businesses he launched and failed during the pandemic, a late diagnosis of ADHD, an addiction to alcohol.
“It all ended two years ago,” he told Channel 4 News, “with two suicide attempts, I was in and out of psychosis, in a place where I wasn’t functioning cognitively. I couldn’t leave my flat.”
After thirty years of full-time work, Jamie has been unemployed for over two years. But even in such a situation, what you want when you get sick is to go back to work.
Getting people back to work is also what the government wants.
In the coming weeks, Labor is expected to unveil a major strategy to reduce the number of people who are too ill to work, a key to boosting public finances.
This is because almost a record 2.8 million people in the UK are currently out of work or looking for work due to long-term illness – around one in 15 people of working age.
The spiraling numbers of not working, and not looking for work, add to the spiraling benefits bill.
The most common reason for not working is mental illness.
And while the age group most likely to take long sick leave is 50 to 64, the number of young people in that category has doubled in the last decade.
The Government has revealed that a key part of its Back to Work white paper will be a new ‘Youth Guarantee’, making sure that “every 18 – 21 year old in the UK gets something to earn or study”.
Focus on young people like Brandon.
He never found his groove in school or college and when he graduated, he waited three years and was often out of a job he didn’t want, and in his early 20s he couldn’t see a future for himself.
“The development of frustration. Start thinking, what’s the point of even trying? After a very frustrating day, I’ve had enough in my heart. Something broke and I left the house and I don’t want to be here anymore.
After seeking help for his mental health, Brandon was referred to a scheme aimed at tackling youth unemployment by the Princes Trust.
As part of his work experience, he got a position doing data analysis for an airline company. And after the training was over, he was offered a job that would change his life.
“The difference between then and now is a million, billion percent difference. It makes me want to wake up every morning, the progress of the next month. Make me happy. And it makes me feel like I have value in the world.
Experts say there is no one-size-fits-all approach to getting back to work.
Shelley Southon, of the Shaw Trust, said she hoped to increase funding for support programs tailored to individuals in the government’s tentative plans.
“The evidence shows that if you follow this approach, you are twice as likely to work and stay in work because of the support,” she said.
As for Jamie, even though he wanted to go back to work, he knew he wouldn’t be able to do it while he was still sick.
“I’m really fragile. If I’ve stepped into something, I’ve just crumbled. When you’re sick, you have to concentrate to get better.”
After getting sober, he was no longer able to work in the industry – the beverage industry – and had retrained as an actor.
Jamie admits that, 15 years ago, if he had heard of long-term unemployed people with mental health problems, he would have thought that this was the reason – they did not have the “grit” or “to put obstacles in their way. to return to work”.
Now, he respects “people who can get out of bed and sometimes move because their mental health can destroy and kill them”.
A government spokesman said:
“The Get Britain to Work White Paper will bring together local jobs, health and skills plans to get Britain healthy and back to work.
“And by fixing the fundamentals of the economy and tackling economic inactivity, we will open up opportunities for everyone in the UK.
“Our new Youth Guarantee is part of a new strategy for young people and will make sure that every 18 – 21 year old in the UK has access to something to earn or learn.”
Produced by: Milena Dambelli
