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Workers forced onto housing benefit by a ‘toxic cocktail’ of low pay and high rents

Wednesday, 12 January 2011
in

Hundreds of thousands of workers across England, Scotland and Wales are being forced onto housing benefit by a toxic cocktail of low pay and high rents, Unison has warned.

On average more than a quarter (26.13 per cent) of people claiming housing benefit are in work, rising to more than 45 per cent in the South East Hart and Test Valley area. The union is warning that the benefits bill is likely to soar as more people lose their jobs because of Government cuts.

Unison is calling for fair pay - fair rents, to switch the burden away from taxpayers and onto employers and landlords. The union is urging the Government to take urgent action and start building much needed affordable homes.

Dave Prentis, general secretary of Unison said:

“The Tories like to paint a picture of work-shy scroungers, living it up in massive mansions at the taxpayers’ expense, when the reality is very different. Their own statistics show that hundreds of thousands of workers across the UK are so low paid; they are forced onto housing benefit to keep a roof over their heads. These families will be amongst those hardest hit by the government’s changes to housing benefit.

“It is time to shift the onus onto bosses and make it clear that they cannot get away with paying poverty wages by expecting taxpayers to pick up the benefits bill. And the Government cannot turn their backs on the housing crisis that is sweeping through the country. Families are crying out for decent accommodation and instead of targeting housing benefits, the Government should be tackling the underlying problem by building affordable homes. This would stimulate the local economy, keep people in work and stop landlords from over-charging because of shortages in the rental market.

“Without urgent action the situation is set to get worse. When you add in those losing their jobs over the coming months because of Government cuts, the problem is set to add a huge burden on the taxpayer that workers can ill afford.”