As mentioned previously, I had an operation on my knee and was signed “off work” for 6 weeks to recover and enable my knee to heal properly.
It’s just over 3 weeks and the bills are coming in, so I took the decision to start delivering parcels again, against the advice of my surgeon – not because I wanted to, but because I have to. He gave me a sick note for 6 weeks, but being as I’m self employed, it means absolutely nothing except 12 weeks hardship. And this is where the current benefits system is all screwed up…
I work probably 30-40 hours per week for often less than the “National Living Wage” and only take time off when I physically cannot work. Yes, the NLW only applies if you are a contracted employee, not self employed or those on zero hours contracts. At the end of the year, I pay tax on 20% of what I earn from being self employed. I pay both class 2 and class 4 National Insurance even if I have made no profit.
I cannot afford to save, I cannot afford a pension, I cannot afford “sickness insurance” and due to previous debt, have no credit rating. So if I don’t work, I don’t eat – simple.
I enquired about claiming some kind of sickness benefit (ESA/PIP or whatever fancy name they call it) and was told I was ineligible to apply for 6 weeks – conveniently when I am “fit for work”, so basically the DWP stuck two fingers up at me – my fault for choosing to be self employed years ago, instead of being unemployed.
Are all self-employed people made to suffer unfair and terrible hardship if they make an ESA claim?…YES!!
However.. if I chose not to work and sit on my backside all day, I’d get every benefit under the sun, and that is what p**ses me off. Fair does, there are many people receiving benefits either due to being physically unable to do any kind of work, and those who have been made unemployed because cheap foreign labour has taken their jobs or their “face doesn’t fit”. Lets not forget those who have been chucked into the gutter for serving in the forces – they are more deserving than me!!
The system is totally screwed up – all I want is to be able to recover properly so I can resume full time work and have some of what I’ve paid into the system since I was 16 back for a few weeks. Instead, I am probably going to end up wrecking my knee joint and the way things are going, the NHS won’t be there when I need it fixing again.
