On monday 20th february I had an appointment at Working Links to do an hour or so of jobsearch. During that time I was given my next appointment for today to come along to their offices and be given some information regarding the customer portal they have up and running. Basically it is online and you register and then you are able to look online for any jobs Working Links have found from employers and do such things as upload your CV. A small group of us attended and it was over in around 45 minutes. Whether it was really worth making me turn up two days later just for this when it would have been better to have been informed of it after I completed my jobsearch on monday. At least it is one more thing to put in my booklet that the jobcentre take a quick look at every fortnight when I sign. I am getting the feeling that most people who start on the work programme accept the situation they are in and don't think it is too bad to come in once or twice a week to at least insure no sanction doubts are raised against them. Although I do plenty of online jobsearch at home and feel it is crazy attending just to do jobsearch that I had done only a few hours earlier it does at least get them off my back for a while. On monday I did hear a member of staff informing a guy that he must not miss his next appointment because for some reason he missed one last week. I still believe these work programme contracts should be scrapped and more money put into the jobcentres to promote a more active effort by jobcentre staff to contact employers on behalf of the unemployed in the area and put forward a few of us for jobs that we have the experience for. It would cost far less than the money being wasted on these big government contracts. We have to keep standing up for ourselves when we are in the right but crossing the line to end up being sanctioned and all the stress and upset that causes is up to the individual. Sadly, principles don't put food on the table and stress kills, lets make sure we don't put ourselves into an early grave and even though we don't have much money life is still worth living.