You should keep the appointment for your New Jobseeker interview as you will not get any benefit until you attend it. In addition, your "date of claim" may be changed if you do not attend at the appointed time and you may lose benefit as a result (see page * for more details).

The last page of the JSA claim form (JSA1) lists the completed forms and other documents which you should bring to your interview. If you do not have all the information listed, you should continue with your claim and attend the interview on time. You should at the very minimum bring along all the forms that you were given when you first contacted the ES. See page * for the different forms which you may have been given and/or the ones you need to request because they are not issued automatically.

• you must supply your National Insurance number, providing evidence or information that it is yours, or
• you must provide information or evidence to enable the Benefits Agency to trace it, or
• if you do not have one, you must apply to the Contributions Agency for one and provide enough information for them to allocate one to you.

The National Insurance requirement also applies to any partner or adult dependant you are claiming for (JSA Regs, Reg 2A).

If you are not registered for an National Insurance number, ES staff will arrange an appointment with the relevant Benefits Agency staff for you to register. You will be told to take identification (e.g. a passport) with you to this appointment and to your New Jobseeker interview (JSA NJI, ch 3, paras 33-38).

According to ES guidance, the aim of advisers who conduct New Jobseeker interviews is to "contribute to the reduction of unemployment". The purpose of the interview is to (JSA NJI, ch 3, paras 2 & 26):

ES staff are instructed to "make sure you understand that JSA is only payable to people who are available for work, capable of work and taking reasonable steps to find work". To this end they are instructed to make sure you "understand that the main focus of the interview is to discuss these issues and draw up a Jobseeker’s Agreement" (JSA NJI, ch 3, paras 28-29).

Advisers are under pressure to submit you to vacancies at this first interview. They are told that "to submit [you] to jobs wherever possible". If you are "reluctant to take a job" this may raise doubts about whether you are available for work or it may lead to you being submitted for a sanction for refusing a job offer (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 105). See pages * and * for details of how your entitlement to JSA may be affected in these circumstances.

You will also find that if there is any doubt about the way you left your last job that the adviser will follow this up to check if you should be referred for a "voluntary unemployment" benefit sanction (see page *). ES advisers are told that replies which might suggest this are: "left the job"; "didn’t like the job"; "had another job to go to"; "early retirement"; "pregnancy" (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 66).

One of the conditions that you must fulfil in order to receive JSA is having a Jobseeker’s Agreement which is signed jointly by you and an ES adviser and which remains in force throughout your claim (JS Act, sec 1(2)(b)). The Agreement is intended to (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 2):

The starting point for any discussion between you and the adviser about the jobseeking conditions required for JSA and the completion of the Agreement will be the answers you gave in the ES2 form (see Chapter 5). This form is used by the adviser to (JSA IP, ch 4, para 57):

Although the ES adviser must authorise, and sign, the final version of the Agreement before you will qualify for JSA, advisers are told to make sure you understand that they "are not there to tell [you] what to do or force [you] into an inappropriate course of action" (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 141). Advisers are also told that the ES2 form "is to help [you] think through [your] situation before the interview and to form the basis of the discussion at the interview". The adviser should "not let the [ES2] form dictate the interview" (JSA IP, ch 4, para 56).

ES staff must "take into account as much of [your] proposals and suggestions as possible [as] this will help to gain [your] commitment to [your] Agreement" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 29). ES guidance also says that in order "to be committed to [your] Agreement and see it as a useful aid to jobsearch, it must be meaningful, relevant and significant to [you] at the time it is produced" (original emphasis). This should be based on a discussion of your situation, your work goals, any barriers to work, the opportunities available to you and the steps needed to get back into work. After this discussion you, and not the adviser, "must make informed decisions about [your] route back into employment" and the Agreement should "detail the steps required to achieve that goal" (JSA IP, ch 4, paras 52-54).

Before the Agreement is signed by you and the adviser it must contain the following information (JSA Regs, reg 31):

If both you and the adviser are happy with the Agreement, your claim for JSA will be processed as normal. You and the adviser must sign the Agreement at the interview and you must be given a copy to keep (JS Act, sec 9(3)(4)).

The questions which you will have to answer in the Jobseeker’s Agreement are listed on page *. You should remember that this form is testing whether you meet the availability and jobseeking conditions for JSA. These conditions are covered in detail in Chapter 4. You should make sure you know what your rights and obligations are under these rules before attending your New Jobseeker interview to complete your Agreement.

The first two questions in the Agreement (i.e. about the types of job you are looking for and when you are willing to start work) are ones that you will have already answered in the form Helping you Back to Work (ES2), which you bring along to the New Jobseeker interview. The guidance on answering questions 8–9 and question 15 (see page *) in the ES2 form equally applies to your responses to these questions in the Jobseeker’s Agreement.

The next section of the Agreement begins by asking whether you want to restrict the days and hours that you are available for work. If you answer no to this question you are in principle agreeing to be available for work at any time during the week. It is anticipated that most people will wish to place some restrictions on these conditions as this will at least give them the right to turn down certain types of jobs. You cannot be sanctioned for refusing job offers from the ES if the working hours are substantially different to the "pattern of availability" in your Agreement (see page *).

You should include Saturday if you are looking for jobs in an area which traditionally involves Saturday working (e.g. garage work, shop work or hairdressing). It may be that the adviser suggests that you should be available on Sundays because the employment that you are looking for often requires this. If this (or working on another day) is contrary to your religious beliefs, it is important that you inform the adviser of this fact, as it must be taken into account. ES guidance states that "a person who follows a particular religion may object to taking a job which requires them to work on a day which is considered sacred" (JSA LOA, ch 2, para 32b).

For more details on how your "pattern of availability" is defined under the benefit rules, see page *. You should read through the details there before completing this part of the Jobseeker’s Agreement.

After you have agreed your "pattern of availability" there is a section covering "other agreed restrictions on [your] availability". You may already have specified some of these restrictions in the ES2 form, for example, the fact that you have a disability, or any limits on the areas in which you wish to look for work. Detailed guidance on the restrictions you can place on your availability for work (in addition to those relating to your weekly working hours) are set out in Chapter 4: see page *.

See page * for further guidance on the procedures that ES staff should follow if you are restricting your availability on the basis of a disability or a health problem.

The Agreement also sets out on the front cover (in the top right hand corner) the dates of the beginning and end of your permitted period if you qualify for one. During this period you can restrict yourself to looking for employment in your previous occupation and at your accustomed wage level for a maximum of 13 weeks (see page * for more details).

ES advisers should not force you to commit yourself to undertake an unreasonable number of jobseeking steps each week, if you can meet the actively seeking work condition with fewer steps. For example, ES staff are instructed that "it would not be reasonable to expect a jobseeker to take 30 steps in one week if they could satisfy the actively seeking employment requirement by taking only three steps a week". Normally, three steps a week would be more than enough for any claimant to meet the actively seeking work condition. However, the guidance also says that "what is reasonable will vary from jobseeker to jobseeker and will change over time" (JSA LOA, ch 4, paras 14-15).

	Earliest start time	Latest finish time	Most hours I can work
Monday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Tuesday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Wednesday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Thursday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Friday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Saturday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.
Sunday	a.m. p.m.	a.m. p.m.

• Write to at least ____ employers a week.
• Phone at least ____ employers a week.
• Visit at least ____ employers a week.
• Contact the Jobcentre at least ____ times a week.
• Ask family, friends and people I have worked with before.
• Look in these newspapers and trade papers
• How often will you look?
• Register with these employment agencies and contact them ____ times a week.
• Other activities including any steps to improve my chances of finding a job

You can be "treated" as having a Jobseeker’s Agreement even though you have not attended a New Jobseeker interview to draw one up. For example, claimants who are allowed to make a new claim by post (see page *) are deemed to have an Agreement until they meet an adviser to draw one up (JSA Regs, reg 34(a)). You are also exempted if you legitimately cannot attend your New Jobseeker interview because you are undertaking an activity for which you are being treated as available for work (see page *) (JSA Regs, reg 34(c)).

There may also be other circumstances "not peculiar to [you] which make impracticable or unduly difficult the normal operation" of the New Jobseeker interview (e.g. industrial action by ES staff, a fire or flood at the Jobcentre). In these circumstances you may be treated as having an Agreement before you have had the opportunity to draw one up (JSA Regs, reg 34(d)).

Your Agreement normally comes to an end once you stop claiming JSA, with the following exceptions (JSA Regs, reg 36):

• you sign on as unemployed again within a fortnight
• you are temporarily suspended from benefit for not meeting certain conditions of entitlement (e.g. for not being available or not actively seeking work) and the suspension expires and you weren’t entitled to JSA for the period of the suspension
• you cease to receive JSA but continue to sign on for National Insurance credits and meet all the relevant conditions
• you are attending a Government programme (e.g. Work-Based Learning for Adults) for which a training allowance is paid (JSA Regs, reg 170).

You must have a signed Agreement in order to claim JSA and you therefore should not simply refuse to complete and sign it as a matter of principle. Your actions can be viewed in this light even if you "enter into discussions regarding the contents of a Jobseeker’s Agreement and only refuse to sign it as a matter of principle when the final version is put to [you], without having made [your] objections known to the adviser during the discussion" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 18c).

If the adviser concludes that you are refusing to sign as a matter of principle s/he must "explain to [you] that [you] must have a signed Agreement in effect in order to satisfy the entitlement conditions for the receipt of JSA". S/he should also "give [you] every opportunity to change [your] mind and enter into an Agreement". Advisers are told that if you continue to refuse to sign, they should "make sure that [you] are refusing to sign it on principle", and if this is confirmed, to refer the matter to a sector adjudication officer (JSA LOA, ch 4, paras 19-20).

If you are disputing the conditions in the proposed Agreement rather than refusing to sign it as a matter of principle, you should make this clear to the adviser. Once you confirm that this is the case, the matter must be referred to a sector adjudication officer and the procedures outlined below must be followed (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 20).

According to the benefit rules, an adviser must "not enter into a Jobseeker’s Agreement with a claimant unless" in their opinion the availability for work and actively seeking work conditions "would be satisfied with respect to the claimant if [s/]he were to comply with [the Agreement]" and "it is reasonable to expect [you] to have to comply with the proposed Agreement" (JS Act, sec 9(5)&(6)).

However, if you believe that your terms are reasonable, or that the terms suggested by the adviser are much too demanding, then you also have the right to instruct the adviser to refer the dispute to an adjudication officer (JS Act, sec 9(6)). If you are involved in a dispute of this kind it is essential that you offer proposals for an alternative Jobseeker’s Agreement to be referred to the adjudication officer and to ensure that these proposals meet the availability and jobseeking rules. Without an alternative acceptable set of proposals from you, it is more than likely that the adjudication officer will accept the proposals recommended by the ES adviser as long as they meet the availability and jobseeking conditions.

An adviser will probably initiate the above referral procedure because you do "not propose [your] own Agreement and/or [are] not prepared to agree to proposals which [the adviser] consider[s] are necessary" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 32). In these circumstances the adviser is told to "ask [you] which parts of the Agreement [you] do not agree with and discuss with [you] what [you] would be prepared to agree to instead". If you "suggest amendments or alterations which would enable [you] to satisfy the availability and actively seeking employment conditions and [which] are reasonable" the adviser should "accept [your] proposals" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 33).

However, if "after further discussion an acceptable Agreement cannot be agreed" between you and the adviser, the adviser will (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 34):

• tell you that your JSA cannot be paid until the adjudication officer has come to a decision and you have a Jobseeker’s Agreement in force
• "draw up a Jobseeker’s Agreement with the terms [you have] agreed to and ask [you] to sign it"
• input onto the Jobcentre computer system "the additional terms that, in [the adviser’s] opinion, should be included in the Agreement" and explain why they believe terms you have suggested are not reasonable
• ask you "to state on form ES589 why [you] do not agree to the inclusion of these additional terms"
• issue you with an Adjudication Notification letter (ES48), which recommends that you continue signing on in the meantime and also includes a copy of a leaflet on the eligibility rules and application procedures for hardship payments whilst your case is being looked at (see Chapter 10 for more details about JSA hardship payments).

When dealing with disputes over an initial Jobseeker’s Agreement, the adjudication officer is told to determine whether the availability and actively seeking conditions would be met if you "comply with the proposed Agreement" and also whether it "is reasonable to expect [you] to have to comply with the proposed Agreement" (JS Act, sec 9(6)). The decision must be sent to you in a letter from the adjudication officer. "So far as is practicable", the process should be completed within a fortnight (JS Act, sec 7(a)).

When judging what "is reasonable to expect you to have to comply with", adjudication officers are advised that "it is not reasonable to expect you to do what is in the proposed Agreement if in doing so [you] are unable to satisfy" the availability and/or actively seeking conditions (AOG, vol 4, para 26850). For example, an Agreement which only asked a highly skilled person to visit the Jobcentre would come into this category if the adjudication officer decided that this did "not give [the jobseeker] the best chance of getting employment".

In addition, the "adjudication officer should not expect [you] to do what is in the proposed Agreement if the terms of the Agreement are not reasonable ... this is the case even if the proposed Agreement enables [you] to satisfy the availability and actively seeking employment conditions" (AOG, vol 4, para 26851). Examples of this situation are given in the guidance and include circumstances in which claimants are requested to undertake an excessive number of jobseeking steps or to accept a wage level well below that which they are legitimately restricting themselves to during their permitted period.

The adjudication officer’s decision may simply contain a "determination" specifying that you should comply with the Agreement proposed by the ES adviser (AOG, vol 4, para 26855). However, if it has been decided that the proposals are not reasonable, this decision may instead "give such directions with respect to the terms on which the [ES adviser] is to enter into a Jobseeker’s Agreement with [you], as the adjudication officer thinks appropriate" (JS Act, sec 9(7)(b)). In deciding what directions to give, the adjudication officer is instructed to consider any of the following factors which apply in the circumstances of your case (AOG, vol 4, para 26858):

• why you refused to accept an Agreement proposed by the adviser and whether you were reasonable in so refusing
• why the adviser refused to accept an Agreement proposed by you
• what terms were proposed by the adviser and/or you
• why the adviser and/or you believe that the proposals put forward are reasonable
• your availability, including any restrictions on the type of employment, rate of pay, localities in which you are looking for work and the hours that you are prepared to work
• whether the steps to seek employment are judged to be reasonable under the actively seeking work rules.

The conditions set out in your Agreement can be changed at your request or that of an ES adviser, but only "in the prescribed manner, by agreement between [you] and any [adviser]" (JS Act, sec 10(1)). This is officially called a "variation" to your Agreement. ES guidance says that this procedure will normally take place at main advisory interviews which allow advisers "to make sure the Jobseeker’s Agreement is still helpful or whether it needs updating" (JSA IP, ch 4, para 25).

However, you also have the right to request that a "variation" to your Agreement is considered at any stage of your claim. A Government minister has stated in Parliament that although "it is not envisaged that variations will be necessary between advisory interviews, [you] will, however, be able to seek a variation if it is appropriate". Furthermore, in these circumstances you "will be granted an appointment as soon as possible [and] in most cases that will be in less than 7 days" (Hansard HL Debate, col 908, 25/4/95). This may be useful if your circumstances change at short notice and adversely affect your ability to meet the conditions in your Agreement.

The ES guidance says that examples of situations in which an Agreement may be varied include (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 35):

• at the end of the permitted period
• a change in your circumstances affecting your availability for work
• a change in your circumstances which means that the initial Agreement is no longer reasonable
• the steps that you have agreed to look for work must be changed to improve your prospects of finding work or to enable you to make progress in your search for work.

If you and the ES adviser agree with the varied Agreement, you both sign it and you must be given a copy. If there is a dispute, the adviser is told to ask you which parts of the proposed variation you do not agree with and discuss with you what you would be prepared to agree to instead. If you "suggest amendments or alterations which would enable [you] to satisfy the availability and actively seeking employment conditions and [which] are reasonable" the adviser should accept your proposals (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 40).

However, if "after further discussion an acceptable Agreement cannot be agreed", advisers are instructed to (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 41):

• "explain that your JSA will continue to be paid as long as there are no other doubts" (see below for more details)
• draw up a Jobseeker’s Agreement with the terms you have agreed to and ask [you] to sign it
• input onto the Jobcentre computer system the additional terms that, in the adviser’s opinion, should be included in the Agreement and explain why they believe terms you have suggested are not reasonable
• ask you to state on form ES589 why you do not agree to the inclusion of these additional terms
• issue you with an Adjudication Notification letter (ES48S), which tells you that your JSA will not be affected until the adjudication officer has made a decision and that you should continue to sign on as normal.

"Where a revised Jobseeker’s Agreement is disputed, the original will remain in force and JSA will continue to be paid, in full, until a decision is made on the revised Agreement" (JSA LOA, ch 1, para 35). The disputed Agreement is then sent to the adjudication officer (JSA LOA, ch 1, para 42). However, the guidance also says that "if an acceptable Agreement cannot be agreed because [you are] not available for work" the adviser will then "explain that JSA will not continue to be paid" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 41). In these circumstances an adviser can suspend JSA immediately under the availability for work rules.

If you disagree with the changes to your Agreement suggested by the adviser or vice versa, you and the adviser both have the right to refer the "proposed variation" through the same adjudication procedure as for disputes over the initial Agreement (see page *). The adjudication officer’s verdict on the varied Agreement should also "so far as is practicable" be sent to you within 14 days (JS Act, sec 10(6)(a)).

Adjudication officers must ultimately decide whether the revised Agreement meets the availability and actively seeking work conditions and also "whether it is reasonable to expect [you] to have to comply with the Agreement as [it is] proposed to be varied" (JS Act, sec 10(5)). As a result of this assessment the adjudication officer will issue directions which specify (JS Act, sec 10(6)(b)&(c), JSA Regs, reg 38):

• "whether the Jobseeker’s Agreement should be varied, and if so, the terms on which [you] and the [adviser] are to enter into an Agreement"
• that if the Agreement is to be varied and you refuse to comply within 21 days, this "may bring your Jobseeker’s Agreement to an end".

If an adjudication officer issues a direction that you should comply with the varied Agreement that the adviser has proposed, and you fail to comply within 21 days of the date on which this direction was issued, the adjudication officer "may bring [your] Jobseeker’s Agreement to an end" and you will no longer be entitled to JSA (JS Act, sec 10(6)(c), JSA Regs, reg 38). However, your "JSA will continue to be paid until the initial Agreement is referred to the sector adjudication officer for termination" (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 71).

The adjudication officer must take into account the same factors when judging varied Agreements as they are instructed to do for disputes over initial Agreements (see page *). This means that much of the advice given above about disputes over initial Agreements is equally relevant to disputes over any variation to your Agreement.

However, there is one difference between the guidance given over what must be taken into account when adjudicating on initial Agreements and on variations. The benefit rules state that when a variation is referred, the "adjudication officer shall take into account the preference of the claimant if [s/]he considers that both the claimant’s proposals and those of the [adviser] satisfy the requirements" of the availability and jobseeking conditions (JSA Regs, reg 39). In these circumstances "the adjudication officer should direct that the Agreement should be varied along the lines proposed by the claimant" (AOG, vol 4, para 26951). This means that it may help your cause if you offer alternative ways of varying the Agreement rather than refusing point blank to consider any changes.

When the adjudication officer communicates a decision about a disputed initial Agreement or a variation, s/he also specifies when the Agreement that s/he has found in favour of should come into effect. This may be important. For example, it can affect the amount of backdated benefit you would receive if the adjudication officer finds in favour of your initial Agreement rather than the one proposed by the adviser. Agreements that are not referred to adjudication are automatically backdated to the date when you originally registered your claim for JSA rather than the date when you actually signed the Agreement (JSA Regs, reg 35).

When backdating disputed Agreements, adjudication officers are instructed to take certain factors into account, including "the date on which, in all circumstances [s/]he considers that the claimant was first prepared to enter into an Agreement which the adjudication officer considers reasonable" and also if the "date on which [you] first had an opportunity to sign a Jobseeker’s Agreement" was later than your date of claim (JSA Regs, reg 32(d)&(e)). In essence, this enables the adjudication officer to backdate your claim for JSA to when you first signed on if they find in your favour over a disputed Agreement.

It also means that if you tell an ES adviser that you have changed your mind about a disputed Agreement before the adjudication officer’s decision, this should be taken into account in determining the date your Agreement should come into effect. In these circumstances the ES adviser should "ask [you] to record on form ES589 the earliest date from which [you] would have been prepared to enter into this Agreement" and this will be sent to the adjudication officer (JSA LOA, ch 4, para 48). In these circumstances the adjudication officer could "treat the Agreement as having effect from the date of [your initial] claim" providing you can demonstrate that you "genuinely misunderstood the proposed Agreement and were willing to accept it once [you] understood the terms of the Agreement" (AOG, vol 4, para 26888).

Both the claimant and the ES adviser can request a review of an adjudication officer’s original decision about a dispute over an initial Agreement or a varied Agreement. This review must be carried out by a different adjudication officer. The request for a review must (JSA LOA, ch 4, paras 75-76):

If there is a dispute over a "variation" to your Jobseeker’s Agreement you are in a better position, as your JSA should normally not be suspended in these circumstances pending the adjudication officer’s decision (see page *). So if you do accept the initial Agreement proposed by the ES adviser simply in order to have your benefit entitlement processed, you can always subsequently request a variation of the Agreement and continue to receive your JSA pending the adjudication officer’s decision about the variation.

The process of applying for hardship payments, the definition of "vulnerable groups", and the criteria used by adjudication officers to assess eligibility are very complex and are covered in detail in Chapter 10. This chapter also includes specific guidance on your eligibility for hardship payments when there are disputes over your Jobseeker’s Agreement – see pages *, *, * and *.

Advisers should also inform claimants with disabilities and health problems that they "may qualify for special programmes, services or relaxed entry criteria to mainstream programmes" (JSA SN, ch 11, para 57). In addition, advisers should consider whether individuals require more specialist help and should be referred for an interview with a disability employment adviser .

Many claimants with disabilities and health problems are having to sign on for JSA as a result of being judged capable of work by the All Work Test and losing their entitlement to Incapacity Benefit (IB) (see page *). These JSA claimants must be automatically accepted as "capable of work" by the ES (see page *), but they must show that they meet the availability and jobseeking conditions to a limited degree and must have a Jobseeker’s Agreement in force. Some of these claimants will be signing on for JSA to replace loss of benefit while they are appealing against a disallowance of IB, in the hope that they will win their appeal and not have to claim JSA in the long term.

If you decide to appeal against the loss of IB (or Severe Disablement Allowance) following an All Work Test, there are special rules which may entitle you to claim Income Support (IS) instead of signing on for JSA whilst your appeal is being processed. These rules say that "people who appeal and are entitled to receive IS can claim directly from the Benefits Agency without having to meet the JSA conditions" pending the determination of their appeal (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 303).

Alternatively, you can decide to appeal against the decision, but also sign on as available for work to qualify for JSA pending the adjudication officer’s decision. When you sign on an adviser should "explain that for the purposes of claiming JSA the decision on incapacity stands until the appeal is heard [and] until then [you are] considered as capable of work". In addition, the adviser should "make it clear that the usual conditions for receipt of JSA apply, but that being available for and actively seeking employment will not prejudice [your] appeal" (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 295). If you do sign on for JSA you will be entitled to National Insurance credits whatever the outcome of the appeal.

If you sign on for JSA after being disallowed from IB and have not put in an appeal against the decision, ES staff are told "under no circumstances [to] advise [you] to appeal or to seek further medical evidence from [your] doctor". If you ask for an adviser’s opinion, all that they are obliged to do is to "refer [you] to the information in the [IB] disallowance notice or to the appropriate Benefits Agency office". However, if you indicate that you definitely intend to appeal, the adviser should "make it clear that [you] can continue with [your] claim for JSA and [to] make sure [you] are aware of the benefits of doing so". If you are "confused about what to do in these circumstances it may be possible [for the adviser] to make a phone available for [you] to ring the Benefits Agency helpline" (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 301).

ES guidance tells advisers that they "will be able to help many jobseekers who have a health problem or disability and draw up a meaningful and appropriate Agreement with them", but that "in other cases additional help will be needed from a disability employment adviser" (JSA IP, ch 4, para 38). If you have a disability or a health problem which limits the work that you can do, you are likely to be referred to a disability employment adviser (DEA) at your New Jobseeker interview. If you are referred for this specialist help you will have the opportunity to have your initial Agreement revised at this interview with a DEA (see below).

However, even if you are not referred to a DEA you are still covered by the exemptions to the availability and jobseeking conditions for JSA if you have a disability or health problem. The benefit rules state that you "may restrict [your] availability in any way providing the restrictions are reasonable in the light of [your] physical or mental condition" (JSA Regs, reg 13(3)). In addition, adjudication officers are told that "claimants who restrict their availability in this way do not have to show that they have reasonable prospects of obtaining employment with the restriction" (AOG, vol 4, para 26442).

The wide-ranging exemptions given to people with disabilities or health problems in relation to the availability and jobseeking rules are set out on pages * and *. You should have informed the ES of the fact that you are entitled to place restrictions on your jobsearch under these rules when you answered questions 10 and 11 in the Helping you Back to Work form (ES2) (see page *). However, if you have not done so, you should bring this up at your New Jobseeker interview in order that it can be taken into account when you draw up the Jobseeker’s Agreement.

If you are to be referred to a disability employment adviser (DEA) you will still have to draw up an initial Jobseeker’s Agreement with an ordinary ES adviser at your first interview. These advisers are told that even "if the jobseeker needs specialist help or advice from the DEA a Jobseeker’s Agreement must still be drawn up at the New Jobseeker interview" (JSA NJI, ch 3, para 248).

They are also told that "in these circumstances a basic Agreement must be drawn up at the New Jobseeker interview if the claim for JSA is to go forward [and that] this is particularly important because there is often a delay between referral to a DEA and a DEA interview" (JSA SN, ch 11, para 27). The guidance emphasises that "if JSA is not paid because a jobseeker with a disability is unwilling and/or unable to draw up a Jobseeker’s Agreement due to the waiting time to see a DEA, the ES could be liable under the Disability Discrimination Act" (JSA SN, ch 11, para 27).

At the DEA interview this member of staff "will reconsider the Agreement and discuss any changes needed with [you]" (JSA IP, ch 4, para 42). Although the DEA may be more sympathetic to your case and allow you to place more restrictions on your jobsearch in the Agreement, s/he is still required to ensure that the Agreement meets the availability and actively seeking work regulations for people with disabilities and health problems.

There have been concerns that the inflexible nature of the Jobseeker’s Agreement, especially its insistence on drawing up a weekly pattern of availability and jobseeking activity, discriminates against claimants who have a "fluctuating" or "recurring" disability. However, a Government minister has stated that in these circumstances, "in determining what is reasonable, the [ES] adviser will consider all the relevant aspects of a person’s condition, including whether it is a fluctuating disability" (Hansard WA, col 471, 3/3/97). This means that you may be allowed to specify in your Agreement that your condition fluctuates and that this means that you may be unable to meet the jobsearch requirements in any week when there is a rapid deterioration in your condition.

Both ES staff and adjudication officers can require more evidence of any medical condition which enables claimants to restrict their jobsearch. They "can obtain medical evidence if they do not have enough evidence to decide if the restrictions are reasonable because of [your] physical or mental condition", but since you will have to pay for a GP to provide a statement, they are told that this "should be considered only if sufficient evidence cannot be obtained from other sources" (AOG, vol 4, paras 26443-44).

If you are an ex-IB claimant, access to any medical reports relating to the disallowance of your IB is governed by strict procedures. A Government minister explained the procedures to be followed in circumstances where "the ES may, in cases of doubt, require more information about a condition which restricts availability". He explained that "the Incapacity Benefit disallowance notice sets out the level at which a person has been assessed and the functional areas in which limitations were identified; the ES may request this information from [you] and this is normally sufficient. In the few cases where additional information is required an independent adjudication officer may approach the Benefits Agency Medical Service for further information about the condition. ES staff do not, however, have access to Incapacity Benefit application forms when assessing a person’s availability for work" (Hansard WA, col 471, 3/3/97).

The guidance given to adjudication officers states that if you have had a medical examination from a BA doctor in relation to a re-assessment of a claim for IB, an adjudication officer may consider this medical report, but "should have [your] permission before approaching the doctor" (AOG, vol 4, para 26445).

When you attend your New Jobseeker interview to complete your Jobseeker’s Agreement you have the right to have a "third party" present if you think that you "cannot cope alone" and/or English is your second language and you require an interpreter. People with disabilities or health problems are also entitled to have this interview conducted in a private room. These rights at interviews are explained in more detail in Chapter 7 – see page *.

ES advisers are also told that certain claimants, especially those with literacy difficulties and those with English as a second language, should be treated with sensitivity and made fully aware of their responsibilities under the Jobseeker’s Agreement. At the end of the New Jobseeker interview these claimants must (JSA IP, ch 4, paras 47 & 50):

• "understand and agree with the steps outlined in their Agreement and [be] clear about what they have agreed to do"
• understand the JSA entitlement conditions, especially the availability and actively seeking work conditions
• "be aware of the help that is available to them as outlined in their Agreement and the Jobseeker’s Charter".

If you have a literacy problem, your Jobseeker’s Agreement must be read to you and the adviser must make sure you understand the declaration you are being asked to sign on your Agreement (JSA IP, ch 4, para 47b). However, if you say that your "lack of basic skills make it difficult for [you] to find a job, this may be challenged" by ES advisers, who are told that "a lack of basic skills may not be a problem for some jobs" and that they should "consider what is realistic and achievable" in your circumstances (JSA SN, ch 1, para 23). It may be suggested that you get some help with any basic skills problems (e.g. by taking up basic employability training under Work-Based Learning for Adults).

ES guidance states that if English is your second language, it is essential that you "should be able to understand what is happening during the interview so [you] are in no doubt what [your] responsibilities are and rights are, particularly with regard to qualifying for JSA and the steps detailed in [your] Jobseeker’s Agreement". You should be treated with "courtesy and sensitivity" and the staff should "encourage [you] to bring someone to act as an interpreter" if the ES cannot provide interpreting facilities (see page * for more details about the use of interpreters) (JSA SN, ch 3, paras 6-9).

It is accepted by the ES that the "outcome for many jobseekers with language difficulties may well be a referral to an ESOL [English for Speakers of Other Languages] course" in order to improve their prospects of getting a job. However, the guidance also says that "not all jobs and programmes need a high standard of spoken or written English" and tells advisers to "consider other opportunities alongside ESOL training" (JSA SN, ch 3, paras 11-12).

ES guidance makes it clear that staff should help claimants complete forms if they have problems with this task, especially if they have literacy and/or language difficulties. It says that "if [you have] problems with reading and writing and cannot obtain help from a friend or relative" then staff should "refer [you] to a person who has been nominated to help with these people" and you can also bring a friend to help you (JSA NJI, ch 1, paras 153 & 155).

When you first contact the Jobcentre the receptionist should make sure that you understand the importance of bringing the completed JSA forms to your first interview and ensure that, if necessary, someone in the office is available to help you complete them. You will be told to attend the office at least 10 minutes before your interview if you need help to fill out your forms (JSA NJI, ch 1, para 81). This staff member is likely to concentrate on helping you to complete the Helping you Back to Work form (ES2) because it is used as the basis of the discussion about the Jobseeker’s Agreement. "The JSA claim form [JSA1] can be completed by [you], with help from an appropriate person if needed, after the New Jobseeker interview" (JSA NJI, ch 2, para 16).

The benefit rules state that you will be disqualified from JSA and lose your personal allowance for a period of up to 26 weeks if an adjudication officer decides that you have (JS Act, sec 19(3)&(6)(a)(b)):

ES guidance says that leaving voluntarily "generally arises when a jobseeker hands in their notice or terminates their contract of employment of their own accord" (for more details see page *) and that misconduct has been interpreted "to mean such conduct as would make reasonable employers dispense with a jobseeker’s services because they are no longer a fit person to hold that employment" (for more details see page *) (JSA LOA, ch 7, paras 2 & 5).

• pay slips if you had a dispute about your wages
• time sheets if you had disagreed about overtime
• medical evidence if you were asked to do things you were incapable of doing
• job descriptions if you disagreed about what work you were expected to do
• evidence about accommodation if you have had to give up a job because you were unable to secure adequate housing, and so on.

If you follow the above guidance you will have a much better chance of convincing the adjudication officer that you had just cause for leaving a job voluntarily (see page *).

Alternatively, you may find that an adjudication officer exempts you from the "voluntary unemployment" sanction because you are able to show "just cause" for leaving the job voluntarily (see page *). It may also be the case that you are not referred for a sanction because ES staff find that you qualify for the Employment on Trial concession (see page *).

If a sanction is imposed on you, it cannot take effect until the adjudication officer has considered all the evidence from you and the employer and has communicated the decision to you (see page * for more details about the benefit sanction procedures).

You can be sanctioned even if you sign on for JSA after leaving a job for legitimate reasons (e.g. you were made redundant) but you had left an earlier job voluntarily or for reasons of misconduct within the past 6 months. Adjudication officers are instructed that a "voluntary unemployment" sanction "can still be considered if JSA is claimed and [you become] entitled to it ... within 26 weeks and 1 day of the day employment was lost" (AOG, vol 6, para 39008.1).

In determining the length of the voluntary unemployment benefit sanction (and any benefit sanction for refusing employment or neglecting to avail yourself of employment – see Chapter 8) the adjudication officer must take into account any evidence that you have provided. This means that even if you are not able to demonstrate "just cause" for leaving when you give your comments on the appropriate form (see page *), you may at least provide evidence that will result in a shorter sanction being imposed.

Adjudication officers are advised that if the "sanction is anything other than misconduct and ... the adjudication officer has no evidence to explain your action or failure to act, it is likely that the maximum sanction will be reasonable" (AOG, vol 6, para 39029). This means that it is very important that you complete the form asking for your comments and return it on time. Otherwise you may receive the maximum sanction simply by default.

Because the "periods of disqualification will cut into the entitlement for contributory JSA" you could lose your complete entitlement to JSA if you are sanctioned for the full 26-week period (HMSO 1994, para 4.38). This would be the case if you were entitled to 6 months of Contribution-based JSA and you did not qualify for Income-based JSA afterwards, for example, because your partner was working full-time.

When determining the length of the sanction, the adjudication officers must take into account "all the circumstances of [your] case" and in particular the following (JSA Regs, reg 70)):

• for all sanctions – if the work was a short-term contract of under 6 months duration, the actual length of time which the job was expected to last
• if you have been dismissed for misconduct but your employer has indicated an intention to re-engage you, the date when you are to be re-engaged
• if your sanction is for voluntarily leaving your job and your weekly working hours were 16 hours or less a week, the rate of pay for the job and the number of hours worked each week
• for all sanctions – any "mitigating circumstances of physical or mental stress connected with the employment in question".

Before the adjudication officer can take into account the fact that the job would have lasted for less than 6 months, s/he must first "be satisfied that the employment would have ended at or about a certain date" (AOG, vol 6, para 39031). This means that it must be absolutely clear from the evidence given by you and/or your employer that the job would have ended within 26 weeks of the time you left it or refused to apply for it.

Adjudication officers are told that a job is classified as less than 16 hours per week if you work on a shift or rota system in which you have to work for 16 or more hours in some weeks and less than 16 hours in others (AOG, vol 6, paras 39026.6 & 39425).

Once the adjudication officer has decided the length of the benefit sanction, the length of the sanction should be reduced by (AOG, vol 6, paras 39037-38):

• any days after you had left the employment in question and before the sanction for voluntary leaving/misconduct had begun, or
• any days after the date on which you refused or neglected an opportunity of employment and before such a sanction began

• during these days you are not in receipt of JSA because you:
• do not claim it
• claim it late
• are in other employment or training
• are reinstated in the former employment or training
• are incapable of work
• are not available for work
• are not actively seeking work
• do not have a Jobseeker’s Agreement in force
• are in custody
• are not entitled on the basis of payments (e.g. payments in lieu of notice) received from your last employer.

Because the sanction "must be for one continuous period" (AOG, vol 6, para 39044.1), it is reduced or ceases to have effect if you lose entitlement to JSA when serving the sanction, for example, because you sign off and move into a job. In these circumstances, if you do not sign on again within the original specified sanction period, the sanction ceases to have any effect. If you do sign on again for JSA within this specified period, you must serve the remainder of the sanction, but it is assumed that the sanction period had continued to run on whilst you were not receiving JSA. This means that you will have avoided serving the part of the sanction which was used up whilst you were not claiming JSA (AOG, vol 6, para 39032).

There can be an overlap between sanctions if you are sanctioned for more than one "offence" and the sanctions imposed are any of the "voluntary unemployment" sanctions or the 2- or 4-week sanctions for not attending a compulsory programme or not carrying out a Jobseeker’s Direction (see Chapter 8 for more details of these fixed-length sanctions). In these circumstances adjudication officers are told that "each offence which leads to a sanction question should be treated separately even if this means that a period of sanction overlaps a previous sanction" (AOG, vol 6, para 39007).

To escape disqualification for making yourself voluntarily unemployed there normally must be something "urgent" in the nature of your job (other than the rate of pay) or in your own domestic circumstances that meant that it was no longer reasonable for you to continue working (AOG, vol 6, para 39282). However, adjudication officers are also told that you may also have just cause if (AOG, vol 6, para 39283):

• your reasons "almost amount to just cause" and
• you "had a promise or a chance of other continuous employment which was expected to last for some time".

You cannot show just cause for leaving a job simply because you "found it distasteful or it was below [your] expectations" or if you "knew about the conditions that caused [you] to leave when [you] took the employment" (AOG, vol 6, paras 39289 & 39291). However, if you can demonstrate that you "genuinely did not know, or were mistaken about the nature or conditions of the employment (other than pay) when [you] accepted it and left after a fair trial" you will have a better chance of showing just cause (AOG, vol 6, para 39290).

If you knew about the terms and conditions beforehand, just cause would be accepted only if these terms and conditions made the "employment so unsuitable that [you] could not reasonably have been expected to stay in the job any longer" and you had "taken any steps possible through the proper channels to sort out the situation rather than leave immediately" (AOG, vol 6, para 39295).

However, if your employer tries to impose a change in the terms and conditions of employment "without agreement and which makes them less favourable than before, s/he may have ended the employment by breaking the contract of employment". In these circumstances you will have just cause (AOG, vol 6, para 39295). In addition, if your employer does not comply with some part of your contract of employment and you leave for this reason shortly after you start, you may have just cause for leaving (AOG, vol 6, para 39296).

However, if the only reason that you left was that the change would have reduced your pay, you cannot show just cause (JS Act, sec 19(9)), unless this change was imposed immediately without any consultation and you "had no proper chance to consider the situation" (AOG, vol 6, para 39297). In addition, you cannot show just cause for leaving a job because you thought you would be better off financially by claiming JSA instead (AOG, vol 6, para 39353).

You also cannot show just cause over changed terms and conditions if (AOG, vol 6, paras 39298-99):

• it was not possible to say for definite what the effect would be and you left before giving the changes a fair trial
• the changes were generally agreed and affected most employees
• the changes were meant to bring employees in your particular firm or department into line with employees elsewhere
• you stayed for longer than what could be regarded as a trial period and the adjudication officer decides this demonstrated that you had accepted the changes.

You can show just cause for leaving a job if you "had a genuine and substantial grievance about the employment (other than pay) and had tried in a proper and reasonable way to get it settled" (AOG, vol 6, para 39303). Under employment law, every employee who has been working for at least 2 months should be aware of the procedures by which they can sort out any grievance at work.

A common grievance is where you may be asked to do work which is not covered by your contract of employment. This may amount to just cause "particularly if the employer gave [you] an ultimatum of either doing the work or leaving" (AOG, vol 6, para 39306). However, you may find it more difficult to show just cause if your duties "are not clearly defined [and you] have to do whatever is reasonable taking into account any broad categories of work specified in the contract of employment, and the job title, and the normal duties of similar employees" (AOG, vol 6, para 39307).

You will have just cause if your "employer ordered [you] to do something that conflicted with [your] sincerely held religious or conscientious principles". In this case you should refer to the explanation of good cause for refusing employment on these grounds (see Chapter 8, page *), as this guidance is also used by adjudication officers for deciding just cause for voluntary leaving (AOG, vol 6, para 39317).

The guidance given to adjudication officers states that your "personal or domestic circumstances may have become so urgent that [you] will have just cause for leaving employment without having looked for other employment". However, if it is clear that there is no urgency you will be expected to "have taken all reasonable steps to avoid leaving or [you] will not have good cause" (AOG, vol 6, para 39339).

You have good cause for leaving a job if it was (AOG, vol 6, para 39356):

Adjudication officers are told that the best evidence of this is confirmation from your doctor. However, if this is not available the adjudication officer "can accept that there is just cause without requesting medical evidence where the work itself or the place [you] work in made the medical condition worse" (AOG, vol 6, paras 39357-58).

If the adjudication officer does not accept that you have good cause on grounds of health, but it is clear that you genuinely believed that this was the case, s/he should take this into account when determining the length of the disqualification (AOG, vol 6, para 39359).

If you move home and beyond daily travelling distance of your job, this does not give you just cause for voluntary leaving unless "there was some urgent personal reason" for the move (AOG, vol 6, para 39342), for example:

Even if it appears that your reasons for moving home amount to just cause for leaving, this may ultimately not be accepted if you (AOG, vol 6, para 39345):

Adjudication officers are told that people often leave jobs to marry or join someone in another area, to go with a partner who starts a new job in another area or to move to another area to find more suitable accommodation. To show just cause in these circumstances you "must show that [you] have done everything reasonably possible to find employment in the new area which [you] could start immediately after moving" (AOG, vol 6, para 39347).

If you are moving home because you live with your parents and they are moving, you will only have just cause if you, or your parents, "can show there was a strong reason why [you] should have continued to live with your parents" (AOG, vol 6, para 39349). An acceptable reason could be that you have to look after your parents because of their age and/or health, or that you need your parents help or guidance. Otherwise, you could show that you "would have a lot of difficulty and expense (compared with [your] earnings) if [you] lived somewhere else until [you] found other employment in the new area".

People who have to live away from home permanently or for long periods to work, have just cause for leaving a job if (AOG, vol 6, para 39364):

• they are urgently needed at home (e.g. to look after a sick partner) or
• their expenses for living away are unreasonably high when compared to their earnings.

If you left your present employment because you had a firm offer of another job which started immediately, and the new job falls through unexpectedly or it does not last very long, you should be able to show just cause for leaving and be entitled to claim JSA (AOG, vol 6, para 39384).

However, the adjudication officer may find against you in such circumstances if (AOG, vol 6, para 39385):

• the new job offer was cancelled before you left or you changed your mind about it before you left and
• you could have stayed in the existing employment or you did not ask your employer if you could stay.

Remember, you do not have just cause "if [your] only reason for leaving was because [you] had a good chance of getting other employment or [you] are claiming JSA only for a short period" between jobs and this is really not necessary (e.g. you could have stayed in the existing job longer) (AOG, vol 6, paras 39383 & 39386).

If your reasons for leaving a job fall just short of providing just cause, adjudication officers are instructed to "take into account [your] chances of getting other employment, including self employment, quickly and [that when] looked at together these may mean that [you] acted reasonably in leaving" and therefore should not be sanctioned (AOG, vol 6, para 39379). To come under this ruling you should be able to demonstrate that you "had a promise or a chance of other continuous employment which was expected to last for some time".

This ruling does not apply if you "hoped [you] would get other employment quickly but the evidence does not support this". Furthermore, the adjudication officer is instructed to take certain factors into account when deciding what your chances of getting another job were (e.g. the results of any enquiries that you had already made about other employment) (AOG, vol 6, paras 39380-81).

To sanction you on the grounds that you lost your employment through misconduct, an adjudication officer must examine the evidence and conclude that you (AOG, vol 6, para 39063):

The guidance given to adjudication officers contains a lot of detail on how they should interpret the above criteria, which we cannot reproduce here. However, you should remember that misconduct has a fairly wide interpretation for this JSA benefit sanction and it "can include misconduct which occurs outside working hours, unconnected with [your] employment". Examples of misconduct quoted in the ES guidance include (JSA LOA, ch 7, para 5):

You will have the opportunity to provide your comments on the allegations made by your employer about the circumstances in which you left your job (see page *). The adjudication officer must take this evidence into account.

You could be submitted for a benefit sanction for leaving your job through misconduct whilst at the same time you are taking a case for "unfair dismissal" to an employment tribunal. The guidance given to adjudication officers says that "these are separate questions decided on different criteria" and "decisions by one are not binding on each other" (AOG, vol 6, para 39068).

This means that "there will be cases where a claimant succeeds before an industrial tribunal on the unfair dismissal question, but the adjudication officer decides a sanction is appropriate for misconduct, and vice versa" (AOG, vol 6, para 39070). However, the guidance also says that "an industrial tribunal’s finding of facts is convincing evidence that can be taken into account by the adjudicating authorities" (AOG, vol 6, para 39071).

Adjudication officers are told to decide benefit sanction submissions for "voluntary leaving" and "misconduct" on the basis of evidence from the employer and the claimant and any statements from third parties (e.g. a work colleague who can back up your version of events) (AOG, vol 6, paras 39077-78 & 39228). In addition, before they can impose either sanction, they "should be satisfied that [you] have been given an adequate chance to comment on all statements made against [you]" by your employer (AOG, vol 6, paras 39080 & 39229).

This procedure is normally followed by ES staff sending the ES85 form to your employer because the answers you gave in the JSA claim form (JSA1) indicated that "voluntary leaving" or "dismissed for misconduct" may be relevant in your case. The ES85 requests details from your employer about the circumstances in which you terminated your employment. Once this has been returned to the ES, you must be allowed to comment on your employer’s allegations by writing a response in the ES86LV form. This form must be returned to the ES "within 7 days of the date of issue" if your comments are to be taken into account by the adjudication officer (JSA LOA, ch 7, para 20).

Although the ES guidance confirms that "in the majority of cases form ES85 will be sent to [your] former employer" it also explains that this process can be bypassed by issuing you directly with the ES84 form, which also requests details of how you left your last job. In this situation you are also only given 7 days to return your comments, and the above guidance on completing and returning the ES86LV form is equally relevant. However the ES guidance instructs staff that "it is good practice to complete form ES84 at [the] new claims stage, time permitting" (JSA LOA, ch 7, para 18).

Employment on Trial is a concessionary period during which you can leave a job voluntarily and be sure that you will automatically not be disqualified under the "voluntary unemployment" sanction. This rule does not apply to subsidised jobs on the New Deal. To qualify for this exemption you must (JSA Regs, reg 74(4)):

To qualify for Employment on Trial the job in question and your qualifying period of unemployment must also meet the following conditions (JSA NJI, ch 3, appen 4, paras 6 & 11-16):

• In your new job you must have worked 16 hours a week (Sunday to Saturday) for at least 4 weeks but not more than 12 weeks starting with the week in which the job began.
• Only weeks in which you have actually worked for at least 16 hours are counted. (Days of holiday, sickness, jury service, self-employment and weeks when you were not working for any other reason do not count. This means that some weeks of employment may be disregarded when the ES checks your eligibility for Employment on Trial.)
• You must not have done any paid work (part-time, full-time or self-employed) or been in full-time education in the 13 weeks (Sunday to Saturday) before the week in which the job started.

You will not qualify for Employment on Trial even if you were signing on as unemployed if you declare "any day of [part-time] employment during the 13-week period" (JSA NJI, ch 3, appen 4, para 6). However, if you are engaged in part-time work for the emergency services you are exempt from this ruling and these activities will not disqualify you (JSA NJI, ch 3, appen 4, para 7).

In determining your eligibility the following activities also count towards the 13-week qualifying period (JSA NJI, ch 3, appen 4, para 14):

• periods of vocational training such as Work-Based Learning for Adults
• time spent on Work-Based Training for Young People (provided you were paid a training allowance and were not under a contract of employment)
• a period of assessment or rehabilitation during which you received an Employment Rehabilitation Allowance or social security benefits
• part-time education or part-time study
• periods of sickness, when you were receiving Statutory Sick Pay or Incapacity Benefit or Statutory Maternity Pay.

The qualifying period when you can leave the job (i.e. from the beginning of the 5th week but no later than the end of the 12th week) is calculated on the following basis. "A week for this purpose means a period of 7 days beginning on Sunday and ending at midnight on Saturday [and] employment is treated as starting on the Sunday of the week in which it actually starts" regardless of when you did really start (JSA NJI, ch 3, appen 4, para 13).

Remember that, while it may be difficult to establish, you can still leave a job outside of the Employment on Trial period without losing benefit as long as you can show you had just cause for leaving (see page *).

If you leave a job within the Employment on Trial period it may also be easier to sign on again providing you were claiming JSA less than 12 weeks previously (see page * for more details).