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Post by Arthur Pringle on Nov 3, 2021 0:07:43 GMT
How about sorting through drawing pins individually to check the pins are on straight? Watch from the 5 min mark to discover how much they were paid for each 1,000 they checked.
In the 70's the government ( Labour at the time this film was made ) got the elderly & people with mental & physical disabilities to do such mindnumbing work for bugger all in special centres. This employment scheme began in 1948 according to the video.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Nov 3, 2021 10:16:42 GMT
That is disgusting exploitation in the film. The cost those guys got for literally finding 1000 dodgy pins would struggle to fund the lunch offered i would wager !
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Post by Arthur Pringle on Nov 3, 2021 19:04:17 GMT
Yes they were probably getting paid as little as a prison inmate for that work. By the looks of it many of them would've been better off in prison conditions, bills & food paid for, company, etc.
And I don't think anyone would be too bothered if they bought a box of drawing pins & a few were unusable.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2021 20:49:30 GMT
That video is absolutely disgraceful Arthur! Them poor souls being institutionalised and financially abused!! Terrible! and hard to think that this sort of stuff used to happen. But unfortunately a lot of people with learning dis, mental health etc, were subjected to institutionalised abuse and all sorts of goings on back then, even up to the early 90s, until a lot of the mental health acts’ came into being in the 80s n 90s!
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Sparky
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Post by Sparky on Nov 5, 2021 12:37:48 GMT
Worst job #1
A Cheap & Cheerful Horror/Sci-Fi movie where the Producers refused overtime, cut back on catering food (nearly Bread & Water) and tried to push us to flaunt Tachograph Rules on the trucks to keep to schedules. The latter was the breaking point - as no one (rightly so) would dare to flaunt Tacho rules.
Worst job#2 In the film unit at Central; most of the early jobs centered around a series called Contrasts - a kind of local version of World in Action. Each week it'd look at a different subject. I used to end up with some of the odd ball / sad ones. The best was the Poltergiest in a house in Dudley. The ruddy thing chucked a book case.
One was following a Funeral Director - from collection of body, through preparation to funeral service. We spent a day at a Crematorium - which was the most disturbing.
While we were present "round the back", a private ambulance arrived to make delivery. The Crem attendant pushed up a trolley to the back doors- and was told they wouldn't need it. The Ambulance Driver carried in a white coffin, roughly about 4ft in length. Obviously a child. Paperwork was all checked.
The director wanted to know more about the child - and later down the line, we discovered the child was 9 years old and had taken their own life as they had been bullied at school - and sod all done about it.
Worst job #3 Same series, this time following a chap who had been made redundant from a factory. He had been working there since school, so some 40 years. He'd spent 2 years of redundancy living off his redundancy money and not claimed a penny. 2 Years later, he and his family were at last chance saloon and needed a little help. At the job centre, he applied for support and was literally treated like a 1st piece of class sh*t for even daring to come in and ask for help. The "advisor" seemed like some brainwashed robot, and all 5 of us present wanted to deck him (we didn't).
Annoyingly, most of this was dumped on the cutting room floor (thanks to advice from "above") - so was never shown and didn't show the actual true story.
Often wonder what came of the chap. If he's still around.
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Sparky
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Post by Sparky on Nov 5, 2021 14:11:43 GMT
How about sorting through drawing pins individually to check the pins are on straight? Watch from the 5 min mark to discover how much they were paid for each 1,000 they checked.
In the 70's the government ( Labour at the time this film was made ) got the elderly & people with mental & physical disabilities to do such mindnumbing work for bugger all in special centres. This employment scheme began in 1948 according to the video.
Excuse the double post... I forgot to comment on Arthurs posting.
Great posting Arthur; very interesting film too.
World in Action is something we need back on TV these days - there's plenty to report on. In comparison, Panorama, has it's moments, but these days I tend to feel they are a little restricted by the new BBC News Agenda (heavily influenced by whoever is in government - so would be no way impartial).
Anyway - I seem to remember YTV/Calender News doing a report around 5 or 6 years ago, about a company based somewhere near Wakefield or Pontefract. They provided jobs for the Disabled etc. All staff were treated with respect and looked after. A percentage of the funding came via the Government - and had been cut significantly (hence the news story) - and it was felt that many employees would be out of work.
Later down the line, it came out that the Company was legit, had legitmate interests - but had been used by various larger outfits to outsource - cheaply, and reap the rewards themselves. Sadly, their actions tarnished the credibility of the Company providing the jobs.
In the World in Action Film, I can't believe there was a lady in her 90's packing boxes. Bless her. Naturally, the councils concerned used the "We provided the work as a means to prevent people getting lonely" - yes, possibly.
Well - if they wanted to prevent that - surely, providing proper day care/outings/activities would have been the better option? Mind you - that costs money; why do that when they could be used to make money.
To be honest, we aren't going to be too far from that in current times, as each successive Government keeps lifting the Retirement Age and altering the terms on what it regards as "Disabled".
Apologies for the rant...
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Three Litre
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Post by Three Litre on Nov 5, 2021 19:55:30 GMT
Worst job #3
The "advisor" seemed like some brainwashed robot, and all 5 of us present wanted to deck him (we didn't).
Annoyingly, most of this was dumped on the cutting room floor (thanks to advice from "above") - so was never shown and didn't show the actual true story.
Often wonder what came of the chap. If he's still around.
Bast**d.
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Del Boy
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Post by Del Boy on Nov 6, 2021 11:10:26 GMT
Good points about World In Action Sparky. I would like to see it back. Regarding the points on providing work to help our vulnerable members of society, I would like to think that a medium could be found where work was sourced that could be more enjoyable to do and provide some income to the individual and the councils. Technology these days could play a great role in aiding that aim and I bet there's a wealth of skills amongst our elderly and disabled people.
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Sparky
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Post by Sparky on Nov 6, 2021 11:29:09 GMT
Good points about World In Action Sparky. I would like to see it back. Regarding the points on providing work to help our vulnerable members of society, I would like to think that a medium could be found where work was sourced that could be more enjoyable to do and provide some income to the individual and the councils. Technology these days could play a great role in aiding that aim and I bet there's a wealth of skills amongst our elderly and disabled people. Totally agree Del. Though in this wonderful world we live in, there are always those out there hot on the heels to exploit all this.
Just found it disturbing that they had a women in her 90s packing boxes!
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Post by Arthur Pringle on Nov 6, 2021 17:18:32 GMT
I worked briefly doing odd jobs in an old folks home in Salford, the conditions were fine but there was a tendency by staff to plonk the residents in front of the tv & forget about them. The food was boiled to practically mush & the central heating was on during the summer.
Next to the home was a small block of flats which was rat infested, I remember an elderly woman who lived there talking about one appearing on top of her tv set.
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