A Nation Where Effort is for Suckers! By Richard Miller (London)
The recent headlines from Breitbart and Jihad Watch spotlight a stark reality in the UK: according to a new analysis by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), over 6 million full-time workers — roughly one in four — are earning less after tax than what some people receive through a combination of out-of-work welfare benefits. Specifically, an economically inactive claimant on Universal Credit (for ill health), average housing support, and Personal Independence Payment (PIP) takes home around £25,200 per year in 2025-26 — equivalent to a pre-tax salary of £30,100.
This outstrips the net take-home pay of many low-to-mid earners. Examples include prison officers at £28,187 gross, store cleaners at £26,312, or nursing assistants at £24,465—roles that, after taxes and NI, leave workers with less disposable income than the benefits package. Even after planned reductions (to around £23,200 for new claimants from April 2026), about 4.3 million workers would still be worse off working. The CSJ warns this creates "perverse incentives," with over 4 million people on out-of-work benefits having no work requirements, and projections of a 2.4 million rise in health-related claims over the next decade — potentially locking in a "permanent sickness-based welfare state."
This isn't abstract policy wonkery; it's a direct assault on the basic social contract: why bother working? When flipping burgers, stocking shelves, or even guarding prisoners nets you less than staying home on benefits (especially if you can secure a health-related claim), the simple maths screams "don't bother." Hard work becomes punishment — taxed earnings, commuting costs, job stress, all for less money than the system hands out for inactivity. Many workers are already asking exactly that question, and resentment is building. Why grind 40+ hours a week, deal with bosses and deadlines, when the state pays more to do nothing? The incentive structure is inverted: dependency is rewarded, contribution is penalised.
This welfare trap didn't appear overnight. Post-Covid explosions in health claims (often mental health or "long-term sickness"), laxer assessments, and generous top-ups like PIP and housing elements have bloated payouts. Meanwhile, stagnant wages, high taxes, and the National Living Wage failing to keep pace in real terms have left the bottom half of earners treading water. Former Tory welfare reformer Sir Iain Duncan Smith called it "outrageous," noting his old reforms once made work pay — now reversed. Even cross-party voices, like ex-Labour minister Jonathan Ashworth, demand reform to value contribution over dependency.
The deeper issue is cultural and economic rot. A system that makes low-paid work pointless erodes dignity, ambition, and social mobility. It punishes the working poor while subsidising idleness, often among those who could work but choose not to (or are discouraged by bureaucracy). It fuels division: taxpayers resent funding lifestyles better than their own, while claimants risk long-term isolation and poverty traps. Economic growth suffers — fewer workers, higher taxes to fund it all, and a ballooning bill that could bankrupt the nation, as critics warn.
Supporting such a system is increasingly indefensible. It doesn't help the truly vulnerable; it traps them and drags down everyone else. Reform must be bold: tighter eligibility for health claims, real work requirements, benefit caps that always make work pay more, and tax cuts for low earners to boost net wages. Anything less perpetuates the cycle. The question isn't just "why work?" — it's "why tolerate a system that makes not working the rational choice?" Until policymakers answer that with action, Britain risks becoming a nation where effort is for suckers, and the welfare state devours the productive host. The alarm is sounding; ignoring it means choosing decline.
https://jihadwatch.org/2026/02/in-the-uk-millions-of-the-employed-receive-less-than-do-those-on-welfare
