UK councils benefit from unpaid labour

Boycott Welfare's freedom of information requests have showed that 62 per cent of the 271 councils who responded have used unpaid workers for the past two years using mandatory work activity (MWA) schemes. One example, Newport council, had used 112  workers for street cleaning and rubbish collection for up to four weeks at a time. 

The Guardian reports that of particular concern are placements on MWA, where the Department for Work and Pensions can make people work without payment for a month or have their benefit cut for up to three years.