Tonje Brenna told news that she believes that the left is far too concerned with increasing benefits rather than finding ways to get the disabled to work – a little – or a lot more – if they get some help. I have been on disability benefits since I was 18 years old. I support Brenna’s intention, but call for more measures. It must also be possible to both increase benefits and help those who want to go to work. Because despite the fact that social security benefits are increasing, they are not increasing in line with price growth. I want to go to work, so I want Tonje Brenna to listen to what I have to say next. I ended up at Nav because I have autism and ADHD, and those around me believed that a fixed income from Nav was the best way to secure an income. I have therefore not had a single full-time job in my entire life. All I have done are various “odd jobs” such as volunteering in organizations and some writing. I have also never exceeded the amount disabled people can earn in addition to social security. I didn’t dare. Because it was more work than it was worth. For periods I was therefore isolated in a municipal apartment in Porsgrunn municipality. My days were spent playing computer games, streaming movies and series, discussing on Facebook and rummaging around in the dark and obscure places of the internet. My everyday life felt completely meaningless and my life had no meaning beyond staying alive. I often experienced dark thoughts and felt an unimaginable anger towards the society that had put me in this situation. I got good grades when I took up subjects in adult education at Skien Videregående Skole, but they only offer general but not full study skills. I therefore had to fulfill the 23/5 rule. Work or go to school for five years. The years at ordinary VGS didn’t count because I didn’t get grades, and I couldn’t get a job. Taking up subjects as a privateer was too expensive. That’s why I sat still until I was 27 years old. In 2017 I joined the University of Oslo, and in 2020 I completed a bachelor’s degree in Nordic studies. This summer I completed a master’s degree in rhetoric and linguistic communication with good enough grades to get a doctorate. Before we continue: Yes, you can be on disability benefits and study full-time. I checked with Nav before I started studying. I do not have the qualities one usually associates with a person on disability benefits. A person like me is usually in a full time job and is well paid. I completely agree. I should actually be in a full time job by now! So why am I not? Yes, because if you have been out of the labor market for as long as I have, it is difficult to get into it. In addition, there is a lot with the Nav system that puts sticks in the wheels for disabled people who want to work. The reporting system is sometimes unclear and impenetrable. Yes, even for a highly educated person like me. Imagine what it’s like for disabled people who don’t have as high an education as me? Not everyone has the resources required to stand in Nav’s paper mill. There is no plan for those who have been outside the labor market all their lives. In reality, Nav has no framework for disabled people who no longer want to be disabled. Therefore, I lack the skills to find a job and understand my own value on the labor market. If I got a job late in the year and earned more than NOK 47,448 (which is the basic amount this year) I would most likely have to pay back the social security. But that money has already been used to pay rent and other expenses. Zeroing out disability benefits in advance is unproblematic, but what if you earned more than you thought? What if a person on disability who wants to get off of disability is unable to get a full-time job until the second half of the year and ends up earning so much that they have to start paying back money they no longer have? It is expensive to live nowadays. Getting a job and income is also a very unpredictable process. I can’t know if I’ll get a job, because I have so many holes in my CV after a long time outside the job market. When I eventually get a job, I don’t know how much I will be paid for it. As I said, I can’t report anything until I know. I can only guess at a possible salary. I think that is a scary and complicated barrier to overcome. Therefore, I think Tonje Brenna should think about ways disabled people can get past these obstacles. If AS Norge wants to get more disabled people into work, the state must facilitate a smoother transition for those of us who have never been out on the labor market. Otherwise, disabled people with actual working capacity will most likely not be able to utilize their working capacity.
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I am disabled and want to go to work – Statement
