Get Britain Working is an initiative of the British Liberal-Conservative coalition government. As part of this scheme, young people on state benefits are offered unpaid work placement in companies. If they drop out after the first week on the scheme, they may have their benefits removed.
Reception
Critics of the scheme have described it as a form of unpaid forced labour, with some critics describing it as "slave labour", and the negative publicity generated has caused a number of companies, including Sainsbury's, Waterstones, TK Maxx, Maplins, Mind and Burger King, to drop out of the scheme. Tesco has announced that it will be voluntarily paying young people on the scheme. Other employers such as Argos and Superdrug are reviewing their position and seeking talks with the government.
In response to these developments, Conservative MP George Eustice told the BBC in February 2012 that firms involved in the scheme should "show more backbone" and resist pressure to leave the scheme. On 29 February, the government announced that they would be dropping the threat of removing benefits from participants in the scheme.