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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/oct/16/i-wanted-to-feel-worth-something-an-asylum-seeker-willing-but-unable-to-work
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| 'I wanted to feel worth something': an asylum seeker willing but unable to work | 'I wanted to feel worth something': an asylum seeker willing but unable to work |
| (4 months later) | |
| When Nahla Ellozi arrived in the UK to seek asylum, she was a qualified accountant with a university education and more than a decade of professional experience behind her. | When Nahla Ellozi arrived in the UK to seek asylum, she was a qualified accountant with a university education and more than a decade of professional experience behind her. |
| She fled her home country of Egypt in 2016 following years of violence and upheaval, during which her two sons were imprisoned and her 17-year-old nephew killed. | She fled her home country of Egypt in 2016 following years of violence and upheaval, during which her two sons were imprisoned and her 17-year-old nephew killed. |
| Asylum seekers are unable to work in the UK unless they have been waiting on a claim for more than 12 months and can fill a role on the shortage occupation list. | Asylum seekers are unable to work in the UK unless they have been waiting on a claim for more than 12 months and can fill a role on the shortage occupation list. |
| The Home Office aims to process initial asylum applications in six months. Ellozi and one of her sons waited for two years to receive refugee status. The government provided her with £5.39 a day in support, but she wanted to pay her own way with a full-time job on the higher income she knew she was capable of earning. | The Home Office aims to process initial asylum applications in six months. Ellozi and one of her sons waited for two years to receive refugee status. The government provided her with £5.39 a day in support, but she wanted to pay her own way with a full-time job on the higher income she knew she was capable of earning. |
| “I have a lot of work experience, but then I found out that I was not allowed to work here,” she said. “I thought we would receive a decision within a few months, but then it took years. | “I have a lot of work experience, but then I found out that I was not allowed to work here,” she said. “I thought we would receive a decision within a few months, but then it took years. |
| “It is very hard to live on government support, and there were days when we didn’t have enough money to buy food. We stopped eating fresh fruit and vegetables because they are expensive to buy. If we needed to use the bus one day, then we couldn’t buy food on that same day. There were days when I would walk for hours just to save money on bus fares.” | “It is very hard to live on government support, and there were days when we didn’t have enough money to buy food. We stopped eating fresh fruit and vegetables because they are expensive to buy. If we needed to use the bus one day, then we couldn’t buy food on that same day. There were days when I would walk for hours just to save money on bus fares.” |
| Ellozi, 50, had worked in accounting and public relations. She started volunteering in the UK with a women’s refugee charity and doing courses in English, maths, IT and interpreting. But she wanted to have paid work so she could provide for herself and her son, and integrate into the city she now called home. | Ellozi, 50, had worked in accounting and public relations. She started volunteering in the UK with a women’s refugee charity and doing courses in English, maths, IT and interpreting. But she wanted to have paid work so she could provide for herself and her son, and integrate into the city she now called home. |
| “I wanted to feel that I was worth something. If I was allowed to work, I could have supported myself and my son. I could have been able to be independent, I could have lived a normal life and not feel pressured and feel that I need others to support me,” she said. | “I wanted to feel that I was worth something. If I was allowed to work, I could have supported myself and my son. I could have been able to be independent, I could have lived a normal life and not feel pressured and feel that I need others to support me,” she said. |
| “I didn’t come here for money. I came here to save our lives, but I just wanted the chance to work.” | “I didn’t come here for money. I came here to save our lives, but I just wanted the chance to work.” |
| Since being granted refugee status, Ellozi has been making use of the new skills she has learned and recently began working as an interpreter. Her eldest son, 28, found safety in Turkey, while her 26-year-old son is in the UK. | Since being granted refugee status, Ellozi has been making use of the new skills she has learned and recently began working as an interpreter. Her eldest son, 28, found safety in Turkey, while her 26-year-old son is in the UK. |
| “I am starting my career from the start. I do one interpretation job a week, but I feel human again and I feel respected again,” she said. | “I am starting my career from the start. I do one interpretation job a week, but I feel human again and I feel respected again,” she said. |
| Ellozi is urging the government to change the rules regarding asylum seekers’ right to work in the UK. “They will benefit society and they will in return feel part of society,” she said. | Ellozi is urging the government to change the rules regarding asylum seekers’ right to work in the UK. “They will benefit society and they will in return feel part of society,” she said. |
| “This country has given us safety, it has given a chance to rebuild our lives, so let people work and feel human right from the start of their journey here.” | “This country has given us safety, it has given a chance to rebuild our lives, so let people work and feel human right from the start of their journey here.” |
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