Tesco job row could 'undermine' welfare schemes, British Chambers of Commerce warns Tesco has come under fire for hiring hundreds of unemployed benefits claimants on four-week work experience schemes in return for no pay - just expenses and Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA), at £53.45 per week for under-25s. The placements are part of a Government welfare scheme aimed at encouraging business to provide unpaid work placements, to improve jobseekers' skills and make them more "job ready." It is voluntary, but if applicants pull out, there is a threat they will lose their JSA payments. Tesco is meeting with the Department for Work and Pensions this week to urge ministers to remove the threat of jobseekers losing benefits if they drop out of the scheme. However, the UK's biggest supermarket has never offered a separate Government work scheme, which is mandatory and forces people to go on unpaid placements or lose their benefits. Other retailers including Sainsbury's have also decided not to offer this. The Twitter row has led to some confusion over the two schemes, with some people assuming Tesco is taking part in the mandatory, rather than voluntary, programme. That has not stopped campaigners rallying support to campaign for all welfare work experience placements to be scrapped. One group, Right to Work, claimed that jobseekers were "coerced" into work experience. Another group, Unfair Workfare, launched a petition to ditch all unpaid work experience schemes, saying they amount to slave labour. It has 7,000 signatories.