A MUSLIM teacher has hit out at job centre bureaucrats who she claims told her to skip Eid for a “useless” meeting.

Nasrin Islam, 30, of Allendale Avenue, Southall, says she was told to go to a training interview designed to help her get a job, despite the fact she already has one and is due to start on Tuesday.

The mother-of-two claims she was warned that if she does not go then her final benefit check will be cut off.

She said: “Why should I attend an interview that's useless to me. How dare they tell me that my benefits will get cut off if I don't attend a useless interview.

“Even if it's only £120, I've got gas bills to pay.”

She says she is already £1,500 overdrawn and has been forced to resort to using her credit card and borrowing money from her mother and brother for groceries.

Her first pay check for her new job will not come until mid to late December at the earliest and she is worried it may even be bumped back to January because of the time of year she is starting work.

The training interview clashes with morning prayers, for the Muslim holiday Eid, which are due to be held at her local mosque.

Ms Islam, who has been a teacher for seven years, said she would be happy to go later in the day but was told this was not possible, and when she complained staff said there was no such thing as a religious holiday.

She said: “I'm just so annoyed. They said the only other person who could help me was my MP. It's ridiculous, it's insulting to have someone tell you that.”

She said the meeting is a waste of her time and tax payers money.

The Ealing Times has requested a response from the Department for Work and Pensions and is awaiting a reply.