JourneyOnline
SOME people on the dole are living in such poverty that their chances of getting a job are seriously limited, according to a new report released by the Major Church Providers (MCP) of social services in Australia.
The report by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) at the University of Canberra, launched at Parliament House in Canberra on 27 August, was commissioned by UnitingCare Australia, Anglicare Australia, Catholic Social Services Australia, and the Salvation Army.
The MCP deliver around 70 per cent of social services in Australia.
Going Without: Financial Hardship in Australia examines the financial stress endured by people on unemployment payments.
It shows that single people living alone and single parents on Newstart or Youth Allowance face much greater financial hardship than other government benefit households and the general population.
Lin Hatfield Dodds, National Director of UnitingCare Australia, said that this group of people is looking for work in an environment that is inaccessible and even hostile.
"Work is increasingly part-time and casual and employers are looking for skills and experience these people don't have. Child care and transport are expensive or unavailable," she said.
Executive Director of Catholic Social Services Australia Paul O'Callaghan said that there is an urgent need for an increase in the basic allowance, and for realistic indexation.
"Far from providing an incentive to find work, the current inadequate level of the payment prevents many people from seeking work and is adding to long-term and intergenerational disadvantage," he said.
The report highlights the fact that most of those without jobs are living with long-term and complex barriers to employment, and require intensive support for long periods of time.
The report recommended that unemployment benefits for singles be increased by $50 a week, and that the federal government establish an independent commission to set benchmarks.
The national agencies also recommended that the government monitor the impact of changes in the tax-free threshold and the taper rate for income support, and address anomalies in the tax transfer system, as advocated in the Henry Tax Review.
The report highlighted the need to improve services for long-term unemployed people; especially those living in deeply disadvantaged areas, or facing multiple barriers to employment, and recommended the expansion of wage and subsidy schemes and Vocational Educational and Training (VET) programs.
To read the report visit www.natsem.canberra.edu.au/news-and-events/article/?id=going-without-financial-hardship-in-australia.
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Going Without: Financial Hardship in Australia
Key findings include:
- Households where the unemployment benefit is the main source of income are more than five times as likely to be in poverty.
- A high proportion (46.8 per cent) of unemployed households remain in poverty for at least two years, compared to the national average of 8 per cent.
- After housing costs, unemployed people have disposable incomes of $242 a week, about 25 per cent of the national average.
- Unemployed households have $22 a day after shelter, electricity, food and health are accounted for (this is half of other government beneficiary households and 12 per cent of that for wage and salaried households).
- Over 15 per cent of unemployed households went without meals, compared to 3.2 per cent of all households.
- Unemployment benefits are indexed to the ABS Consumer Price Index, which is consistently lower than average household incomes growth.
Photo : Left to right: Major Brad Halse from The Salvation Army (obscured), Anglicare Australia Executive Director Kasy Chambers, Executive Director of Catholic Social Services Australia, Paul O’Callaghan, and National Director of UnitingCare Australia, Lin Hatfield Dodds. Photo courtesy of UnitingCare Australia
