Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party, Assistant Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Forde for his question. He is highly financially literate and has spent a career in the finance area; he knows the importance of a strong economy and the fact that nothing creates job opportunities better than a strong economy. As we have been discussing, specific programs have their place and Work for the Dole has an important role.

When I announced phase 1 recently it was an important move away from Labor's past of running down Work for the Dole. It was a highly effective program in the Howard years, and Labor has allowed the program to run down. We are reinvigorating Work for the Dole. I announced phase 1 in 18 locations around the country. It would be available to young long-term unemployed people, aged between 18 and 30, for about 15 hours a week, for a period of six months.

The purpose of Work for the Dole is to allow people to contribute to their community and to learn new skills. There will be a number of placements: the traditional team-based placement, which I think most members of the public would be familiar with, where a team would perhaps be constructing a walkway or a cycle path or perhaps repainting a community hall. We are also seeking hosted placements, where job seekers might be hosted by a not-for-profit organisation. It could be a local council or it could be an aged-care facility—quite clearly not involved in delivering care to residents within that facility—job seekers working in ancillary functions, whether it is maintenance or repairs, whether it is assisting in some other element of the non-caring side, if you like, of the aged-care facility.

As I get around the country, people are very supportive of Work for the Dole. One job services provider said to me that more than half the participants exit the program after obtaining ongoing paid employment. Isn't that a great outcome? The same provider reported that another of their Work for the Dole programs saw 12 individual placements at three employers, with all 12 participants exiting the program for paid employment. So we have a team of 12 all getting a job. That is great news.

I am drawn to comments by Madi Yorke an 18-year-old woman in Gosford. These comments appeared in the Central Coast Express Advocate. She said: 'We should not be getting money for doing nothing. I have always been taught you have to work to make money and no-one should be looking at living off the government long term. Gaining work experience and knowledge of the workplace will be a good thing, and working just 15 hours a week for the dole will leave plenty of time to job seek.' I could not agree with Madi more.

You could be picking up vital new skills and becoming more employable, then leaving the program with a reference which would indicate the sort of work that was undertaken and the fact that you have been turning up and being part of a team delivering community outcomes. This is the attitude that the government wishes to support. And it is a very prevalent one. These sorts of comments are repeated time and time again.

The Australian people see the benefit of Work for the Dole. Employers can see the benefit that a Work for the Dole participant can bring to their business, and young people can see the benefits of Work for the Dole.

There are some great new stories associated with Work for the Dole. That is why the government is so keen to reinvigorate the program. It will be rolled out in a measured and efficient way, so that we can give young people the benefit of work experience in a Work for the Dole program, so they can enjoy the benefits of work while getting into a job, rather than languishing on welfare.

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