Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

My first comment to the member for Lyons is: if you want to find out why people are not staying, take the time to go out and try it and see for yourself. Rather than stand here and ask questions, go and try doing the manual work. If you do that, you will see why. You will also see why, in fruit picking across this nation, people are not taking up the jobs. It is because this government has loosened the rules for 457 visas. Before, if you had a company and wanted to bring in 10 people on 457 visas, you had to apply and you got permits for 10. Now this government has loosened the rules. Now you can apply for 10 457-visa workers, but you can then bring in 50—and that is okay! That is a huge difference. People are able to come in, get a job for a certain period of time and then, as soon as it is finished—bang, lock the door and send them home. That is why a lot of these jobs are being taken by 457-visa workers. Companies that do not want to employ Australians and are happy to employ 457-visa workers now have an extra opportunity to do so.

Through the Social Security Legislation Amendment (Stronger Penalties for Serious Failures) Bill 2014, the Abbott Government is cruelly and heartlessly targeting vulnerable members of our community. Enforcing these stricter measures and harsher penalties for those receiving Centrelink payments is an action typical of this government. This is a government which subjects jobless people to punitive measures rather than helping them to address and improve their situations—and therefore their future prospects for financial independence. These amendments demonstrate very clearly the contempt this government has for the jobless. The Abbott government is obviously stuck in a time warp where it views absolutely everyone without a job as a dole bludger. Those opposite have no idea what it is like for people to be without a job. They have no idea what it is like for young people trying for the first time to enter a highly competitive workforce; for people with psychiatric problems or mental illness trying their hardest just to survive; for homeless people trying to break out of the cycle of poverty; for Indigenous people, who face a wide range of long-term employment barriers; or for sole parents, who are trying to make ends meet and at the same time juggle their family commitments. For some people, gaining employment does not happen quickly, especially with this government's systematic attacks on manufacturing jobs across this nation.

These vicious penalties for persons on Centrelink typify the hypocrisy of the Abbott government. They will slash and burn legitimate and essential payments for those who most need it, but, at the same time that they talk about how they will save $20 million in the budget by getting rid of the leaners and helping the lifters, this government is going to give people on high incomes $50,000 to have a baby. That is $1,923 a week, or $50 an hour to sit at home and have a baby, while those you can least afford it are the ones being hit. So the real lifters are the people at the bottom—the people on fixed incomes, the people on pensions, the people on low incomes—who cover those at the top end, who really can afford it. No matter whether you earn $200,000 a year or $30,000 a year, the cost of essentials is the same. The cost of electricity is the same, the cost of food is the same and the cost of petrol is the same, but of course now it is going to go up 1.7 cents a litre, despite the fact that this government said before the election that there will be no increases in taxes. In fact the foreign minister stood here and said, 'We are not doing it. It is all scurrilous. It is not going to happen.' What did they do in the budget? Just like everything else, they sneaked it in. People are now paying more for petrol than what they were promised by this government before and after the election.

On 14 November last year, the Abbott government admitted:

The data reveals the majority of job seekers do meet their participation requirements.

That was from someone whom you think would know—it was from the Assistant Minister for Employment, Luke Harsuyker.

Despite acknowledging this fact, this government still feels the need to make these cruel sledgehammer changes that will impact severely on the four per cent of job seekers who do not, for whatever reason, meet their obligations. And it is not always just as simple as not turning up. Out of the 2,687 non-compliance penalties last year, only 752 were concerned with job offers. The National Welfare Rights Network puts it eloquently in its submission on Indigenous jobs and training review:

A small number of people wilfully flout the rules and their behaviour potentially stigmatises all other job seekers. However, it is costly and unwise to build an entire compliance framework on the basis of incorrect assumptions that unemployed people are individually and generally 'malingerers'.

This out-of-touch government does not understand the difficulties for people living in areas such as my electorate of McEwen who are already doing it tough and are likely do it a lot tougher because of the cruel and heartless measures in this budget, including the fuel tax increase, which makes it more expensive for people to travel from A to B. The walk-away by this government from the automotive industry, from SPC, from Qantas and from other manufacturing in this country, in particular in regional and suburban areas, limits the opportunity to gain or regain employment.

Just last week, my office was trying to assist a couple who for health reasons and for other circumstances outside their control find themselves in their 50s and dependent on Centrelink payments. To fulfil their obligations, which for one of them is a five-minute face-to-face meeting with staff, twice a month they have to drive from Kilmore to the Centrelink office in Seymour, a round trip of about 100 kilometres. It is a hefty expense on top of other added costs they now face, such as the $7 GP tax, and the costs for some diagnostic services and medicines, all thanks to this government's budget of broken promises—and, of course, the fuel tax.

Through this bill the government is seeking to impose harsher measures on job seekers. This is on top of the six-month waiting period of no income support whatsoever before they become eligible for Newstart and the mandatory Work for the Dole program. Under the former Labor government, the non-compliance measures introduced allowed job seekers the opportunity to re-engage in the participation process. We were successful in helping job seekers re-engage with their job service providers, and in the process of participation, while they looked for work.

These provisions also encouraged job seekers to accept suitable offers of employment, penalising them if they refused such work, while still allowing discretion to waive the non-payment period if there were mitigating circumstances. That is the key point here. Under Labor there was still some flexibility to give those who, for legitimate reasons, were unable to fulfil their requirements—it might have been something out of their control—an opportunity to state their case and continue to receive these payments. Under this Liberal government, these people will now be without money and will not have the means to pay bills, put food on the table, or go to the doctor.

The Abbott government is turning its back on vulnerable Australians. The Prime Minister is refusing to help those who need it most. Labor believes the measures proposed by the government are unnecessarily harsh and actually discourage participation by job seekers serving non-payment periods.

In McEwen, there are about 25,000 young people in the 18 -29 year age bracket. According to the Brotherhood of St Laurence's 'Our chance, my future' report, youth unemployment is as high as 17 per cent in some areas, particularly in the regional areas. This is the fifth highest in Australia.

These amendments are going to directly affect people living in my community. There are so many ways in which the Abbott government is making life difficult for our young people. It is stopping welfare assistance and it is cutting services like Youth Connections, which helps young people find jobs.

These amendments also ignore the reality for people with mental illness, and indeed add to their problems. The job searching requirements for Newstart payments are onerous for people referred to mental health support services, and those who are struggling with organising daily routines in their life. The consequences of these amendments will cause a serious downward spiral for these people. Take, for example, a gentleman we have been dealing with in my electorate. He is aged 24 and must submit to regular work testing. The young man suffers from anxiety, depression and borderline personality disorder. This young man is demeaned and what little confidence he has is further undermined by work testing.

Rather than feeling like he is getting help and more confidence to try gain employment, he feels disempowered by the continual tests and feels locked into a cycle of hopelessness. This young man is doing what he can to address his mental health issues, but he knows they are long-term issues that he has to learn to manage. He worries that he may never be well enough to work and he struggles to get by on a basic income. The proposed amendments will undoubtedly forever lock this young man into that cycle of hopelessness, as the penalties will knock him down hard, both financially and emotionally.

The government's amendments will also have a heavy impact on women fleeing domestic violence. Take for instance a lady who is a sole parent with three children, working part-time. She was in receipt of parenting payment single. She was subject to violence in the home and so did not return Centrelink compliance forms on time. Her payments were terminated. She rang the call centre to attempt to have payments reinstated but ultimately had to attend Centrelink to sort it out. This meant she had to take time off work. Her employment was already compromised because of these escalating family violence issues, and her employer began to lose patience. She had to seek food vouchers to feed her children until her payments were re-instated.

Overall, these harsh amendments are going to be detrimental to all those receiving essential payments through Centrelink. It is categorically unfair to target and punish all because of the apparent dishonesty of the few. I refuse to let this government ruin the lives of the vulnerable and disadvantaged in our community. I will stand up for people in my community who need support. If you truly believe in a valued society, then your values should be to support the weakest and the vulnerable in their times of need.

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