Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak to the government’s Social Security Amendment (Training Incentives) Bill 2009, which implements the Compact with Young Australians, and to indicate that the Greens will not be opposing the legislation. While we have indicated that we will support the bill, the government must assure the young people of Australia that the additional training places announced by COAG on 30 April will provide young Australians with skills to match the jobs of the future. Given that we are beginning to see the need to transition our workforce into a low-emission economy, the government must ensure that the Jobs and Training Compact with young Australians is directed towards investing in sustainable jobs for the future. Let us not make this just work for the dole for young people. The Greens are concerned that the message that the youth compact sends is not necessarily the right approach to encourage young people of Australia to get education and training. Rather, it demonises them and plays into the outdated stereotype that suggests that all young people are lazy. At a time when young people are under increasing financial pressure, students and those in guaranteed training places need to be better supported if they are to stay on and excel in their chosen path.

As I mentioned earlier, at the COAG meeting on 30 April the Commonwealth, states and territories agreed to a Compact with Young Australians. The aim of the compact is to ensure that every person under 25 is able to access an education and training place. The government is framing it as if all young people will have an entitlement to an education or training place for any government subsidised qualification. Participation in education, training or employment will be compulsory for all young people until they are 17. To support the participation requirement, this legislation is proposing to change the eligibility for Youth Allowance so that young people under the age of 21 who have not completed year 12 or an equivalent level of education must be in full-time study or complying with the terms of an employment pathway plan before they are considered eligible for youth allowance. Those who have not completed year 12 or an equivalent qualification will need to participate in full-time training of 25 hours a week in order to receive the youth allowance, essentially  playing into the earn or learn argument. This amendment has effectively ensured that an early school leaver will now not be eligible to receive youth allowance (other) simply by actively seeking and being willing to undertake suitable paid work, as was originally permitted.

To exclude access to youth allowance for those aged 15 to 20 who have not completed year 12 or its equivalent and for those who are not undertaking full-time education or training is a radical policy that does not necessarily address problems associated with youth unemployment. For some young people, it is simply not possible to attend training courses or further education studies or to obtain solid employment, especially if they do not know where they will be sleeping each night. What about a young person who has been in trouble at school and is unable to attend any of the schools in their area, and is therefore not able to secure any work? Will these people be punished? What about young people who, despite not being able to attend school, cannot find the suitable 25 hours paid work but who are volunteering their time or gaining work experience? Will these people be able to access youth allowance? I would like to think that this provision does not exclude encouraging young people to volunteer in their communities, especially as a way of upskilling and gaining experience to take into their futures.

What we need to see is a commitment to the bigger picture, and an assurance of a continued safety net for homeless young people, with a commitment through the Compact with Young Australians to safe and decent housing. That should be addressed by the government as a bare minimum requirement, acknowledging community calls to tackle housing affordability for young Australians. We know that in the 2006 census it was revealed that more than 32,000 young people in Australia were homeless, which suggests that there is a danger that many will be further disadvantaged by this earn or learn policy, unless of course we can find a way of ensuring that they are not disadvantaged. To simply take away financial support from a young person who is not in full-time study or training without consulting with individuals concerned and key stakeholders is ill thought through policy. I would encourage the government to outline what assurances will be provided to guarantee that vulnerable young people are not further disadvantaged by this compact.

Minister Gillard has accepted that there are young people living in difficult circumstances such as homelessness, and has stated that:

… with creative provision of education, they can be back, back learning, back gaining self esteem and self respect and back gaining opportunities that are going to make a difference for the rest of their lives.

While this statement is encouraging, what we need to see is a solid commitment to continued safety for homeless young people through extending the proposed compact for young Australians to include guaranteed access to safe and decent housing. Minister Arbib, you would have to agree that it is pretty hard to stay in school or keep a job if you do not know where you are sleeping at night.

In my home state of South Australia, only last week we saw figures suggesting that, despite the overall fall in jobless numbers in South Australia, the level of youth unemployment jumped by 7.7 percentage points, up to 24.9. That is one-quarter of young workers unemployed. These figures are clearly disturbing, and we will be watching with interest to see whether the youth compact can address these issues for these young unemployed effectively. I hope that they do. Aside from the concerns we have for vulnerable and disadvantaged youth, the Greens and many in the youth sector are also concerned that the compact must offer relevant and engaging training, not just any place, anywhere, any time, for young people. As I said, let us not just make this work for the dole for those under 25. The Greens are by no means opposed to committing to an increase in training and education places—in fact, we welcome that. But we believe that this compact must be targeted and tailored to the individual needs of young people, ensuring that the path they choose to take—whether university, TAFE, apprenticeships or work experience—is an option that they are able to pursue.

The National Union of Students also expressed concerns over the message that the changes to youth allowance send to young people, arguing that young people simply stripped of their youth allowance payments are being unfairly categorised as dole bludgers. What the Greens would like to see is a commitment to increasing the fortnightly rate of youth allowance. I spoke about that this afternoon in this chamber. We need to see an investment in the amount that we give to young people to financially support themselves.

This compact was forged seemingly without any substantial dialogue with young people or the community sector and the fact that a key component of the legislation includes the withdrawal of benefits for young people not learning or earning means the government must outline how young people under 21 will no longer receive youth allowance because of these proposed changes. We need to ensure that we are not undermining the benefits of giving people more educational and training experiences by punishing them because they are in difficult circumstances. So, while the Greens support the government’s commitment to increasing training and education places, we will be watching with interest how this legislation is rolled out, in particular whether the training and education places match the needs of young people.

Supporting our youth is essential during a time when unemployment levels are on the rise, and we know that it is youth unemployment rather than other employment that is larger in all of the stats. It is becoming more and more difficult for young people to make ends meet. It is fundamental for the government to actively support its young citizens and encourage them to remain engaged and active in society and in the labour force, and the Greens will continue to look closely at the changes to youth allowance under this legislation to ensure that young Australians are not unfairly penalised and further disadvantaged. I will have some questions during the committee stage which I hope the minister can answer.