17 July 2022, Guardian Australia, Luke Henriques-Gomes. Access the full article here.
Woman from Yorketown in South Australia has been referred to a job agency in Kadina under new Workforce Australia program
A 63-year-old woman from regional South Australia needs to make a 250km round trip to meet her mutual obligationsParticipation requirements welfare recipients must fulfil each month to continue... and keep her benefits under the new $1.5bn-a-year Workforce Australia program.
Michelle*, who lives in Yorketown, on the Yorke Peninsula, has been referred to a job agency in Kadina, about one-and-a-half-hours’ drive or 125km from her home.
Under the mutual obligations system, jobseekers who are connected with a job agency must attend appointments with case workers at an employment services provider to keep their payments. However, these appointments do not count towards the new points-based activation system which requires jobseekers to complete various tasks to get enough points to keep their welfare payments.
They were not sympathetic, they just said this is how it is… I don’t know how other people get on, people who haven’t got a car.
– Michelle, who was forced to travel 250km to attend bullshit appointment
Employment services survey
The Punishment for Profit report is based on hundreds of responses to surveys conducted by the Antipoverty Centre. This research is ongoing. If you are in Workforce Australia, Disability Employment Services or a similar program, we welcome any information you are able to share about your experiences.