Soaring rents have made living alone impossible for Australia’s essential workers: new research shows some would have to spend around two-thirds of their income to afford a place on their own.
Comparing the average weekly unit rents against award wages for 15 essential jobs, the national housing campaign Everybody’s Home found there were virtually no regions of Australia where a single full-time essential worker, such as those in aged care, early childhood or nursing, could afford to rent by themselves.
“So many essential industries are facing workforce shortages with workers unable to afford to stay or move to parts of the country where these shortages are at their worst,” Everybody’s Home spokesperson Maiy Azize said.
For a worker in hospitality or meat packing to meet the average capital city rent of $572 a week, they would have to spend 81% of their pay on housing, for an aged care worker it would be 77%.
Even those on higher pay, like teachers and firefighters, would have to spend 58% of their average pay on rent – well above the 30% threshold for rental stress to afford the average capital city rent.
“Our calculations suggest that essential workers in single households are likely to be in serious financial stress with little or no savings buffer, while workers in coupled households are likely to be financially dependent on a partner’s income,” the report said.
In the past three years, typical rents across the country have gone up by more than $100 a week, hitting $489 in March, according to SQM Research. For essential workers, that means they’ve lost an average of six hours from their weekly income – an average of 37 days each year – on rent increases.
While the government has promised 20,000 social housing properties in five years, as part of its Housing Australia Future Fund, it will not match the scale of the crisis, Azize said.
“The federal government must start building 25,000 social homes every year to end our shortfall,” she said.
“That will help workers in severe rental stress, and free up affordable rentals for everyone else. The government can fund those social homes by winding back handouts for investors and landlords.”
In some cases, employers are filling the gap. Benetas, an aged care provider in Victoria turned four independent living units in Bendigo into temporary accommodation for employees struggling to pay local rent or travelling large distances.
“Some [of our staff] were travelling over 1.5 hours to come to work, some of them were staying on Airbnbs – when you’re on $26 an hour, that doesn’t go far,” said the CEO of Benetas, Sandra Hills.
The company has also been writing rental references for workers, which has been less effective as agents choose people who can pay more, she said.
“With the challenges of rental affordability, particularly in regional areas, we are struggling to attract and keep really good carers in our aged care homes,” she said.
