Welfare advocates have renewed calls for the Labor government to drop the work for the dole program after one of the country’s most well-known not-for-profits announced it was cutting ties with the scheme over concerns it pushes participants into hardship.
The Brotherhood of St Laurence announced this week it would no longer participate or use jobseekers from the program, saying it is “not in the best interests of people who are unemployed”.
“If people do not engage when required, their payments may be suspended,” the organisation said in a statement.
“As unemployment payments are already well below the poverty line, this pushes people into even greater hardship.”
Some jobseekers are required to do a work for the dole activity which sees them placed at a government or not-for-profit organisation as part of their mutual obligations.
Mutual obligation requirements are meant to ensure jobseekers are actively looking for work by making them study courses, attend interviews, meet job providers or work for the dole. If they do not complete the tasks their payments are suspended.
In a statement, the Brotherhood of St Laurence referred to a recent house select committee report into Workforce Australia Employment Services which found that, for most people, work for the dole “does not increase employability, fails to enable social participation, and creates safety risks in some cases”.
The report called for an overhaul but stopped short of recommending the program be stopped altogether, instead saying it was a last resort for a “small minority of people” who fail to “meaningfully engage”.
BSL said it “believes in supporting agency and choice and using the best available evidence to improve outcomes – work for the dole is not consistent with this way of working”.
“Through our advocacy, we are seeking improvements to the employment services system and the replacement of programs like work for the dole with meaningful support for people who are unemployed.”
As of December last year, there were 361 host organisations and 1,157 jobseekers signed up to the program.
The federal minister for employment and workplace relations, Tony Burke, and the assistant minister, Andrew Leigh, did not respond to questions about the program but a spokesperson for the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations said it would continue to work with providers about issues outlined in the report.
“It is vital we continue to provide, and improve, services and support to our clients to help them meet their goals and move towards employment,” the spokesperson said.
“This includes ensuring that services, supports and requirements are personalised to reflect each client’s needs and circumstances.”
The government is carefully considering the findings and recommendations of the inquiry report, the spokesperson said, noting that the house select committee did not recommend ending the work for the dole program.
Antipoverty Centre spokesperson Jay Coonan called on Burke to end the program.
“ Why is the government making anyone work for free, let alone people who live hundreds of dollars a week below the poverty line?” he said.
“This is a program that killed Josh Park-Fing and eight years on there has still been no justice.”
Park-Fing, 18, was killed while working for the dole after he fell from a trailer and suffered a fatal head injury in 2016.
The chief executive of Acoss, Cassandra Goldie, said “instead of penalising people who are unemployed, the government should offer an annual jobs and training package to people who are without paid work long term”.
“This should include a wage subsidy, quality training, a job offer or health and social supports tailored to individual need. We also cannot reform employment services without raising the punishingly low rate of jobseeker and related income support payments to at least the pension rate of $78 a day.”
Guardian Australia contacted the Salvation Army and Lifeline regarding their engagement with the program but did not receive responses.
The national president of St Vincent de Paul Society, Mark Gaetani, said his organisation agreed there were “significant and numerous” issues with the program.
He said the government should overhaul work for the dole so it worked better for participants.
“We urge the government to respond promptly to the inquiry’s extensive recommendations as these workforce-related practices affect the lives of many Australians who are doing it tough,” he said.
