ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY REPORT:
Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
30 Mar 2012
Dr John Falzon, CEO of St Vincent de Paul Society's National Council says unemployment benefits for Australians are not only the lowest in the OECD but are forcing people into poverty.
"You don't help people get into jobs by forcing them into poverty. But leaving unemployment benefits at $35 a day is exactly what the Government is doing," he says.
Federal Treasure Wayne Swan has warned of a tough budget and predicts severe cuts to Government services and programs in a bid to fulfil Labor's election promise to produce a surplus by 2012-13. But despite speaking at the opening of this year's Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) annual Conference yesterday with its focus on the worsening plight of Australia's half million unemployed, he and others in the Government made no move to address the issue or respond to lobbying by welfare agencies across Australia for unemployment benefits to be increased.
"There has been no increase in the Newstart allowance since 1994," Dr Falzon says, joining more than 50 member organisations of ACOSS and their call for a long overdue rise in the Newstart allowance.
Currently the allowance is less than $245 per week or less than half the Australian minimum wage which currently stands at $589 per week.
Research has found that not only is the Newstart allowance forcing people to live below the poverty line but for more than two thirds of those on the allowance a third or more is used for rent and housing costs, leaving less than $20 a day for food, electricity and phone bills, clothing, healthcare, bus and train fares and clothing.
"Surviving on $245 a week must be a humbling if not traumatic experience," says former chief of Western Mining and one time president of the Business Council of Australia, Henry Morgan while Heather Ridout, outgoing CEO of the Australian Industry Group and newly appointed member of the Reserve Bank describes the Newstart allowance as inadequate "and unable t o cover even the most basic living costs."
The theme of this year's ACOSS conference, "Sharing the Wealth of the Lucky Country", is a bid to highlight the plight of Australia's unemployed and their worsening situation.
Treasurer Swan expanded on the theme in his opening address to the Conference with many references to the benefit to all Australians from the tax on mining companies which will come into force on 1 July this year. But the bonanza reaped while adding to planned reductions in corporate tax and the Future Fund does not include an increase to $50 a day for the Newstart.
ACOSS member organisations attending the conference included St Vincent de Paul Society, Catholic Social Services, the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, the Australian Red Cross, Mission Australia, Homelessness Australia, the Salvation Army, Anglicare, Uniting Care and the Smith Family. All have spoken about the rise in the number of families and individuals turning to agencies such as Vinnies for food vouchers and financial help with electricity and utility bills, rent and other expenses.
"We know the key indicators of financial stress include being able to pay bills on time and save for a rainy day, and it is heartbreaking to see more and more people struggling to do this," says Dr Falzon and cited the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics which found that close to 31% of low economic resourced households have been unable to pay their utility bills on time over the past 12 months, with a further 10% of these households forced to see assistance from welfare and community organisations.
"Rising poverty across Australia is a major concern," says Dr Cassandra Goldie, CEO of ACOSS. "We've known for a long time the Newstart allowance is low but there is now a growing consensus that the allowance is no longer sustainable, and simply cannot be allowed to continue, especially if we want to avoid greater levels of poverty in our country."
Experts and researchers will present new studies that show how allowances such as Newstart and Sole Parenting payments now lag $133 per week behind pension payments and are driving more and more people into poverty.
"Unemployment can happen to anyone. You shouldn't have to live in poverty if it does," says Dr Goldie and will join member organisations to lobby the Government to increase Newstart from $35 to $50 per day and to index all future rises be linked to increases in wages not price rises.
To illustrate the difficulty of surviving on $35 a day, ACOSS made a list of what could be bought for this amount. What they came up with was half a tank of petrol or 1 pair of school or work shoes, or one day's worth of family groceries or one weekly bus or train ticket.
Speakers at the ACOSS Conference which concludes this evening include Federal Minister for Health, Tanya Plibersek, Sky News political editor, David Speers, Tim Costello of World Vision, Lesley Hall of the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations and Jennifer Westacott of the Business Council of Australia.
SHARED FROM ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY
Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
30 Mar 2012
Collecting the dole is demoralising
and many lose confidence
and their self esteem
and many lose confidence
and their self esteem
"You don't help people get into jobs by forcing them into poverty. But leaving unemployment benefits at $35 a day is exactly what the Government is doing," he says.
Federal Treasure Wayne Swan has warned of a tough budget and predicts severe cuts to Government services and programs in a bid to fulfil Labor's election promise to produce a surplus by 2012-13. But despite speaking at the opening of this year's Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) annual Conference yesterday with its focus on the worsening plight of Australia's half million unemployed, he and others in the Government made no move to address the issue or respond to lobbying by welfare agencies across Australia for unemployment benefits to be increased.
"There has been no increase in the Newstart allowance since 1994," Dr Falzon says, joining more than 50 member organisations of ACOSS and their call for a long overdue rise in the Newstart allowance.
Currently the allowance is less than $245 per week or less than half the Australian minimum wage which currently stands at $589 per week.
Research has found that not only is the Newstart allowance forcing people to live below the poverty line but for more than two thirds of those on the allowance a third or more is used for rent and housing costs, leaving less than $20 a day for food, electricity and phone bills, clothing, healthcare, bus and train fares and clothing.
The cost of a family's
weekly supermarket shop
has escalated over the past year
weekly supermarket shop
has escalated over the past year
The theme of this year's ACOSS conference, "Sharing the Wealth of the Lucky Country", is a bid to highlight the plight of Australia's unemployed and their worsening situation.
Treasurer Swan expanded on the theme in his opening address to the Conference with many references to the benefit to all Australians from the tax on mining companies which will come into force on 1 July this year. But the bonanza reaped while adding to planned reductions in corporate tax and the Future Fund does not include an increase to $50 a day for the Newstart.
105,000 Australians are
currently homeless
currently homeless
"We know the key indicators of financial stress include being able to pay bills on time and save for a rainy day, and it is heartbreaking to see more and more people struggling to do this," says Dr Falzon and cited the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics which found that close to 31% of low economic resourced households have been unable to pay their utility bills on time over the past 12 months, with a further 10% of these households forced to see assistance from welfare and community organisations.
"Rising poverty across Australia is a major concern," says Dr Cassandra Goldie, CEO of ACOSS. "We've known for a long time the Newstart allowance is low but there is now a growing consensus that the allowance is no longer sustainable, and simply cannot be allowed to continue, especially if we want to avoid greater levels of poverty in our country."
Experts and researchers will present new studies that show how allowances such as Newstart and Sole Parenting payments now lag $133 per week behind pension payments and are driving more and more people into poverty.
Dr John Falzon, CEO St Vincent de Paul Society
To illustrate the difficulty of surviving on $35 a day, ACOSS made a list of what could be bought for this amount. What they came up with was half a tank of petrol or 1 pair of school or work shoes, or one day's worth of family groceries or one weekly bus or train ticket.
Speakers at the ACOSS Conference which concludes this evening include Federal Minister for Health, Tanya Plibersek, Sky News political editor, David Speers, Tim Costello of World Vision, Lesley Hall of the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations and Jennifer Westacott of the Business Council of Australia.
SHARED FROM ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY
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