Key Points:
- Jobseekers say government-funded services designed to prepare people for work are failing them.
- One jobseeker claimed he was told to ride a pushbike to a city five hours away.
- A federal parliamentary committee is currently reviewing the system.
A Tasmanian jobseeker says he was told he would have to ride a pushbike to a city five hours away to complete a Work for the Dole activity in order to avoid having support payments cut off.
His story comes as a federal joint committee is conducting a review into employment services, with jobseekers, including people with disability, saying the system routinely fails them.
Oliver Brandt first became unemployed after a knee injury forced him to leave his job and seek a career change.
In 2018 he relocated from Queensland to regional Tasmania to be closer to family, completed a Communications degree and went onto JobSeeker while he tried to find work.
During this time, he was assigned to the employment agency APM (Advanced Personnel Management), and attended fortnightly check-ins at the nearest office, which he says took over two hours and $20 each way via public transport as he does not drive.
He said this later increased to completing activities at the APM office four days per week, and after several months he had to complete an activity under the Work for the Dole program.
"I was happy to try, but the only activities were in Hobart, and I had to be there at 8.30 until 5.30 five days a week which literally wasn’t possible on public transport," he told SBS News.
"The area manager accused me of not wanting to work, and said they would supply me with a bike and I could cycle in ... but it would have taken five hours and I would have been leaving home at 3am to bike into Hobart. I couldn't believe it."
Between 2018 and 2021, he says APM staff repeatedly submitted his resume to jobs that were not appropriate for his qualifications or abilities.
On one occasion, he was scheduled for a phone consultation, and when he could not get through, he says his payments were cut off.
Oliver Brandt was unemployed when he moved to regional Tasmania, and says he found jobseeker services to be more of a hindrance than a help. Source: Supplied / Oliver Brandt
"There’s no flexibility in the system and people fall through the cracks," he said.
"It is a humanitarian issue … these are the most vulnerable people in our society that are being failed by the government and Centrelink and everybody in this system."
An APM spokesperson told SBS News they could not comment on the claims due to confidentiality and privacy policies.
How does the system work?
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics' January data, Australia's unemployment rate is 3.5 per cent, meaning 505,000 people are not working, many of whom receive income support.
People who receive income support may have mutual obligations, including participating in an appropriate program such as Disability Employment Services (DES) or Workforce Australia in order to get their payments.
DES providers also need to meet obligations, and provide Job Plans taking into account the job seeker's circumstances, work capacity and personal needs.
The activities in a Job Plan may include undertaking activities designed to address the impacts of the person’s disability, training to develop skills, placements to gain experience, and an appropriate number of job searches.
If a person fails to meet their obligations, they may have payments paused or demerits applied.
Jeremy Poxon, spokesperson for the Australian Unemployed Workers Union, believes some of the most disadvantaged people in the system struggle to keep up with obligations and are being consistently failed.
"There's a huge proportion of people on this payment who are incredibly disadvantaged and vulnerable, and for these organisations to receive government funding, they do have a mandate and are meant to keep that in mind with this clientele," he said.
"But as we're seeing over and over again, people are just getting punished, and those who are getting the most punished are the most disadvantaged, the people most unable to jump through the hoops are copping the most punishment ... it's the opposite of how the system should work."
Is the system helping people?
According to the Department of Social Services, there are 97 DES providers supporting just over 272,000 DES participants nationally.
"Around 42 per cent of these participants are currently in a job or significant education, while others are being supported to find work and build their skills," a DSS spokesperson said.
"Since 1 July 2018, the current DES program has supported over one million Australians with disability into employment."
The spokesperson said participants may contest individual demerits.
"Department of Social Services is not aware of circumstances where a DES provider has applied demerits to a DES participant for no reason," the spokesperson said.
"Payments cannot be cancelled or reduced by provider staff. Any decisions on the reduction or cancellation of payment are made by Services Australia."
A spokesperson for APM told SBS News the agency has supported over 422,000 people and placed more than 111,000 into employment over the last two years.
The spokesperson said APM complies with all requirements, including mutual obligations, as specified in program contracts.
"Our consultants work very hard with our participants to ensure they aren’t penalised or lose payments," the spokesperson said.
Federal Labor MP Julian Hill is chairing a review into the Workforce Australia Employment Services, which is due to present its final report by 29 September.
In a statement issued in December, Mr Hill said the system had failed to effectively engage with jobseekers and employers.
“A well-known definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results. Yet this is what Australia has done for decades now with the employment services system," he said.
"This has led to a system which failed to effectively invest in Australian jobseekers and to support people into sustainable employment, and which has failed to engage and assist the vast majority of employers."
Level of support the 'bare minimum'
Justin Seymour, who has been receiving income support in different forms since he was 16, says he has never received real assistance when it comes to finding suitable work.
Now 28, he experiences chronic pain and mobility issues due to fibromyalgia but had hoped to find work in an industry where he can work remotely or in a hybrid office/home role, such as IT services or administration.
Justin Seymour says he has been frustrated with employment service providers. Source: Supplied / Justin Seymour
He describes the level of support he has received as the "bare minimum", and says his needs have been repeatedly ignored regarding both support trying to find appropriate work and accessing appointments.
Justin says his agents or case workers continue to point him toward jobs in retail or security despite the fact that he "can barely stand for half an hour".
"I am limited to what work I can do, and I don't think I've had anybody actually realise that. There's no consideration of mobility or disability ... mutual obligations don't feel mutual whatsoever."
"I had an agent threaten to apply a demerit to my account if I didn't apply for a retail job, it was terrifying and ridiculous to me that they would even say that."
While is still eager to find work, his hope is depleting.
"I'm sure there are jobs out there that fit me, but at this point, I do not know what that is," he said.
"I'd love to find a job that suits me but I don't have a lot of hope at this point ... I don't see any kind of light at the end of the tunnel. It's sad, and dealing with JSPs (job service provider) really doesn't help, it just makes it seem bleaker."
