03:15

The government is facing calls to extend its temporary suspension of welfare mutual obligations beyond next week, as Labor and the Greens warn of the risks of compulsory job-centre meetings during the coronavirus pandemic.

But the employment minister, Michaelia Cash, has declined to say whether the government still intended to resume the requirements for jobseekers on 27 April.

The opposition on Tuesday joined calls from the Greens senator Rachel Siewert that welfare recipients should be spared obligations such as in-person appointments with employment service providers while most states remained in lockdown.

Labor frontbenchers Brendan O’Connor, Linda Burney and Louise Pratt said in a statement:



While there should be a resumption of mutual obligation when it is safe to do so, we believe the current arrangements should continue as long as community restrictions are in place.

Siewert wrote to Cash on Monday asking her to suspend Centrelink obligations for six months. She said:

Now is not the time to be penalising people and suspending their payments for choosing not to put their safety at risk by requiring them to attend appointments and face-to-face meetings.

The employment services system is likely to face near unprecedented strain in coming months after Scott Morrison revealed that more than 500,000 jobseeker payment claims had been processed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Those new dole recipients likely add to an existing group of about 700,000 people who were receiving the equivalent payment, formerly known as Newstart, in December.

The suspension of mutual obligations means welfare recipients do not have their payments cut off for failing to attend meetings with employment service providers or complete a certain number of job applications.

Before temporarily suspending obligations in the middle of a Centrelink tech meltdown, Cash announced the requirements would be significantly relaxed.

A spokesman for Cash said on Tuesday:

