<a href="https://data.oecd.org/chart/4GXg" target="_blank">OECD Chart: Public unemployment spending, Total, % of GDP, Annual, 2000 – 2014</a> Australia’s spending on unemployment benefits as a percentage of GDP (in red), compared to the OECD average.

Acoss and Welfare Rights Network criticise ‘slacker crisis’ report of welfare recipients refusing to take or hold jobs

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Welfare advocates have criticised reports claiming tens of thousands of welfare recipients are refusing job offers or leaving employment without reason as misleading and exaggerated.

News Corp on Monday reported that 35,000 “shameless layabouts” on unemployment benefits either refused to take or hold a job in the 12 months to October, calling it a “slacker crisis”.

Father furious after working daughter labelled 'Aussie bludger' by News Corp tabloid Read more

The data came from the human services minister, Alan Tudge, who said Jobactive providers reported to Centrelink that there were 35,576 instances reported of job seekers refusing to take or hold down a suitable job.

The vast majority, more than 27,000, were then cleared by Centrelink because they had good reason or promised to re-engage.

Publicly available data on jobseeker compliance, published by the Department of Employment, appears to show the number of jobseekers being punished for breaching welfare obligations is decreasing.



In 2015-16 government data shows there were 36,224 non-payment periods for jobseekers who failed to comply with their obligations, the lowest level in four years.

Advocates say the majority of those cases do not relate to a person turning down work or refusing to stay in a job.

ACOSS (@ACOSS) FACTCHECK: Official data shows only 589 serious failures last year or 0.18% of people seeking work https://t.co/9XZJi8JcpD @dailytelegraph

Only an absolute minority of the cases were described as serious failures involving the turning back of a suitable job (589) or choosing not to commence suitable work (458).



About 23,130 of those cases, or 63%, related to “persistent non-compliance”, which is an accrual of three smaller penalties in six months. Persistent non-compliance could, for example, stem from missing three appointments with an employment service provider.

There were roughly 12,000 penalties for voluntary unemployment or unemployment due to misconduct.



National Welfare Rights Network executive officer, Matthew Butt, said it was misleading to use “persistent non-compliance” to gauge the willingness to work or stay in a job.

He said those cases disproportionately involved Indigenous people in remote communities, where jobs were few and far between.



“At least in published data, if we use the number of penalties as a way of measuring how prevalent people actually avoiding work actually is, the numbers are very, very low, and don’t suggest there’s a widespread problem,” Butt said.

“Given the very low rate of Newstart allowance, I think that common sense would tell you that few people would actually choose that level of impoverishment,” he said.

“It is not the experience of our organisation or our members that people choose to be on a poverty-level income support payment. People want to work and they want to participate in the community.”



The Australian Council of Social Service (Acoss) also questioned the data, saying compliance data clearly showed that very few people turned down work.

Acoss policy director Jacqueline Phillips said current Newstart rates were at $38 per day, the lowest in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

“People are much better off in employment than living on Newstart and the vast majority of job seekers move into paid work when they find a suitable job,” Phillips said.

“It’s unclear what data the Daily Telegraph is relying on, but the publicly available compliance data show that very few people are turning down work,” she said.



The government has repeatedly stated its intention to reduce unnecessary welfare expenditure, largely through debt collection.

Press Council rules against Daily Telegraph story on pension 'bludgers' Read more

OECD data, however, shows Australia’s spending on unemployment benefits is actually lower as a percentage of GDP than it was in 2000, and is still well below the OECD average.

News Corp’s report also claimed that “about half” the people aged 18 and over in the New South Wales electorates of Cowper and Blaxland received welfare payments.

The Australian bureau of statistics lists only four areas in Australia having more than 50% unemployment– all remote Indigenous communities. Acoss believes the Cowper and Blaxland claim may rely on the high number of age pensioners in those electorates.

“Where there are regions with high numbers of income support recipients, most recipients are age pensioners,” Phillips said. “In Cowper, age pensioners alone comprise 20% of the electorate, while people on Newstart comprise just 6% of the electorate. In Blaxland, age pensioners and carers make up 21% of the electorate.”

News Corp also published a report over the weekend alleging Centrelink was paying spousal benefits to Muslim families with multiple wives.

Treasurer Scott Morrison said on Monday the government needed to look closely at the allegations.



“The law and its implementation cannot condone polygamy, it’s against our values, it’s 100% wrong,” Morrison said.

“So the extent that there needed to be changes here and I think from what we have heard we have to look really closely at this, but you don’t want to jump out of the frying pan and into the fire.

“You cant have people claiming single parent benefits and they are supported. Our rule is clear - polygamy - not on, against our values, against our culture.”

