A key job agency has called for the scrapping of the punitive mutual obligation system for Australia’s jobseekers, telling a Senate inquiry that such a move would help to reduce poverty and inequality in the country.
The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) told the inquiry that the current system of mutual obligation was “harsh and punitive” and had been ineffective in helping people to find employment.
The inquiry heard that the system had effectively reduced the welfare system to a “paternalistic, bureaucratic form of punishment”, with jobseekers facing harsh penalties if they failed to meet their obligations.
ACOSS argued that a fairer system should be implemented that was based on the principles of respect, dignity and choice. This would involve greater investment in employment services, job training and education, as well as offering more support to people who are unable to work due to ill-health or disability.
The inquiry also heard that the current system of mutual obligation was failing to address the underlying issues of poverty and inequality in Australia. ACOSS argued that a more targeted approach was needed to ensure that people on low incomes had the same opportunities to gain employment as those on higher incomes.
The inquiry was told that the current system was not only failing to reduce poverty, but was actually increasing it. This was because it was creating a “cycle of poverty” whereby people were unable to access the employment services they needed to escape poverty.
ACOSS concluded that the current system of mutual obligation should be scrapped in favour of a fairer system that would provide jobseekers with greater choice and support. This would help to reduce poverty and inequality in Australia and ensure that everyone had the same opportunities to gain employment.