Fed: Union says Centrelink review uses workers as falll guys

AAP General News (Australia)
08-13-2001
Fed: Union says Centrelink review uses workers as falll guys

CANBERRA, Aug 13 AAP - A government review of Centrelink was a furphy aimed at blaming
staff for high numbers of unemployed people being kicked off benefits, unions said today.

Community Services Minister Larry Anthony announced an internal review of welfare procedures
today after a report said harsh penalties and red tape caught 350,000 of Australia's most
vulnerable people - the homeless, mentally ill, brain damaged, illiterate, youth and indigenous
people.

Australian Council of Social Service and the National Welfare Rights Network research
found social security breaches clawed back $259 million annually from welfare recipients,
who faced penalties of up to $1,431.

Mr Anthony said Centrelink had flexibility to take account of individual circumstances
such as mental illness or homelessness.

But the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) said the government did not allow
Centrelink staff any discretion and punished them for not following strict breaching rules.

"That's a furphy, that's a complete red herring by the Minister," CPSU community services
section secretary Mark Gepp said.

"The minister knows that it is his government that established these policies, Centrelink
do not have any discretion in the application of the policies."

"They are only too happy to sit back and see Centrelink act as the fall guys and say
`well, we didn't know Centrelink were doing this'."

Mr Gepp said government quotas required Centrelink staff investigate 60 per cent of
possible breaches notified by Job Network agencies, and uphold 75 per cent of them.

"A homeless person can be breached - kicked off payments - if they don't respond to
a particular letter that the government sends them via Centrelink," he said.

"So if they're homeless they're unlikely to get that letter, and the government's rules
are that's unacceptable, they should be breached."

AAP kmh/sw/vr/br

KEYWORD: BREACHES CPSU

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