The lived experience of welfare reform: stories from the field Sally Cowling - UnitingCare Burnside John Bellamy - Anglicare Sydney

Introduction Research supported by ARACY seed funding Forum of senior field staff (January 2008) Impact of welfare reform on families having:  complex needs  multi-layered disadvantage  multiple systems to deal with

Policy context New mutual obligation demands for Parenting Payment Parenting Payments v Newstart Allowance Erosion of conditions in low-wage jobs Increased ‘precariousness’ of employment Welfare quarantining to come

Reflections on the ‘lived experience’ Government systems (Federal & State) in conflict Impacts of competing goals and demands on parents Relevant systems include:  child protection  education and training  public housing  employment services  income support

Child protection DoCS places demands (e.g. counselling) on parents These may clash with activity-testing requirements “Lose my benefits or lose my children” System goals and demands in conflict

Education Increasing suspensions of ‘difficult’ children Schools assume availability of parents/carers Employers assume parents can readily change hours Additional demands on parents under stress

Vocational education and training (VET) Few parents have formal qualifications or skills Access to VET critical Barriers to participation include rising costs of:  child care  accommodation  transport

Transport and child care Lack of public transport (especially in regional areas) Low paid jobs with non-standard or variable hours Child care unavailable or unaffordable Cobbling together a ‘patchwork’ of care Children with special needs – additional demands

Employment services Poorly integrated Failure to address barriers flowing from:  lack of jobs, support networks and trust  limited education  poor emotional and coping skills Inappropriate assessment and compliance focused Long PSP waiting lists

Assuming advocacy skills Shift to complaints-based systems Assume the knowledge and confidence for navigation Caseworkers frustrated by reduced ability to advocate Centrelink approaches and appeals problematic Failures exist in systems themselves

Access to affordable housing Public housing tenants reticent about employment More affordable housing → weaker labour markets Redevelopment of public housing estates Parents and children dislocated from:  support services  social networks  schools

Shaping a research agenda Research should identify:  systemic failures  impact on families of competing policy goals  ways policy discords can be addressed Detailed case studies will be important

Shaping a research agenda Cost-benefit analysis of system conflict What are the costs of system failure? What is the return from investing in good supports? What are the savings in relation to advocacy?

Shaping a research agenda Directions for a new welfare to work agenda The need for flexible, tailored responses Services to promote employment AND well-being Creating family friendly jobs for all workers Consider the role and meaning of work

Shaping a research agenda Evaluating welfare quarantining (IMR) The need for capacity-building initiatives Will quarantining diminish trust? The quarantining ethos v social inclusion Creating dependence v supporting interdependence

Conclusion Staff forum identified system failures & contradictions Most systems provide simplistic and rigid responses Impose unnecessary harm on those most in need Promote understanding of parents’ circumstances Advocacy opportunities within:  social inclusion debates  COAG working groups Need for compassionate and humane policies & services

Conclusion Attending to the welfare of people whose lives and relationships may be difficult or complex requires that we make connections between the security needs of those who can’t (for the present) work, and the life needs of those who (at least potentially) can. A more holistic approach might entail identifying not those ‘at risk’ of long-term dependency, but those ‘in need’ of long term support if indeed they are to be enabled to engage with the labour market. Hartley Dean (2003)