Job Plans are a common tool used by Employment Service Providers to manipulate unemployed workers and make them feel ‘locked in’ to an unfair activity. It is common for Employment Providers to pressure unemployed workers to sign these job plans even though they do not adequately reflect the unemployed worker’s circumstances. As shown below, this behaviour clearly in breach of social security law.
1.3 Your Rights to Carefully Consider Your Job Plan
Under the jobactive system, job seekers are entitled to negotiate an appropriate job plan. However, Employment Service Providers are known to threaten unemployed workers with penalties if they do not agree to the terms they want. This is illegal.
Employment Service Providers cannot penalise job seekers for not signing their job plan on the first appointment. Job seekers can only be penalised for not signing the Job Plan after the second appointment.
As noted in the Job Seeker Compliance Framework Guideline, a failure to enter into a vary a job plan penalty is submitted:
when the job seeker attended their Appointment but did not enter into a Job Plan or did not agree to their Job Plan on the Australian JobSearch website in the required timeframe. DHS will investigate the incident with the job seeker and will book another Appointment with their Provider for them to sign the Job Plan. If the first failure is applied by DHS and the job seeker again refuses to enter into/vary their Job Plan, an ongoing failure to meet a condition of their payment may exist. If DHS confirms this, the job seeker’s payment may be cancelled from the date of the second refusal
This means that job seeker have to right to take the Job Plan home read it over carefully, and get advise if necessary. This is known as ‘Think Time’:
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Job Plan Guideline, p. 8
1.3.1 Negotiating a Fair Job Plan
Providers must consider the job seeker’s individual circumstances, including their work capacity where relevant, personal needs, caring responsibilities and capacity to comply with the requirements. According to the Job Plan Guideline:
When setting and approving the terms of a job seeker’s Job Plan, (including those without Mutual Obligation Requirements) the Provider must take into account the following: • the job seeker’s individual circumstances, in particular their assessed work capacity (where relevant), their capacity to comply with the requirements and their personal needs • the job seeker’s education, experience, skills and age • the impact of any disability, illness, mental condition or physical condition of the person on the person’s ability to work, to look for work or to participate in activities • the state of the local labour market and the transport options available to the person in accessing that market • the participation opportunities available to the person • the family and caring responsibilities of the person (including availability of child care) • the length of travel time required to comply with the requirements (90 minutes each way or 60 minutes if the job seeker is a principal carer parent or has a Partial Capacity to Work)
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Job Plan Guideline, pp. 3-4
1.3.2 Updating your Job Pan due to Changing Circumstances
If the unemployed worker’s job plan does not accurately reflect their situation, Employment Service Providers are obliged by law to change it immediately.
The Job Plan must be regularly updated and must take into consideration the job seeker’s individual circumstances, including whether they have part-time or full-time Mutual Obligation Requirements.
An initial Job Plan must be created at the Initial Interview with a job seeker to enable Commencement in Services.
Providers must regularly review (and as required, update) the Job Plan, including:• when the job seeker’s circumstances change
• when the job seeker enters into a new phase of their Stream
• when the job seeker enters in to a new Stream
• when the job seeker completes an Activity that was in their Job Plan
• if the job seeker decides to undertake a Compliance Activity in order to avoid an eight-week non-payment penalty under the job seeker compliance framework.Even if there is no obvious change in a job seeker’s circumstances, the content of their Job Plan should be reviewed regularly to ensure that all requirements are up to date and remain relevant.
Job Plan Guideline, pp. 2-3
1.3.3 Ensuring your limited Work Capacity is Recognised
Some job seekers may have vocational or non-vocational issues or an assessed partial or reduced work capacity. These will generally be identified by an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt), a Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) or through the Job Seeker Classification Instrument (JSCI). • For job seekers with Mutual Obligation Requirements the Provider must review the job seeker’s identified issues and determine activities that will best help them address or sufficiently manage these issues, and ensure the job seeker can simultaneously meet their Mutual Obligation Requirements, including their Annual Activity Requirement. See the Mutual Obligation Requirements (including Annual Activity Requirements) Guideline for additional information. For Fully Eligible Participants who are accessing Services on a voluntary basis, the Provider should consider the job seeker’s individual circumstances, personal needs and capacity to undertake activities. For further information see below – What should be included in a voluntary Job Plan? Providers must consider the job seeker’s assessed work capacity. The activities in the Job Plan must not place unreasonable demands on the job seeker. The job seeker must be capable of undertaking any Activity or requirements included in a Job Plan. If a job seeker cannot reasonably undertake an Activity (or a combination of activities), then that Activity (or combination of activities) must not be included in their Job Plan. |
Job Plan Guideline, p. 4
1.3.4 What must not be Included in a Job Plan
Under the Social Security Law, the following items must not be included in a Job Plan: • an Activity that would aggravate an illness, disability or injury • a requirement that the job seeker undertake an Activity where the appropriate support or facilities (that take account of a person’s illness, disability or injury) are unavailable • a requirement that the job seeker involuntarily undergo medical, psychiatric or psychological treatment (Note: The initial Assessment can be included as compulsory but ongoing treatment may only be included as voluntary) • an Activity involved in the sex or adult entertainment industry an unlawful activity, including an Activity that would contravene Commonwealth, state or territory laws relating to discrimination or workplace health and safety • an Activity outside of Australia • a requirement that the job seeker participate or otherwise be involved in a criminal activity
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Job Plan Guideline, pp. 2-3