The AUWU is petitioning Ed Husic, the shadow Minister of employment services, to establish a Senate inquiry into the broken job agency system. Please click here to view and sign the petition.
Why is this important?
The $10 billion employment services system is one of the biggest and most socially destructive rorts ever perpetuated against a Federal government
Every day, private job agencies bully unemployed workers into attending dangerous Work for the Dole sites and other unfair activities in order to make a quick buck.
Unemployed workers who refuse to be bullied into one of these unfair activities are penalised.
During 2015/16, job agencies imposed a record 2,114,291 million penalties on unemployed workers – up from 311,622 in 2011.
Many penalties are unfair – 37.5% of unemployed workers who appealed against a penalty had it overturned by Centrelink. Since 2011, the rate of job agency decisions overturned by Centrelink has increased by 15% – a clear sign the system is broken.
The failure of the government to regulate the industry and penalise abusive job agencies has created a culture of fear and intimidation throughout the industry.
The suffering endured by the 900,000 unemployed workers participating in this system is incalculable
The tragic death of Josh Park Fing at his Work for the Dole site in Toowoomba – one of the 64% of WFTD sites that do not meet basic safety standards – is a product of this punitive and broken system.
The punitive job agencies system must be addressed immediately.
A Senate inquiry is the first step. The ALP has the power to make this happen.
Click here to sign the petition.
