Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party, Assistant Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

I certainly say we are not tearing up the principle of mutual obligation—absolutely not—and we certainly think that it is in no-one's interests, as I said earlier, to allow young people to leave school and descend into a life of welfare. What I will say is that within these measures, and they are detailed, is that if a young person engages in training they will still be eligible for youth allowance, so there is support for those people engaged in training. For those people who have a work history there is a discount offered against the preclusion period, so for those with a work history who have contributed, the period will be less than six months.

With regard to Work for the Dole, it is a very important program. As I said earlier, when I get around I have employers telling me that young people lack the important skills, those basic skills, that they need to get by in the workplace: simple skills such as turning up on time, having the right attitude, working with colleagues—the sorts of skills that we all take for granted if we have been in the workplace for some time. Unfortunately, many young people, perhaps those who have grown up in a household where there is intergenerational unemployment, lack those basic skills. Work for the Dole offers a great opportunity for young people to achieve those skills.

I recently announced phase 1 of Work for the Dole and we will be making further announcements in due course with regard to the further rollout of Work for the Dole. You are confusing two concepts. What is in the budget relates to phase 1 of Work for the Dole, which is 18 locations around the country with a Work for the Dole program being offered to people between 18 and 30 who will be required to do up to 15 hours a week for a six-month period. It is a very important program that we are rolling out and one that we intend to roll out carefully and methodically.

When I get around it is amazing the positive support that I get for Work for the Dole. You hear very positive remarks from people who have participated in the Work for the Dole program. In fact, I was recently on the Central Coast, north of Sydney, and a participant basically said to me that it gave them a reason to get up in the morning. They said they had had trouble getting up in the morning to attend Work for the Dole for the first couple of weeks of the program, but when they got into the swing of things it gave them a reason to get out of bed.

We have had a recent survey released which showed fairly conclusively that there are significant concerns by employers about the young job seekers that present to their businesses. I will read some of the points. The survey was of 1,151 businesses and it was done by my department. The employers said that making basic adjustments to their attitude and physical presentation is the most effective thing that many young job seekers can do to improve their employment prospects. That is a very important point and I will repeat it: making adjustments to their attitude and physical presentation is the most effective thing that many young job seekers can do to improve their prospects. The survey was quite interesting with regard to a range of attributes: 39 per cent of respondents said that improving attitude would be a very important element; 14 per cent said improving reliability and responsibility; 11 per cent said physical presentation.

These are very basic skills that we take for granted, but they are the sorts of skills that a Work for the Dole placement can give. Not only is the young person learning valuable skills; they are able to contribute to their community, they are able to build self-esteem, they are able to walk away from a program at the end of the six months with a resume or a reference to give to an employer and say, 'This is what I've done, this is what I've achieved, I've had experience in these particular areas'—be it paving or painting or perhaps some construction activity such as building a walkway. They can go to an employer and say, 'I've contributed to my community, I've worked as part of a team, I know what it takes to be in the workplace.' These are the sorts of skills that Work for the Dole can bring. We believe in the program very much, and we believe in the benefits that it can impart to young people.

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