Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So often in this place we seem to major in the minors, debating the small things, but there really are a couple of public sector issues that separate the two major parties. One of them is the approach to Work for the Dole. It has been anathema to the Labor Party, who traditionally regarded the activity as being the undermining of entry-level and low-wage jobs, but in reality we know that is not true. In reality, if you have actually worked in a small business, you would understand that taking on a Work for the Dole employee is completely different from taking on the highest performing and most impressive person at job interview and that the former definitely need high levels of support, care and training and that there are significant on-costs over and above those for a normal employee.

So to every small business out there, to every NGO and to every government entity that takes on a Work for the Dole worker, I just want to say from Canberra: thank you. There were 150,000 young Australians in Work for the Dole; that was eroded to 17,000 at the end of Labor's period. That is purely ideology. It is very much the 'let it rip' entitlement mentality to welfare that we have had for the last six years, which has to come to an end. I have made those comments very clearly in the Queensland and national press. It was all about welfare on tap for six years and there was no accountability for those payments. Well, I am sorry to say that that time has come to an end. Now there will be mandatory activity requirements for young people in good health who are not primary caregivers, and Australians would expect that—whether it is Drought Force, whether it is environmental programs or whether it is work experience.

Certainly it is the strong view of a significant number of the coalition backbench that that opportunity has to be expanded to the private sector ultimately—to those hundreds of thousands of small business owners with non-unionised workforces who spend their entire time poring over spreadsheets and delivering services to real employment to the economy. They are vital partners in the Work for the Dole experience. I have nothing against a job in government or with an NGO, but ultimately it is a small business employer who is a full-time supervisor of his staff. It is a small business employer who can provide cheek-by-jowl experience with real work. To the NGOs who give great support to their clients, I say thank you, but you are only three per cent of GDP. To the rest of the economy, we need to have young Australians getting their first foothold in a flavour of employment, and often that is working for one's dole. I congratulate the minister for the trials in 18 locations where we now have 4,300 participants, but we are a long way short of 150,000.

The Department of Human Services tell us that there are 700,000 young Australians under 30 who are forced to either work, study or train, or otherwise receive some form of income support. I do not regard chasing job interviews as activity. I do not regard finding the minimum way to get your payment as adequate. I want to see young Australians with a chance in life, and so often that can begin with work for the dole in the private sector.