Classifying and categorising unemployment in Australia

1
Classifying and categorising unemployment in
Australia

• Greg Marston, Senior Lecturer and Director
• Social Policy Unit
• School of Social work and Human Services,
• The University of Queensland,
• Australia.
• g.marston_at_uq.edu.au

2
The Context

• Australia has moved from a full-employment to a
  full-employability model over the past fifty
  years.
• Australia has implemented various forms of
  workfare policies over the past decade (eg Work
  for the Dole)
• Official unemployment levels are relatively low
  (5), but those remaining in the unemployment
  queue are the hardest to place.
• Employment Assistance privatized since 1998 with
  establishment of Job Network (mixed economy
  approach quasi market contract/tendering
  approach). Similar to Holland.
• Rudd Labor Government elected in December 2007.
  New Government has indicated it will keep the
  quasi-market model and workfare programs. The
  classification tools will be reviewed.

3
Major Policy Changes in Aust.

• Mutual obligation policies since 1997 (work for
  the dole initially targeted at young unemployed
  people, sanctions for non-compliance)
• Welfare-to-Work policies since July 2006
• Aimed at four groups sole parents on single
  parenting payment Mature aged unemployed people
  (aged over 50) People with disabilities on
  pension and Long-term unemployed.
• Policy based on work- first principles.
• People who apply for Disability Support Pension
  subject to job capacity test (of being able to
  work 15 hours per week, previously 30 hours per
  week)
• Single parents when youngest child turns 6-8
  (moved from Parenting Payment Single to Newstart
  Allowance, previously youngest child turned 16
  move to unemployment payments)

4
Administering unemployment

• Centrelink (govt)
• (income support payments administer JSCI and
  sanctions for noncompliance

Unemployed person (job seeker)
JSCI two streams highly disadvantaged
around 10 or work ready (90)
Labour Market
Job Network agencies (non-profits, for profits)
Personal Support Program Vocational rehab Job
Search training
5
Classification and assessment of unemployment in
Australia

• Means tested social security benefits
  (assets/income tests)
• Risk Assessment tools for level of employment
  assistance
• Job Seeker Classification Instrument (JSCI)
• Job Capacity Assessment (people with
  disabilities)
• Employment services have their own assessment
  tools
• Features of the system
• Technologically driven (screen level
  bureaucrats, less role for street level
  bureaucrat discretion)
• Aim is to improve cost-effectiveness and make
  assessment more objective

6
Weighted Factors Job Seeker Classification
Instrument (JSCI)

• Age and Gender
• Language and Literacy
• Disability or Medical condition
• Recency of work Experience
• Stability of Residence
• Educational Attainment
• Disclosed Ex-Offender
• Personal Characteristics
• Indigenous/Australian Born South Sea Islander
  Status
• Country of Birth
• Geographic location
• Vocational Qualifications
• Family Status and Living Arrangments
• Contactability
• Rural Indigenous

7
JSCI - Personal Characteristics

• Low motivation/self confidence/self esteem
• Personal presentation which may adversely affect
  their ability to secure employment
• Psychological problems (aggressive behavior,
  depression, anxiety, grief, family difficulties)
• Substance abuse problems
• Experience of torture or trauma
• (0 points no impact, 3 points low impact, 6
  points for medium impact 8 points for high impact)

8
Criticisms of the Assessment/classification
Process

• JSCI might be more cost-effective, but not very
  effective at identifying structural barriers to
  employment.
• Some Job Network providers are reluctant to
  review and update the JSCI for fear that they may
  be accused of inappropriate action by contract
  managers in government.
• Quantitative risk assessment tools transform
  the social relation of unemployment into a
  statistical score.
• Misclassification Assessment relies on accurate
  disclosure when there often is very little trust
  between job-seeker and the Centrelink
  (statutory authority). Episodic mental health
  issues often missed.
• Competing interests Job Network providers have
  an interest in overestimating distance from
  labour market, while the government (purchasers)
  have an interest in underestimating distance from
  the labour market.

9
Some alternative principles

• More choice and exit options for job-seekers
  (Most unemployed make a decision about providers
  on the basis of convenience, not quality).
• Less administration, more client service.
• Strengthen appeal and procedural rights.
• Life-first, not work first care/education
  (Dean, 2006).

10
Some practical steps - assessment

• Need to allow more time for application of JSCI
  and put in place system for continuous
  improvement (review of variations in JSCI scores
  to see what patterns emerge).
• Ensure appropriate training as a lot depends on
  initial screening and skills/experience of the
  interviewer (alarming increase in numbers of JSCI
  assessments being done over the phone in
  Australia)
• Encouraging advocates to be present during the
  initial assessment process.

11
How might we theorise these shifts?

• As a governmental practice (reasserting sovereign
  power of the state with self-disciplinary
  practices of activation policies and programs)
• As an illustration of the great risk shift
  (Hacker, 2005)
• As the inevitable consequence of New Public
  Management approaches to human services industry
  (influence of public choice theory).
• As a change in welfare state administration
  (de-professionalisation, hyper-survelliance of
  the poor)